| Put sound and video on your web site
by Dr. Kevin Nunley
http://www.DrNunley.com
Sound and video are coming to the Internet in a big way. Now, with cheap
new technology, anyone can turn their website into a TV or radio station
without spending a dime.
Given the huge audiences that radio and TV have (99 percent of American
homes have a TV and most own five radios), putting audio and video on
your site could be the most important thing you do. Some studies show
audio and video can increase website sales by as much as 50 percent.
Streaming media, as it is called, excites customers and keeps you ahead
of your competition. The static printed web page will be around for a
long time, but watch for most leading sites to start offering audio and
video.
Streaming media requires a lot more data than a simple printed page.
Having DSL or a T line helps. Since most consumers still use dial-up modems
on lines that support less than 40k, Internet audio and video rely on
clever methods for compressing and reducing big files of data.
The result is sometimes fuzzy audio and pictures that look faded and
blurry. The level of quality might be annoying on regular TV, but it's
nothing short of exhilarating coming from the Internet. One client who
is using web video says he is getting a phenomenal rate of sales from
it.
Your web site visitors won't mind a bit if your presentation isn't network
professional. They will appreciate the big jump from reading text to seeing
a media presentation.
Start with Audio.
There is a huge difference between the amount of work it takes to produce
video and what is needed to build an audio-only presentation. A single
individual can produce an outstanding radio show while even a simple TV
program requires a full staff.
An audio presentation doesn't require location, lighting, or the inconspicuous
microphone placement video demands.
You can record your voice, add some music, drop in a sound effect and
your audio program is ready to hit the Internet.
There are a number of cheap or free programs that let you record your
audio as a simple WAV file, a Real Audio file, or a an MP3. After trying
several of them, I settled on a $20 program called Internet Audio Mix
available from acoustica.com.
It works with your PC's sound card to record up to four digital tracks.
Operation and editing is completely intuitive.
Most recent PCs have Real Audio bundled with windows. That means a large
and growing number of your customers can click on your audio link, download
your Real Audio file, and listen to it within a matter of seconds.
Speak with energy when you record audio tracks. Because people can't
see your face, your voice has to pack extra punch.
Try to cut down on "uhs" and "uhms." Don't feel like
you have to talk like an announcer. Customers respond better to a voice
that sounds like a regular person.
Several companies have created easy systems for producing and hosting
your audio for free. GiveMeTalk.com
provides a simple free program for recording your talk show, then lets
you host it on their site where customers can hear you.
I recorded my articles as MP3 files (the format Internet music uses)
and loaded them up on Live365.com.
The site rotates my talks, making them available non-stop 24 hours a day
at no charge. I call it the DrNunley Radio Network and link to it from
my site.
Moving Up to Web Video.
Video experts tell me we're years away from having quality streaming
video on the Internet. Still, there are some easy ways to offer fairly
good video from your site.
Because the Real Video format is becoming so widely accepted, you can
download and use several of RealNetwork.com's
free video production applications.
Real Slideshow (free) lets you combine images with talk, music, and sound
effects. Real Presenter (also free) turns your PowerPoint presentations
into Internet video.
Several of the free web hosting sites now host your streaming media presentations
at no charge. Tripod.com,
one of the pioneers in free web sites, offers a program called ShowMotion.
You can combine still photos with clips of video, scanned images, and
backed with your narration. Tripod hosts it for free.
If all this sounds a bit too technical, Tripod features several fine
presentations produced by high school students. The format is drag and
drop and impressed me as being vastly easier than designing a web site.
Even though Internet audio and video is cutting-edge and exciting, it
doesn't come near the quality we are used to with regular radio and television.
That is good news for small web sites. You can turn out a homespun effort
and still be right on the heels of professionals.
For true professional level video, check wbcimaging.com.They
are television engineers who have long taken an interest in the best ways
to put video on the Internet.
Radio is a billion dollar industry. Television is arguably the most influential
media ever invented. Now that it has become so easy to produce your own
Internet audio and video, it makes sense to add those powerful dimensions
to your web site.
About the author
Kevin Nunley provides marketing advice and copy writing for businesses
and organizations. Read all his money-saving marketing tips at http://DrNunley.com/.
Reach him at kevin@drnunley.com
or 603-249-9519. |
| » Change
your mind about an eBay bid?
We have all made choices in life that two seconds later
we know we should take back. Especially when there is money involved
this can become a problem.
» A
simple way to create 7 effective autoresponder messages
Email is the Net's most powerful marketing tool. And autoresponders
are the best idea yet for marketing with email.
