Are you as surprised as I am about
these stats? Granted, it’s not as surprising that people, on average, spend
over 5 hours per day watching TV, but did you know that YouTube is the third
largest search engine on the planet? I’m still not sure why people watch videos
with the sound turned off, but yes, YouTube is the third largest search engine
behind Google and Bing.
What do these stats mean? The
first three social media stats are evidence to me that people like interacting
with one other. The video stats are proof that people like to watch videos. So,
as speakers, if we want to get ourselves in front of more people, it sounds
like video is a great way to do it. I’ll bet you agree, but the thought of
standing in front of a camera can be scarier than the thought standing in front
of an audience!
Please know that I’m not saying
that you have to do videos. What I am suggesting is that while
you are continuing to build your platform, getting used to using video is going
to provide you with another way to reach your audience. In addition, it may
even provide advantages you might not have even thought about, such as:
1. Video
gives people a more personal way to get to know you beyond your bio, headshot,
and/or website because they get to “meet” you on screen.
2. Short-and-sweet
videos between 1 and 3 minutes provide you with a chance to share content while
also showing off your subject matter expertise.
3. Best of
all, in addition to being visible evidence that you can speak to an audience,
because you’re posting your videos on one or more social media platforms, it’s
visible evidence you'll now have to share with event planners, meeting
coordinators, etc., who are looking for new speakers!
I realize that seriously
considering video opens up a Pandora’s box full of new questions, such as what
platform to use, how to do it, etc. But my purpose here is simply to be
informative, NOT to overwhelm you, so I’ll offer you two simple how-to get
started thoughts.
Don’t think that you have to
conquer video in one sitting. Instead, take small steps. Come up with one
thought, idea, point, tip, or strategy that you can cover in a couple of
minutes. Turn on your cell phone and record yourself talking it through. Each
time you make a mistake, stop recording, erase it, and start over. Keep taping
yourself talking until you’re comfortable.
Once you’re comfortable, figure
out which social media channel you’d like to start with. It’ll probably make
sense to start with the one you frequent the most, right?
Trust me,
you’re not alone if you’re nervous about videotaping yourself. I’m very nervous
about it, but I’m working on doing it! So let’s challenge ourselves together.
Who knows... one of these days you might get a video newsletter along with my
written words!
Authored by guest blogger: Beth Stoller
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