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At Hudson Horizons, we provide website Content Management conversion for the small to mid-sized business to easily allow our clients the ability to manage the data of their website on a day-to-day basis.
Hudson Horizons is an e-business product, solution and marketing company specializing in creating highly sophisticated customized websites, web-based software applications and providing e-marketing services for small and mid-sized businesses.
Our vision and ultimate ambition as a company is to always strive to be ‘The New Light for e-Business.’
By offering new, innovative and extremely competitive products and solutions to our customers, we provide better ways to run and operate their business online.
July 20, 2007
Movies have been around since?well, forever. When I was a kid, we saw new ones at the theater, and old ones on TV.
In 2006, movies appear everywhere. They?re on the big screen, on network TV, on cable, and all over the internet. But now, there?s another movie format that?s taking the world by storm.
Some folks call these videos compressed cinema. Others call them movie shorts. I call them ?micro videos.?
TV commercial producers were among the first to use 30-second or one-minute formats to sell products. Today we can build entire dramatic productions in two minutes. But why do it?
Sadly, statistics tell us that the human attention span has shrunk exponentially. Why? Probably because we?re exposed to so many messages, we compress anything NOT already in compressed form!
For very little money, you can build a two-minute video to teach students, publicize your business, or enhance your professional reputation. Here?s how:
1. Focus on a SINGLE THEME. Two minutes goes by really fast. In fact, if you wrote a two-minute narration, it would run only about 250 words. (The average talking speed is 120 words a minute.)
2. Think about how you can present your theme VISUALLY. I just wrote a script for a business workshop presenter. The visual part will show still photos of him making a point, gesturing, and standing over a student recommending edits to a student?s paper. The dramatic photos will change quickly, emphasizing versatility and movement.
3. Provide a SOLUTION. In two minutes, there?s little time to build characters or present complicated dialog. Strive to point out a problem, then offer a way to solve it.
Need to see examples of short videos? Just go to a search engine, and check out video links. A few of the short movies I?ve seen are amateurish, unfocused, and downright silly. But even those gave me great ideas for my clients!
It?s never to late to become a movie producer?especially a micro-video producer!
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RIX QUINN writes the nationally syndicated humor column ‘Poor Rix’s Almanac,’ and helps companies create short informational videos. He can be consultated directly by calling 817-920-7999. His book, ‘Words That Stick,’ is available at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS8/qid/
March 14, 2007
Despite Google’s ‘Wall Street Darling’ status, Yahoo! still rates as the most popular cyber-destination, getting more visitors than any other single website on the Internet.
With the recent surge in production and consumption of online video, it’s no wonder that Yahoo! wants a piece of the action, especially with the intense interest from marketers eager to find the best way to cash-in with video advertising.
Though Yahoo! cataloged online video long before Google’s entry into the online video market, a massive redesign of Yahoo!’s video interface indicates they want a bigger piece of the online video pie.
When you log onto http://Video.Yahoo.com, it looks pretty much like every other online video search engine, such as YouTube.com or Video.Google.com
You can search for videos by keywords as well as log in and upload your own videos right through your web browser to share with others online.
You can also easily share the videos with your friends in a number of ways, including: posting it on your blog; sending an email with a link; and adding it to your publicly available favorites for others to see.
However, despite the similarities, Yahoo! Video does carry some variations worth discussing.
Hosted vs. Linked Video
Virtually every single other major video directory on the web hosts all the video that gets displayed on their sites.
Google Video, iFilm, YouTube and others all force the user to upload video to their servers before inclusion in the directory.
Yahoo! Video does both. Users can either upload their videos through their web browsers to the Yahoo! servers or wait for Yahoo! to find the videos and include them in their directory.
The fact that Yahoo! includes remotely hosted videos in their search results means you have a better chance of finding the videos you want, since you get more potential choices with each search.
However, it also means a greater chance of going on a wild goose chase when a video file no longer exists on a remote server.
Video File Formats
Almost every single other video directory converts uploaded videos to the FLV file format before making them available for viewing.
This enables both Mac and PC users to view videos using the free Flash browser plug-in.
On the other hand, since they both host and link to video, Yahoo! Video makes available multiple file formats, including FLV, WMV (Windows Media Video), MPEG and more.
Since all of these formats don’t work on every computer and operating system, I believe this will cause confusion among users.
And, based on my experience, confusion causes people to look elsewhere for what they want.
