Get your mind out of the gutter! I love that t-shirt though. It brings to mind the famed J. Bill Gates, who shared his secrets to wealth and riches

i) Be an observer of the trends

ii) Be at the right place at the right time

iii) Take massive immediate action!

And recently, he added the following

iv) There are two types of business, those that are online and those that are out of business!

YouTube, Google, Yahoo & Myspace are part of the trend, they are also web 2.0 and they are also video sharing sites and they are part of the famed social media/social marketing trend!

Should you include Video Marketing your marketing arsenal?

If I have to answer that question, clearly you in the wrong place! Do not even think about excluding video marketing. My last hub http://hubpages.com/hub/MARKETING-VS-ADVERTISING had to do with dicussing Marketing in contrast to advertising. I favor marketing and do understand that advertising is a form of marketing. Video Marketing gives you the option to supercharge your marketing efforts as it allows you to reach 500,000+. Ever heard of virology? Well as usual I must turn to my trusted friend wiki; The term viral video refers to video clip content which gains widespread popularity through the process of Internet sharing, typically through email or IM messages, blogs and other media sharing websites.

The Interactive Advertising Bureau indicates that more than 50% of the US population will watch video online in 2008. That is approximately 155.2 million people. TRAFFIC, FREE MLM LEADS, SALES!

Armed with this knowledge, it appears that online video sharing and internet video marketing is clearly one of the best venues in which to engage an audience of your peers and target market! Most people you meet are going to be audio-visual learners. They need to see and hear in order to get the message. Free video allows you multilevel (no pun intended) communication, your platforms include visual imagery, spoken word, visual text and music! As you can see the possibilities are endless. How? Thro free video sharing websites, you guessed it YouTube, MySpace, Google, Yahoo and many others!

YOU TUBE MY SPACE…How do I reach The Masses?

The hype of video sharing sites is related to the word “FREE!”

Yes it is free to upload your video using the many video sharing sites…that just about it. REMEMBER Nothing comes from nothing, nothing ever could...The trick, the art form here lies in being able to reach your is having the correct video marketing tools, the right target market/audience i.e., know who you market your video to and then getting people to share your video – a concept commonly referred to as video viral marketing!

I am going to be kind to you and help you out a bit some of the best marketing video concepts!

Creating a video is a composite function of four interrelated parts, which add up to 100. These parts are Content, Metatags, Thumbnails and Promotion! The aforementioned interrelated parts are integral in assisting you to communicate your message so that is has reach - this is the essence of virology!

50% Content = Content is the basic story line (your subject matter). It is your message. Content answers the question what do you want your audience to know? What action if any do you want them to take. Along with content, there is Production. Production involves style, lighting, graphics you know the fun Hollywood stuff!,

15% MetaTags = Silly annoying techie language for something so simple! Metatags include the text title of your masterpiece, your very valueable keywords, descriptions, and categories that help people find your video. In other words if I do not bother to watch the video, can I still get the gist of your message or do I need a cyptic decoder?

20% Thumbnail = Thumbnail refers to visual merchandinzing. It is the art of window dressing that draws you into your favorite clothing store, where you drop the bucks you swore you didn’t have in the first place! Catch my drift? So it is the packaging which, draws people in when displayed on the page! It tells the story about your video and continutes the process of virology!

15% Promotion = Well for lack of a better term…it refers to getting the word out a.k.a marketing. Remember that hub I referred to that I wrote but wasn't quite sure why? http://hubpages.com/hub/MARKETING-VS-ADVERTISING But reach itself is insufficient. Your message must create an emotional connection with your target audience. WHY? It is your call to action! And what does this accomplish? Well when people act, products are move off the shelves and as such millionaires and billionaires are born. Careers are launched and well the world goes round, but sadly the price of oil stays the same...oh well! It falls upon you my friend to motivate your viewers to pass the videos to other likeminded people!!!!! Viral Marketing rocks when done well! Catch me next time as I explain how you can capitilize.

Video Marketing allows you access and reach to a mammoth audience, with little or no investment. Done correctly, the results are phenomenal! Statistics indicate, according to comScore, in July of 2007 Americans watched 9 billion online videos.

Now before you jump off and start uploading videos on YouTube remember, the key isn’t so much making a video…you need to define your target market. Viral marketing is no easy feat. So how do you compel your viewers to watch and send? STAY TUNED…!

LIGHTS, CAMERA...CASH!

Looking to have your video go viral? Well half the battle is content and production. This constitutes the bulk of your efforts. As such, it worthy of comment. Content referring to your message and Production refers to graphics, lighting and the fun Hollywood stuff!

Objective:

Make your creation something worth remarking. It is buzzable?! That which creates a buzz effectively conveys your message. There are about 10 major content categories that are likely to bring you great returns! There is no need to re-invent the wheel! Utilize the following proven content categories to package your message. You can be guaranteed that your message will be far reaching in its effects!

