As a publisher, how do you respond when your link or site does not work for a specific viewer?

January 17th, 2011

Lately, I’ve been experiencing situations where links, sites, etc.  Don’t always work for people I send emails to.

For most of the 2000’s, we lived in the world of Microsoft XP and Microsoft Explorer.  Yes, people used Firefox or Mac’s, but if they did, you as a content creator could shrug your shoulders and say…. Well, that’s your issue.   But today, we have multiple browsers, Chrome, Safari etc., mobile browsers, even different operating systems (Android, Blackberry etc).  Even in the Microsoft world there is Vista and Windows 7. Additionally, with YouTube for example, there are internal links on the channel, that can’t be shared on the outside.

Often, there is a pretty simple fix.  If you are a receiver of the link let the author know.  If you are an author, take it to heart and try to figure out the fix. It’s not a perfect world, but innovation rarely is.

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Should I put videos on YouTube or on my website?

November 5th, 2010


Mark Goodman

Many companies are updating their websites. At the same time, they are considering using video to drive customer awareness and lower the cost of reaching users and prospects. As we talk to marketing and web folks, there appears to be some uncertainty as to using the public repositories, such asYouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, etc., or keeping videos on the website.

Some web developers feel that videos should be on the website. Their idea is to get users to a website, and keep them there. The risk they see to using a public repository is that you will either not get to the website, or be drawn off of the website to some place else.

On the other hand, if you don’t participate in public repositories, like YouTube, you are running the risk of not being found with search. Plus, YouTube will recommend your videos to other viewers. Not being there means you won’t be visible.

Think about being in both places. John Fairley, a noted web developer, noted that “being on YouTube is like a billboard, while being on a website is having a sign in your store”.

If you design your channel appropriately, you should be able to drive traffic to your website – today’s internet user looks for content in many veues. They will find your website if they are interested in your product. Finally, a well designed channel will be able to keep your viewer with your content, as opposed to recommending someone else’s.

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How to get a full color ad on Google on page one of a search

October 31st, 2010

For today’s businesses, the first page of search results for your company name are absolutely critical. On the most basic level, your company’s website should be the top result. But what about the rest of the page?

The rest of the page may actually be more important. This is because in most cases a company’s website serves as the first level of validation for a potential buyer. Creating a website that effectively answers your customers’ questions and portrays your company’s professional image takes effort, but in some ways it is “the easy part”, as it’s the part that you have the most control over.

From there, your potential buyer will look at the rest of the page to “check you out”. They will look for customer experiences on third-party website such as Yelp, and they will look to see if articles or other accounts of your company appear. So, how can you control more “first page real estate” without spending thousands of dollars of AdWords campaigns?

Consider this image from the first page of search results for “Porte Brown”:

So, when someone goes to Google “Porte Brown” to check out the firm, even if they don’t click the video, they will see the only full color ad you can place on Google.

It’s just another neat benefit of the Search Optimized Video process.

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QR Code Series Part 2: Standards battles

October 20th, 2010


Mark Goodman

If you couldn’t already tell, we really like QR codes. They are a great way to link your print campaign to the e-content world. You can scan the code with your smartphone and it links you directly to web content.

They are a perfect way to get your print readers to a short video showcasing your expertise…. consider this one that links to one of our videos on creating an e-network:



But, these are also QR codes. They require different readers….







So, why so many?

I have been through standards battles before. When something new comes out, there are choices. Each choice has its advantages and disadvantages. Some choices are visible to users, such as VHS vs. Beta; or your choice in various video game players. Others are invisible, like GSM vs. CDMA.

I am not going to discuss the advantages of each QR code option. While it may be frustrating to you as a user, (you will have to download several readers to fully take advantage of the technology) have some patience. Premature selection of a standard can create a solution that may have ongoing issues. One example is WiFi.

For many years, the Motorola engineers fought the idea of people using WiFi for voice. In reality, the standard worked well for data, but not voice. But, it was the standard and became ubiquitous. Companies like (SKYPE, Vonage etc) had to figure out a way to make it work.

We will see what happens. We may evolve into a standard; a viewer may be created that will read all of the different codes or you as the user will have to continue to manage the diversity. For now, the most important task for users is to get involved. There is nothing like a robust market demand to help “make it work”.

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What does your elevator pitch have to do with your social media strategy?

October 13th, 2010


Mark Goodman

We were part of a workshop today for one of the major community banks in the Chicago area. One of the other presenters started out talking about creating an elevator speech for your business. I followed with a presentation on Search Optimized Video, and creating an e-Conversation.

When doing presentations on social media, we focus on creating the content, answering customer questions, managing a dialogue. How does the elevator speech fit?

Your dialogue should be consistent with your elevator speech. What you tweet, blog, post videos etc, should be checked against your elevator speech.

So here is the e-Conversation Solutions elevator speech:

e-Conversation Solutions creates Search Optimized Video (SOV) answer segments that showcase your company’s expertise. These segments are designed to serve as the cornerstone to a multi-faceted integrated social media effort that can include your website, print, electronic and personal marketing efforts. Our answer segments stand out, build trust, and are over 50 times more likely to show up on the first page of search results than text.

Does this blog posting fit this speech?

So, next time you tweet about being frustrated with air travel, or post a video of your staff picnic, sit back and look at your elevator speech.

If it doesn’t fit, you might reconsider your posting.

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Get YouTube to make your sales presentations for you!