Overall, Yahoo!’s video service looks more like a ‘me too’ effort than a serious attempt at innovation.
Yahoo! does not include video in their main search results page, the advertising on the video results page is not targeted, and the multiple file formats will create frustration for some users.
Despite any shortcomings, if you publish online video, of course make sure you submit your video to Yahoo! simply because the Web’s most popular site is bound to get you some extra visitors.
Copyright 2006 Jim Edwards
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the co-creator of an amazing course that will teach you step-by-step and click-by-click how to get your own money-making videos posted onlineWithout Being a Computer Geek or Paying Outrageous Fees To A Webmaster!’
=> http://www.WebsiteVideoSecrets.com
December 1, 2006
Google video is now a fast growing repository of video clips of all shapes and sizes, and has opened up some new strategies for Ecommerce website owners to profit from. Here we will explore how you can use this service to generate customers.
Google video (www.video.google.com) and You Tube (www.youtube.com) are the two main video clip websites. Here, you can search and watch video clips on thousands of different subjects – from trailers, through to tutorials through to peoples plain old funny home video clips.
That’s all very well, but how can you, as an online retailer, profit from this?
- Tutorials and short “how to” tips
You could record short clips (most are under 5 minutes) of tips or tutorials relating to your field. Here are several examples.
Golf: Search for golf tips and you will find a plethora of choice, from tips on chipping from the rough, playing bunker shots, curing that slice and much more. If you are selling anything golf related, make your own video or enlist the aid of your local golf pro.
Fly fishing: Here we find tips of fly tying, finding the best locations, casting and much more.
Dog training: this search returns lots of video clips on different training techniques, including police dog training.
If you are in the sports, recreation or hobby markets, there are lots of opportunities for you to upload “how to” type videos. I even came across a lap dancing video, uploaded by a company that sells pole dancing equipment!
- Product comparisons
In marketplaces such as audio visual, there is ample opportunity to compare different products or product types. For instance, what are the benefits and advantages of Plasma televisions versus LCD tvs? In the fitness industry, what are the different training supplements available and what would suit you best? For clothing retailers, how about a premiere of this seasons latest fashions?
- Product user guides
Again this one works well in technical marketplaces such as audio-visual and computers. For instance, How to set up your home audio system, what you need to view High definition TV, how to set up a wireless home network.
Or something a bit simpler . . food retailers, how about some quick and easy recipes using the ingredients you sell?
Equestrian retailers .. how about clips on correct saddle care, how to fit a saddle, or reviews of timesaving accessories.
- Funny clips
Perhaps you can make (or obtain! ) a funny clip relating to your marketplace. Funny skiing accidents (for ski shops), hilarious banger racing clips (for motor part retailers) or crazy baby antics (for baby wear and equipment retailers). The funnier they are, the more likely they will get passed around the Internet.
Getting traffic
There are several ways these videos can get you traffic. First you need to “brand” your video, by adding graphics to it. You could be technical and add a graphic banner at the bottom quoting a short message and your website address, if you have video editing software. Alternatively, just make the last shots of your video a close up of your web address on a sign or the front of your premises.
Users who search and find your videos, will then have your website promoted to them.
One extremely powerful benefit is the viral factor – the passing round of video clips by email by friends who have the same interests. This works extremely well if you have an original, funny clip – you could find your visits “take off” if the clip is passed around the Internet.
Additionally, many content based sites are able to feature video clips from Google, thereby giving you a free advertisement on their site if they decide to use yours.
How to record and upload your video
You can use digital cameras, camcorders or even mobile phones to record the videos, and the quality does not have to be massively high, so long as its clear enough to see.
To upload video clips to google, you need to go to www.video.google.com and select the upload link at the top. If you don’t already have an account (for adwords, adsense ,gmail or other Google services), you can create one free of charge. Currently Google accepts AVI, MPEG, Quicktime, Real, and Windows Media formats.
As well as Google, the other main video clip repository is www.youtube .com which accepts formats from most digital cameras, camcorders and cellphones using .AVI, .MOV, and .MPG file formats.
There are massive opportunities right now, for online retailers to get in early on the video clip boom, and promote their products, services and business to a wide audience. Get videoing!
