Part 2 is tonight, July 24th at 8pm EDT.  There are still seats left. Here’s what you’ll learn:

• The four reasons why videos convert more sales online than any other marketing tool
• The 3 terribly good ideas on how to create a passive income using video online
• How to fix some of your most common online video problems
• How you can start your online video journey with me. I’m also going to share with you how you can get a complimentary copy of one of my favorite screen capturing tools.
• And you’ll meet business owners who are using videos to boost sales, get known and uncover new income streams.

Register your spot by clicking here.

Tags: tynisha thompson, video marketing, video marketing myths

The interview lasted 20 minutes and one thing became clear - Peter is so dang cool because he sprinkles all his answers with personal anecdotes. For every question I asked, Peter answered it with a story from his experience. I laughed, I didn’t cry, but I also became reflective based on the things Peter was telling me. And we were talking about social media.

Peter took me on an emotional roller coaster, but not in a bad-relationship-with-a-crazy-guy type of way. He was able to get me emotionally involved and I can see why he’s a sought after keynote speaker.

As I got off of Skype with him, I had to ask myself if I’m sprinkling stories about my experiences throughout my presentations. Sadly, I do so little of it. There is one where I talk about my 14 hour road trip to Boston when the drive should’ve taken only 9  hours. I recall that every time I tell that story, people either laugh in hysterics or crease their brow in shame wondering how I could make such a mistake.

This is what makes your marketing materials and keynotes speeches so interesting - when you can recount situations that are unique to you and use them as part of your brand. Peter is himself in so many ways. He’s quirky, he’s transparent and he reminds me of Philip Kaplan, but not as dirty.

And I had a great example very early in my life. My dad is the best storyteller in the world. He makes a drive to the supermarket seem like a 10-day journey around the world. My sisters and I love spending time with him because we laugh until our bellies hurt based on his stories. All we have to do is mention taxes, politics or David Miller (the mayor of Toronto) and that gets him started.

If I enjoyed my interview with Peter and enjoy spending time with my dad, then this is the experience I must create in my own business. Everyone who comes into contact with me must enjoy the experience whether they are my target market or not.

So, if you’re looking for a slight edge over the competition, don’t lower your prices or try to be faster or better. Instead, dig down deep, look into your past and figure out which experiences help shape your unique wisdom today. Then, sprinkle that throughout your presentations and speeches to create a memorable experience for your target market.

Tags: peter shankman, helpareporter, help a reporter, keynote speeches, keynote speeh, podcasting, podcasting for profit, philip kaplan, pud, marketing, branding

1. Capture video from a variety of sources.
2. Provide various production options so you can bring your video to life.
3. Allow you to share your video in a variety of formats.

And if you’re curious to learn how to use video to boost your business, click here to learn more about my upcoming 2 day virtual event on this topic.

Tags: videos online, video training, video marketing, videos for business

The series is free for you to attend. Here’s a list of some of the speakers and their topics:

• Adam Urbanski – My mastermind buddy who will present a blueprint to grow your business from an idea to  a seven-figure income.
• David Neagle – How it is possible to reduce the time between the desire for wealth and the manifestation of it.
• Fabienne Fredrickson – The client attraction expert.
• Kendall Summerhawk – Your “horse whisperer” for business, who will show you how to charge what you are worth and get it.
• Kim Castle –The master communicator will help you uncover your brand worthiness (she’s awesome!).
• Michael Port –The guy you turn to when you are tired of thinking small.
• Travis Greenlee - My mastermind buddy who will show you how to leverage the power of technology.
• And many more!

I’m speaking on August 19, 2008, but you don’t need to wait for me to hear all these great speakers. Instead, click here to read all the details about this event and to register your spot.

Tags: Adam Urbanski, Andrea Blackwood-Harriott, David Neagle, Fabienne Fredrickson, Kendall Summerhawk, Travis Greenlee, Michael Port, Kim Castle

I believe this quote can be attributed to Joel Osteen. I say this because I actually heard a radio program where the host was paraphrased something she read from Joel’s most recent book. I’d have to read it to make sure.

Aside from that, I shared with my ezine subscribers the various things I’m doing to make happiness a choice. I’m interested in hearing from you. What are you happy about? Add your comments below.