» 7
ways to drive laser-targeted traffic to your website
Getting people who matter to see one’s website
is a difficult undertaking if he tries to consider the fact that
there are rivals everywhere waiting to pin him down.
» Website
valuation: Why standard website pricing methods will emerge
The market of buying and selling developed websites is
becoming more and more liquid each day.
» One
way links are better than reciprocal links
You probably know by now that where your website ranks in
the search engine rankings dramatically affects how many visitors you
have to your site. Did you also know that you can change where your
site is ranked by being proactive and getting as many one way links
to your site as possible?
» How
to make visitors stay at your website
The very first thing which you should provide the visitors
with is some free interesting reading material.
» How
to make your visitors click your ads
Here is a simple solution; Convert your banner advertisement
to look like a text advertisement!
» Offline
advertising should be a part of your online strategy
Day by day, online business has become more & more
complicated and competitive.
» How
to sell traffic
Selling the traffic arriving at your site is a good method
to increase profits from your portal.
» Make
money from online auctions
Online auctions have the best benefit of a vast platform.
Your product is viewed by loads of people & hence there is
more possibility of finding a suitable bidder.
» Groupware
explained in easy terms
Groupware is a term used frequently to describe collaborative
software. Groupware is application software that integrates work
on a single project by several concurrent users at separated random
workstations.
» Timely
back up can save you from disasters
Few things which people often back up are e-mail addresses,
bank records, photographs, personal records, software’s,
music etc.
» Why
should one go for autoresponders
Autoresponders are programs which get automatically
executed in particular situations.
» Become
your own boss - Start your own online business today
A survey conducted by SBA states that two third of new
business survives at least two year and about forty four percent
survives at least four year.
» Express
your thoughts - Creating your own blog!
What exactly is a blog? Technically speaking it is a
journal or a newsletter which is regularly updated and can be used
by any one.
» Pop-up
ads - To be or not to be?
According to a study conducted by the Bunnyfoot University, “The
Efficacy of Pop-ups and the Resulting Effect on Brands” Internet
users feel harangues and harassed by pop-up ads.
» Why
content is king on the Internet
The advantages that Internet holds over the rest of
the other communication mediums should not wasted because of
the inability to find a comprehensive plan that will bind all
these faculties together.
» 10
niche marketing tips
In our increasingly driven consumer economies, the average
customer is bombarded by choices. With increased saturation of the
market, companies look towards niche marketing to search new, ever-evolving
and sophisticated consumers.
» Using
free traffic exchange
These days internet has emerged as both, a market and
hub for marketing. Unlike the ‘brick and mortar’ world
where large manufacturers manage to squeeze out the market bases
of smaller companies, the internet provides haven like the free
traffic exchange.
» Ten
ways to drive traffic to your website
Developing a web site and then letting it grow is
like planting a tree and then nurturing it.
» Marketing
through keyword articles
One of the most effective tools of Internet marketing
is the use of keyword articles.
» Want
to make money online? Market a service to businesses
Don walked across the street from his house to mine to
announce he had finally retired. "But I'm not ready for the
golf course," he said. "I want to make a living on the
Internet. What can I sell?"
» Web
site design mistakes - Database parameters in URLs
Creating a web site takes thought, planning and execution.
Unfortunately, many designs are dead in the water before they are
even published as far as search engine optimization is concerned.
Whatever you do, avoid these critical mistakes.
» Alexa
Toolbar - The ultimate internet tool
There are numerous tools available on the Internet to
assist online businesses. A valuable tool that you should use is
the Alexa Toolbar. Even better, this tool is free.
» Web
site design mistakes
Some wise human once said "Learn from the mistakes
of others. There isn't nearly enough time to make them all yourself."
Hence this article. Here are five of the most annoying and common
web design mistakes.
» Abandonment
- Why visitors don't turn into customers
Every good Internet business understands the value of
conversions versus hits received. Far too often, businesses become
fixated on the hits they are receiving instead of monitoring their
hit to sale conversion rate.
» Creative
search engine optimization - A case study
Search engine optimization this and search engine optimization
that. You read and hear about it all day, but what about your site?
|
|
| Tools & services to enhance your online
business |
|
» Site
Build It!
Over 100,000 small businesses of all kinds outperform
larger, well-financed competitors. Read about this all-in-one site-building-hosting-marketing
system of tools that delivers results.
» Secrets
To Their Success
Take a private tour of two "Mom & Pop"
web sites every month that earn $100,000+ a year... and discover
the exact step-by-step strategies they have personally used to generate
these massive profits. |
|
|
Remember to join our newsletter and be notified when new web building
articles are released.
Privacy policy:
Email addresses are never sold or given out to anybody.
|
|
|
