Voices

How to Become the Star of Your Own Website

Your website is, first and foremost, about you and your services. That is why you ought to be the star of it. And the best way to do that is through high-quality video footage. Why? Because video persuades in a way that text copy can never do.

Video is fast becoming the preferred method for consuming online content. According to a 2012 GoogleInsights study, people are spending 45% more time watching online video than they were in 2011. Today, video makes up 40% of internet traffic but is projected to make up 91% by 2014, according to forecasts from Cisco. Where does this projection put your website?

As a financial professional you are in the business of promoting yourself and your services. By incorporating video into your website, you can advance this process and move prospects to take action with you. Will anyone actually watch your videos? According to a 2012 surveyfromInvodo, "yes." Visitors watch informational videos 60% of the time they are encountered on websites.

The Quality Reflects on You

With all the new technology, it's tempting to break out your iPhone and just start shooting-done is fun, right? As great as placing video on a website is, no video is better than bad video. If the quality of your video is poor, your audience will assume that the same level of effort trickles into other parts of your professional life. (There's also a good chance that they'll have a light laugh at your expense.) Bad audio is even worse than bad video. It grates on the nerves of even the most forgiving audience, and they can't help but think, "That video must've been thrown together over a rushed lunch break." Good quality audio and video gives the impression that you approach all facets of your business with the right amount of sophistication.

The key to placing video on your website is to keep your central goals in front of you. If the goal of your website is to reinforce your standing as a useful, insightful and trustworthy partner to your client-base and to inspire your prospects to reach out to you, your videos should do the same.

How to Get a Great Video

The best video is simple, short, and features professional lighting and sound. You can hire a professional to film you in your office, or book some studio time and shoot in front of a green screen, allowing you to drop in a setting of your choice.

Have simple scripts prepared in advance; don't assume that you will just know what to say when the moment comes. A general guideline for script writing is roughly three words equals one second. So a one-minute video script would have no more than 180 words. Also, when you film your spots, consider filming several at one time, so that you can rotate new messages on to your site.

Taking the time and effort to create professional video footage is worth the effort. Since this is one of the services our company offers, we have seen many professionals benefit from quality video footage with increased traffic to and business from their websites. When you create your video, take the time to get it right, because you never get a second chance to make a great first impression!

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Craig Faulkner is CEO of FMGSuite, a company dedicated to creating digital marketing tools for today's financial professional. You can also follow him @fmgsuite on Twitter.

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