Tags: happiness, being happy

Take a look at the examples below:

• Mike Aoki, a speaker and a long time friend, recently blogged about my upcoming breakfast seminar in Toronto. He states that true experts help to demystify a process and not try to impress using industry buzzwords. What do you think? Visit Mike’s blog and leave a comment about the role of experts.
• Dina Giolitto, a copywriter who writes alot of my own copy, recently blogged about my breakfast seminar and talked about her growing discomfort with affiliate programs. Do you agree? If so, pop by her blog and leave your thoughts about affiliate programs.
• Andrew Ballenthin, a new blogger and recent client, also blogged about my breakfast seminar, but did so in a very subtle way. He wrote a post on why he thinks podcasting is the new direct marketing, then inserted a link to my seminar in the last paragraph in his post. What do you think? Is podcasting the new direct marketing or is it much more than that? Post your comments on Andrew’s blog.

So, these 3 are just some of the ways you can talk about your products and services on your blog and still give value to those who read it.

Can you spot the best practices in the 3 examples above? What other tactics can you suggest on how to promote a product or service on your blog without overselling?

Tags: blogging tactics, podcasting for profit, mike aoki, andrew ballenthin, dina giolitto, blogging etiquette

I was quite pleased that he grasped things so quickly and equally pleased that he got a few posts up. He even ran a contest to get his clients, prospects and those in his network to read his blog. A very clever to build traffic.

Then, it took a turn for the worst.

He wrote up an article about podcasting, mentioned me and then started to email me at least twice a week for a return link to his blog.

This has now been going on for about 3 weeks.

I shared with him that I could mention his blog, but I had to figure out how mentioning his blog on mine would be of benefit to my readers. He gave me some ideas on how I could position his blog on my own, but I didn’t like any of his ideas. They were just too self-serving for my taste.

I asked the Twitterverse how I should handle this and here’s a list of replies:

Thank you ladies! Much appreciated.

My advice to new bloggers? Don’t become a link hound. Just because you mention someone on your blog doesn’t mean you can bug the person to death to return a link to you. It just doesn’t work that way.

If I enjoyed what I read and it fits into the theme and content of my own blog, I’ll link back. That’s why it’s called love. Linking is supposed to be an enjoyable experience.

I wonder if The Blog Squad could weigh in with some resources on blogging etiquette, specifically surrounding the issue of reciprocal links?

Tags: the blog squad, denise wakeman, patsi krakoff, terry green, blogging etiquette, link love, link hound, alexa clark, donna maria coles johnson, business blogging tips

These tips are specifically for those of you who will be recording your video in an area that doesn’t have natural lighting.

1. Have at least 2-3 light sources. I have a ceiling light, but alone, it casts a shadow over my face. I added a table lamp that sits behind my laptop. It’s pointed towards a sheet of aluminum foil so that the light reflects off of that and on to my face. Before, the lamp shined directly towards my face, but there was a glare across my forehead, cheeks and chin. In Richard Harrington and Mark Weiser’s book called Producing Video Podcasts, they actually recommend a third light source. I found that 2 are perfect for me due to the size of my office, but if you’re in a larger room, you’ll have to invest in the third light source.
2. Get the right type of light bulb. I find that light bulbs that are similar to flourescent lights give off the best light source for your video recording. It casts a nice white glow. The ones that give you a yellow glow look very ugly in the video recording and tends to darken your face. I buy energy efficient light bulbs that are cool white. The soft white energy bulbs give an ugly yellow glow.
3. Put on some make up. Take a look at the before and after shot. The before is how I look without makeup. The after, I’m wearing some. Makes a huge difference because not wearing make up can be a distraction. You don’t have to lay it on thick like Tammy Faye Baker, but put enough on to even out your skin color and hide any blemishes and scars. Sometimes, a light dusting of face powder can remove the glare from your face. Someone who I know doesn’t wear make up, but looks amazing is my mastermind buddy, Sherman Hu. Also, check out Nancy Marmolejo. She looks stunning and her make up isn’t on thick.
4. Do something about that background. Be very careful what’s in your background. If you want to show off your office, that’s fine. But if you’ve got a poster of Metallica on your wall and you’re producing a video for a business audience, you may want to take it down or select another area to record. To create a backdrop that you see in my video, I simply took a room divider and covered it with a blue blanket made out of flannel. I like flannel because it doesn’t have any creases in it,  which means no ironing. I’ve seen people use drapes for their backdrop, so that’s an option as well. The only issue with the dark blue as my backdrop is that I HAVE to wear make up. On the flipside, the dark blue helps the light to reflect nicely against my skin since I have a darker tone.
5. Take note of your clothing. In Canada, whenever a leader of a political party speaks on camera, his tie is the same color as his party’s colors. I would recommend that you adopt this for your own videos. Wear colors in your clothing that match with your brand. Check out the Blog Squad videos on YouTube. Do you notice that they wear one primary color in each and every video? If you said pink, you’re right. Pink is part of their branding. I try to stick with pastels because those are the primary colors on my blog. I also try to record myself wearing business attire because my videos are meant for a business crowd.
6. Watch that eye level. Position your video camera so that it’s at eye level. If you’re looking down towards your video camera then the person viewing your video will feel like you’re speaking down to them. I place my video camera above my laptop on a speaker and then, I lower my office chair so I can look into my camera at eye level. That way, the viewer feels that I’m sharing information, not scolding them.
7. Practice, practice, practice. Video is unforgiving when it comes to your facial expressions. You can’t hide your frustration in video because it will show in your eyes. Or, if you’re nervous, the camera will show it. To lessen your nervousness in front of the camera, practice what you’re going to say a few times so it looks natural when the cameras start rolling. A teleprompter will help, but given the costs, you may well be better just to practice what you’re going to say. No need to memorize, just be you.