September 27th, 2010


Mark Goodman

This morning I spent some time running through the analytics that are provided by YouTube. The challenge with analytics is not getting the information, but drawing wisdom out of the tons of information that you receive.

I was looking at one of the channels that we built, that gets over 100 views a day. For the last month, 28% of all of the views came from related videos. That means that a viewer was watching a YouTube video (in most cases was from another channel); then chose to watch a video from this channel afterwards.

When you watch a video, additional videos come up on the right and then at the end. If the viewer is looking for more, YouTube chooses your content as a recommendation

An instant referral.

I have worked in organizations where the sales team has been pushed to make one or two presentations every day. In this channel, YouTube is making an average of 25 to 30 presentations every day.

The results for this organization? Sales for one key product line is up 19% year over year. Another line is up over 6%.

So, if you build a channel, they will come. But it’s not a short term effort. This organization has been working at it for over a year. Has over 300 videos up. But over time, has a relationship with YouTube that allows for their solutions to be recommended hundreds of times each month.

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Can You Create Search Optimized Video Yourself?

September 24th, 2010


Mark Goodman

We sometimes get asked, “Why should I pay e-Conversation Solutions to do videos for my company… can’t I just do this myself?”

It depends. First, think about the message you are trying to get across. If you are looking to convey a personal message/experience, doing it yourself can work fine. For example, I am working on building messaging materials for an owner of a condo in Maui. We spent the last week documenting the condo experience. Here are a couple of “do it yourself” iPhone pictures:


Maui Sunset. Wouldn’t you just love to sit outside in the evening and relax – we stayed at the Best Wailea Condo.

We went to an organic farm. Got some fresh ingredients and made a condo dinner -fresh squash and eggplant.



These pictures work pretty well for an amateur. I may not be professional, but have had enough training to at least have a good sense for composition, etc…

Travelers also like user created content because it is authentic. Nick has made the observation that every hotel has great pictures, but what you see is not always what you get.

But if I was a real estate developer, or a food professional portraying my business, these pictures simply wouldn’t work.

A business or professional services company is attracting customers and prospects because of their expertise and their image. First impressions are lasting. People don’t want to hire an amateur accountant or lawyer. As a purchasing agent, you are not looking to purchase parts made in a home workshop.

So, when it comes time to create video to present your business, think about how you’ve crafted the other parts of your corporate image. Chances are, you have nice office space, your employees dress well when meeting with clients, and you have a professionally designed website.

Why should your video presence be any exception?

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Take your experts, put them online, save money.

September 8th, 2010


Mark Goodman

I did a whole web initiative in the mid 1990’s. The web proponents said going online should save you money. The skeptical looked at the internet as a marketing effort. One person who worked at an overnight package carrier said that “no one wants to track their orders online, people like to call us!”

Fast forward to 2010. Not only do I really miss spending hours on the phone with shipping companies, but I have had two interesting discussions over the last month about mobilizing company expertise and featuring it on line with video. The feedback from a manufacturer was “we really can’t spare the time of our experts” or “the resources are not available”. But when we probed, it was determined that one expert was off to South America for two weeks. Another one was in Asia.

In professional services, pulling an expert who has billable hours can be problematic. We hear, “how can we afford to have someone who bills $250 per hour, spend 4 hours on a video?” But the video done effectively should cover 10 times the cost in personal sales visits that the expert does not have to make.

Yes, the video does need to be supported by a good website, and integrated into your marketing efforts. But you are spending that money anyhow.

Do the math. A trip to Asia can easily cost $20,000. An “in person sales call” with a billable expert may cost as much as $2,000. How many calls does it take to close a sale? What is the impact if you can eliminate one call per week?

So, putting your experts on line with video should save you money.

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Great, they found you online. What next?

September 5th, 2010


Mark Goodman

Congratulations. A searcher found your company online.

It’s what you do with the searcher, once they find you, that counts!

I was having a discussion with a business thought leader last week. She remarked that a business person can choose the e-Conversation Solution of search optimized video (SOV) solution rather than pay per click (PPC). While SOV works very well when coordinated with SEO (multiple use of both content and questions), using it as an alternative to pay per click was intriguing. She noted that either pay per click or using video to get on page one achieves the same result.

But, as a second derivative, I pointed out to her, is that once you are found, it’s what you present that counts. With SOV, you have an opportunity to immediately present your company as an expert. A trusted source. A targeted video both provides information and conveys trust. It differentiates you from the competition, and suggests additional content.

SOV says “how can I help you?” and “Here is a way to solve your problem”. Pay per click says “buy from me”. If you are selling commodities, “buy from me” might work. But, if you are working to establish a long term relationship in today’s world, the best first step is answering a question and solving a problem.

Consider this video, from manufacturing expert Paul Heinze:





So, once a searcher has found Paul, he provides a helpful answer to a question that potential clients must be asking. He doesn’t sell. As a result, he becomes an expert and someone that prospects want to do business with, instead of just another person selling services.

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Who is watching YouTube, anyways?

September 2nd, 2010


Mark Goodman

The 55 year old purchasing manager doesn’t watch videos on YouTube. The business owner in Pakistan is not online. It is mostly the younger male business people who watch internet video. Right?

Not true! Here is the data from the last two weeks on SCORE Chicago Video, which provides help for small business. This data summarizes around 2000 views.

Age Range (Male, Female):


Think about what the customer acquisition process is for your business. Who in that business is in charge of looking for a new supplier? What tools will that person use to sell your company to the decision maker? How can your company showcase your expertise and build trust?


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