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By Jhonmar Castillo.
Artistic Director for Moka Productions.
Chicago. www.mokaproductions.com
When I read that the New York Times said, “The video era has finally arrived”, I couldn’t stop wondering where have they been all this time? The internet video era as we know it today, began in 2005 with the arrival of You Tube. It was then that the “video share” experience was born. You Tube gave internet users a unique tool to express themselves and to share with others their experiences, thoughts and creativity; a recipe for instant success!
They made it possible for anyone with an internet connection to post a video that a worldwide audience could watch within minutes, and with a wide range of topics, turning video sharing into one of the most important parts of internet culture today. The ramifications of this phenomenon has had an incredible impact in the creation, growth and expansion of internet blogs and community sites, known as “Social Network Websites”. Sites such as facebook, orkut, myspace, blogger, are among hundreds and maybe even thousands of social network websites available on the internet, each with a niche and twist of their own, but with a basic common element: “video sharing”. Playing the most important role during the process, in many cases You Tube is the matrix of the video content through out the hyperlinks.
I wasn’t surprised that “The New York Times” was finding out about video, but I was surprised by how long it took them to admit it. I can understand how as a print publication this will simply mean the beginning of the end, unless they do something about it. In the last five years many publications were forced to close because of the lack of readers, advertisers and subscribers. We could attribute that to many factors including the economic situation of 2007-2009 and beyond, but nothing has had a greater impact in the decline and extinction of publications than the displacement created by the internet blogs. Some magazines and newspapers thought that simply moving the content of their publications to their websites and canceling the print issues would do the trick, but they are finding out that they are struggling even harder to maintain a basic web subscription. Not only did they forget about their readers, they also forgot to educate and train their advertisers in new marketing strategies and media innovation, offering them alternatives to reach new clients; a priority in order for any business to survive.
As we all know, the channels of information today are not under the same parameters and rules of yesterday. When was the last time you waited for the 10 o’clock news to come on to find out what happened during the day? When was the last time you stopped to buy the newspaper because of its headlines? When was the last time you watched the commercials embedded in your favorite DVR recorded show? I know the answers to these because I live it everyday, as do my neighbors, friends and co-workers. I don’t watch the 10 o’clock news because I’m being informed of the news in real time by using RSS subscriptions that arrive directly to my cell phone and email. I don’t read the printed newspaper because I can read it online, and save trees and preserve forests in the process. I don’t watch commercials because thanks to my remote control, I can skip them! But yes, I still get reached by advertisers, products and services everyday in my media of choice: “The Internet”.
Where and how does this happen? Well, the answer is simple. “VIRAL VIDEO”. Stream media viral videos are part of my everyday routine, and I must admit that, at almost 40 years of age, I hold an advantage when it comes to technology training and computer skills in comparison with people of my own age or older. But why should advertisers care about my generation? They shouldn’t, simply because I’m not the future, but generations behind me are already connected to the technology of tomorrow. The success of viral videos online suggests that a new advertising paradigm is in place, and it inevitably involves user-generated media. Businesses must understand that their brands and messages can be shaped into successes by the participation of their audience.
A viral video is a video that becomes popular through the process of internet sharing, typically through internet media sharing websites. Viral video marketing is gaining a huge popularity as it has the ability to generate a larger number of traffic for your site, and because of its cost effectiveness. Its ability to give a boost to traffic count is also helpful in increasing revenue influx. Since the concept of viral video marketing is fairly easy, its reach is much more extended. It is an advanced form of marketing in which videos are submitted to different websites. People can choose to watch these videos and forward then to other people who share the same interests. Every submitted video can be found using SEO’s, as all of them are versed with search engine optimization techniques.
I can say with certainty that the future of advertising is in “VIRAL VIDEO” because it is the easiest and most compelling way to consume content online. The fact that one of the world's foremost print publications prominently features videos on its website is as good a sign as any to suggest that online video has finally arrived. Online video advertising, while still small compared to TV advertising, is growing quickly, but the money will follow the audience.
Discussions
About videocasts and podcasts on Monday, February 08 2010 16:17
