Written by Paul Schmidt, Production Manager at UnoDeuce Multimedia

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“If you plan to have a foothold in the social media space, then adding online video is the very next step and it should be part of your online persona.”

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In today’s world, a relative majority of the population has access to the Internet. Along with that comes the opportunity to interact with organizations, and gives organizations the opportunity to reach out and show what they are all about. One of the best ways to do this is through the use of online video. It’s probably a decision you should be making when thinking of any marketing plan. If you plan to have a foothold in the social media space, then adding online video is the very next step and it should be part of your online persona. Why? Well, here are a few reasons:

1.) You know your field

You are the expert in your field. You have control of your story and have to set yourself apart. What better way to do that than by showing what you can do?

2.) Online Video is Popular Among Nearly All Internet Users

More and more people are watching video online. A recent statistic showed 82% of Internet users watch online video. That is all users, not just teens and millennials.

3.) You’re in control of what you’re putting out

You control the distribution, content within, and length both of the video and availability of viewing.

4.) Online Video makes you easier to find

It increases your Google ranking with organic search. Videos entice people to spend more time on your site once they find it, and the amount of time the average user spends on your site is a part of Google’s rank algorithm, increasing your rank.

5.) The most popular Online Video site, YouTube, is easy and free to use

YouTube, the second most used search engine in the world, links with all of your social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. and offers embed codes and links to paste to your website and e-mails. YouTube also keeps your video on their server, so you don’t have to worry about taking up your server space or bandwidth. On top of all this, it’s free!

6.) Online Video interacts with viewers in multiple ways

Video uses more than one of your senses, both sight and sound, that leads to a retention rate of over 65%.

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“[…] give them another reason to stay and keep coming back by showing off what you can do.”

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Those are just a few of the many reasons to add online video to your social media toolbox, and to have it play a major part in your overall marketing strategy. Living in a society that wants to choose what they watch and when they want to watch, it’s a must to go online. If you have built or are in the midst of building your audience, give them another reason to stay and keep coming back by showing off what you can do.

Paul Schmidt has been a visual storyteller for as long as he can remember and decided to turn that into a career. He chose video as his medium and his award winning style has been seen nationally as well as praised locally. A self-proclaimed community proponent and pro-Michigan advocate, he owns and is production director for UnoDeuce Multimedia which is celebrating its 6th year in Lansing. Paul was just recently awarded the 2015 Entrepreneur Institute Micro-Entrepreneur of the Year.