Tags: richard harrington, producing video podcasts, mark weiser, video production tips, video production

Brian Clark wrote this in his blog post comparing Tiger Wood’s win at the US Open to succeeding online. This is by far the best quote I’ve read in quite some time. And I couldn’t have read it at a better time.

I had to reschedule the Toronto date for the Podcasting for Profit Breakfast Seminar to July 23rd. As I was writing up the 3 dozen emails I had to send out to the registrants, the prospects, the affiliates and others, I thought about what I was going to say.

I could’ve made excuses. The venue double booked. I was ill. The dog ate my laptop. Or, as Brian wrote above, I could adjust the date, make sacrifices (like my pride and even some refunds) and communicate that to everyone.

I chose the latter. Thanks Brian.

Tags: brian clark, copyblogger, tiger woods, us open, podcasting for profit, profitable podcasting

Too often, people are looking for Hollywood effects when watching a video podcast. My advice? Just make sure the content is solid and get it out there.

While you don’t need to be a Hollywood producer, I highly recommend that you follow these tips if you have a limited budget:

1. Buy a simple video recording device. I use the Flip Camera which you can buy for under $160 at any Walmart (Canada & US), Best Buy or Target (US only). I record all my videos using the Flip. Check out the videos done by Dulcita Love (a Social Media Telesummit alumni), Nancy Marmolejo (a longtime colleague), Travis Greenlee and The Blog Squad (my mastermind buddies). Very good quality videos for a small investment. You just insert 2 double A batteries, turn on the device, then click the red button at the back to start recording. Easy.
2. Edit the recording using the free tools on your computer. The Flip camera records in an AVI format which is a lousy format to share online because it’s too big and bulky. I use Camtasia to edit my videos and you can download the software for just under $400. If you can’t pony up that kind of cash, both Mac and PC users have free video editing software on their computers. If you’re using a Mac, you can edit your recording using iMovie. On a PC, there’s a free tool that comes bundled with XP and Vista called Windows Movie Maker. In iMovie or Windows Movie Maker, you can mix in music, add other video clips and have loads of fun putting the final touches on your video.
3. Save your video recording in a M4V format. This format is required for podcasting and ideal for sharing your video online. Why? Because it’s a compressed format. That means you get a high quality video file in a lean size and gives you a better chance of meeting the uploads requirements for Facebook and YouTube. For Windows Movie Maker users, the only compressed format available in this software is WMV. But never fear because there’s many free tools online to help you convert WMV to a M4V format.
4. Publish your video for all to see. There are so many options here. You can upload your video to YouTube or Facebook, then add tags so it brings in traffic. You can use a service called TubeMogul which will submit your video to dozens of video file sharing websites. I use mDialog because I can upload any file size and the encoding is done for me. mDialog also offers an RSS feed which I can then use for podcasting. Or, simply use Podpress on your Wordpress blog and post it there.

As you get more proficient with shooting and producing video, you can then improve your technique. But I highly advise that you first concentrate on creating really great content. The bells and whistles will come later.

In a couple of days, I’ll post some additional things you can do to make the people on your video podcast look good. In the meantime, please post your tips in the comments section below on what tools you use to create stellar videos.

Update: Check out Donna Maria’s post in response to Larry Lawfer’s comments below. In summary, Donna Maria writes that business owners are never locked into any one strategy. That if we wait until we can hire professional videographers to produce a video for our business, we will miss the boat.

I love this quote from Donna Maria:

“We don’t succeed because of how much we have. Instead, we succeed because of what we do with what we have.”

Tags: the blog squad, nancy marmolejo, travis greenlee, dulcita love, video podcasting, youtube, facebook, tubemogul, mdialog, podpress, wordpress, create video podcasts, the flip camera, flip camera, imovie, windows movie maker