Virtual Event Success

I recently got an email from Kim Castle of BrandU and the subject was Can Misusing Online Video Ruin Your Brand?

Yes, it can. Here’s how:

1. It can make you look cheap and unsuccessful. If you’re teaching people how to create a six figure income, your video better look like it. There’s a video of a guy who’s teaching you how to make 5 figures in 21 days from Facebook. He’s using videos in his marketing. Unfortunately, his videos smack of someone who’s barely getting by on $21 an hour. He threw up a very cheap red colored fabric as his background while sitting in front of a desk. Plus, the audio is poor. John Reese’s video makes him look like 7 figure success. This first video I did a few months ago here makes me look like a 3 figure success story. Ouch!
2. It can create a disconnect with your personality. Some people are naturally outgoing, but produce a video that hides what makes them unique. Someone pointing this out to me a couple of months ago. She said that on the phone, I showed up, yet on the videos, I was hiding. At the time, I chose to sit at my desk in front of the camera and talk. While that may work for some, such as my friends Nancy Marmolejo, Sherman Hu and Travis Greenlee (they look amazing on camera), it didn’t for me. Being a talking head boxed me in a corner, like I was being benched in a basketball game. So, taking a page out of Lou Bortone’s book, I let my personality show through and started to be myself.
3. It can create doubt in your target market’s mind. There are many people who hate being in front of crowds. Using video is quite the same. Although you can’t see the crowd, the crowd will be watching. You may sound confident over the phone on a teleclass, but fold to pieces as soon as a camera is shining in your face. Imagine what your target market may be thinking seeing you sweat and look uncomfortable when you’re supposed to be their Empowerment Queen. Give yourself permission not to jump on the video bandwagon if you’re not comfortable with it.

You can produce video that won’t ruin your brand without spending thousands of dollars. I recently provided some shoestring budget ways to spruce up your videos here and here.

Producing video for online distribution doesn’t have to be hard, but it shouldn’t ruin your personal brand either.

What other tips can you provide so that others don’t ruin their personal brand when using online videos?