10 Characteristics Of Popular & Profitable Videos

1. Funny – Henry David Thoreau penned the words “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them.” As such a good laugh generates buzz! Funny is a high ranking keyword. Funny gets talked about, funny gets referenced, funny gets passed along. Don’t believe me here are a few videos e.g, evolution of dance, Will Ferrell’s the Landlord! (you gotta see these they are hilarious). Funny videos have the greatestes likihood of going viral- get cracking!

Funny Video Must See (always gets me)!

2. Weird/Avante Garde– The Bizarre, The Macabre has a huge following! Cult movies anyone? Your video will get noticed, just stay away from the morbid and macbre. May I suggest good touch, bad touch. It is a good mix of weird and funny BUT very very vital message!

3. Inspiring – Warm fuzzies, can do attitude…these do very well to lift the heads of the weary and down trodden! These videos are loveable because in their very nature boost morale! As we now know, lives of quiet desperation need inspiration! Stories of inspiration are always a good commodity. Anything inspiring can become extremely popular, extremely fast. An example was the ‘Interview With God’ presentation, which was before the time of YouTube is a great example. Similar to this is Randy Pausch "Last Lecture."

Very Inspirational "Interview With God"

4. Shocking – Shock factor sells! What more need I add? Just be tasteful. Tubes on the member is so 2001!

5. Interesting – Curiosity can be a powerful sales device in getting people from your video to your website. Anytime you can prick the curiosity of a viewer and make them want to learn more about you and your product, it is a good thing. When you successfully generate curiosity in your video viewer, you give them an itch which must be scratched. Creating curiosity may be especially useful considering that users who find your video on YouTube will actually have to take the effort to type in the URL and visit the site you are promoting.

6. Sexy – SEX SELLS! Again tasteful is the key here. A personal favorite for me is Are Attractive Women Attracted to Mlmers? Sexy has never been a stumbling block to selling.

7. Personal – Reality TV is such a hit, why we are all at some level Voyeurs. My personal favorite is Keeping Up With The Kardashians, and no its not the Kardashians that I like...more the Reggie Bush connection! Personal allows real insight to who you are. Additionally there is an element of funny, interesting, shock , bizzare and perhaps even sexy! Again we are just bored and tired of our lives, regale us!

8. Demonstrates/Instructional – Plain old How to…never fails! I came across a video with over half a million hits titled How to Make How to make a BristleBot - Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories. Truth be told, I do not know what a bristle-bot is, but it did catch my attention. These videos are very useful for those looking to brand themselves as experts. They allow you gain the trust of your audience as well as introduce your product.

9. Kitsch – refers to that which is considered to be in poor taste because of excessive garishness or sentimentality, but sometimes appreciated in an ironic or knowing way These videos contain one or more of the following qualities:

• Animal/pet tricks - man is drawn to animals just as he is to fire… it's hard to explain, but it seems to have to do with primitive wiring in the brain

• Cute kids - one of the draws of online video is that real people capture real moments, and nothing is as straightforward as a child just being herself (Star wars according to a 3 yr. Old is a must see and new to my collection is Korean Kid Sings Hey Jude)

• Repetitive, catchy music - certainly not a new concept, but with infinite channels come many more opportunities to put up the experimental jingle. The one I like best and used in a previous hub is the Mom Song Sung to the William Tell Overture!

10. Gross – Let is it be said there is a difference between gross and disgusting. Boogers for example is gross and could be used effectively to make a sale! ‘Fear Factor’ have been popular in the U.S. for quite sometime, use it as a guide!

As with any marketing effort, be remarkable AND communicate your message. Use the right package to make your video a hit, but don't create a vehicle without passengers. Make sure the content is doing what it supposed to do.

Okay I know you are sitting there going great hub! Of course! But you are wondering to yourself how in the world do I implent all these strategies and make sure that I get it right?

Well You could what I did,

1.Read e-book after e-book after e-book!

2. Trial and Error

3. Copy and Paste without really knowing what you are doing or what things means....or

4. You can pay through the nose, it would cost you an arm and a leg, but you can get someone to do it for you and hope for the best.

5. You can and I highly recommend that you learn from the Experts!

One of the best systems that i recently encountered, is a true genious operation. The information is vital to anyones video marketing success. BUT more importantly, you get to walk step by step with Online video marketing experts!

Here are some of the things you can expect to learn:

a) Quick Video Marketing Theory and Outline

b) Creating, Editing and posting a Video

c) Generating Massive Views ( I know we all want this)

d) Auto Responders /Capture Pages/Click Bank

e) Search Engine Optimization (ok talk about those SEO consulations that cost $1000-$1500/hour and you have not got into the actual SEO part first!)

AND much much much more....What are you waiting for? You could be the next viral video phenom. but not just by sitting there!

Learn how to use video to grow your business to greater heights!