Robin Porter is CEO of a Uk Ecommerce web site design company and advises web site owners on ecommerce website marketing
January 6, 2006
I’m often asked, ‘I have no video training but I want to put video on my website to help promote my products and services what can I do?’ Well the answer is simple. If you can shoot a home movie you can put a video clip on your website. Now the first thing is to not be scared of the camera. A good sales person needs to be able to speak clearly and present their product in a manner that everyone can understand and enjoy. So with that in mind turn on your camera, cell phone, or whatever video capturing tool you have and begin shooting. But here are a few tips for making your shoot successful and getting it up on your website.
1. Speak clearly, and so that everyone watching can understand what your saying and what your product is about.
2. Make sure you have enough light so that you and your product can be seen. But be aware that you can also have to much light. So the best thing to do is to test your video and the area your going to be shot in. Make sure you look natural.
3. A microphone is important and you need to be heard. If your using a mini-dv camera you can easily get a microphone that can attach from the camera to your clothing. Use make sure you can’t see the wire that connects the mic and the camera during your video.
4. Have FUN! No one wants to see a sour face on camera. So make sure you are having fun and that you SMILE. The better you come across on camera the more people would want to buy your product or services.
5. Don’t use big words in your video presentation. Keep it short sweet and simple.
6. Once you’ve finished your recording, watch it. Make sure it’s what you want and something that you’ll feel proud to have on your website.
7. Now get the clip to your computer. Your camera will have instructions on how to upload the footage. Now you can get fancy and use one of the high end video editing products. But those take a long time to learn. So if your on a PC use Windows MovieMaker and if your on a Mac use IMove and edit your clip to your licking. Don’t use to make crazy effects keep it about you and your product.
8. Now once your clip is edited you need to output it to a web file. If your on a PC then output the file to a WMV. And if your on a MAC then output your clip to a .MOV file.
9. Upload it! If you don’t have server space then use Video.Google.com or Youtube.com. You can easily upload your video to these services. Not only will you have the code to embed the file to your website but you will also allow others to see your video and your product who haven’t been to your site yet.
10. Promote your video clip. Include links to your clip in your weekly newsletters. Send your clip to your friends, family, and business associates. Let them see the work you’ve done and ask them to pass it on to other friends.
Son you’ll notice that you have a ton of visitors watching your video and more traffic to your website.
Michael Street is the former Multi-Media Manager for BET.com. He has produce over 10,000 hours of online video. He currently runs the urban travel website http://www.GreasyGuide.com and is also a creative consultant on various online TV business ventures. He can be reached at greasyguide@gmail.com for further assistance on getting video to your website.
November 29, 2005
Have you considered putting hurricanes on your web site? Well, you could put hurricanes video streaming on your web site and perhaps duty-free satellite images of each of the latest hurricanes and then people can click on them and watch the video streaming.
It is bound to get lots of interest from Internet users and this means more frequent visitors to your web site. Video streaming for something as simple as a hurricane satellite image only takes up a little bit of bandwidth and it is a good idea. During the 2005 Atlantic tropical hurricane season hurricanes were the number one thing that was searched on the Internet. In other words people are looking for this material and they are interested in it.
Therefore if your previous visitors know that this is on your web site they will return during each new hurricane to check out the storm or to learn more about it. This way you can have hurricanes on your web site along with video streaming and increase your traffic tremendously. It makes sense to put things that people are interested in as well as to help educate and inform the public on things that they care about. In doing so you will increase your traffic to your web site and make your visitors very happy. Please consider all this in 2006.
‘Lance Winslow’ - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is a guest writer for Our Spokane Magazine in Spokane, Washington
November 2, 2004
It is very important in Internet video streaming that you do not trap the customer into a situation where you bog down their Internet connection with a video stream that is too large of a file. Believe it or not many people are on dial-up still out there and there are many mobile users who cannot get the bandwidth on their cell phone while traveling to watch your video if the file is too large.
It is much smarter to have a small video stream on your web site is especially if your customers are the average middle-class American consumers. If all your customers are business customers and corporations this may not be a problem because they will have adequate bandwidth to handle the Internet video that you choose to use on your web site to help educate your customer or better explain through visualization tools exactly what your company does and how your service or products works.
It should be considered imperative and essential that you pay attention to the Internet video streaming and audio on your web site in order to not trap customers into a problem where they cannot view the video. Additionally it is smart use Internet video streaming on your web site because it shows that you’re a professional and also shows the customer that you are high-tech and up with the times. Just be smart about it. I hope you will consider this in 2006.
‘Lance Winslow’ - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is a guest writer for Our Spokane Magazine in Spokane, Washington
October 12, 2004
There are many ways to share your thoughts, feelings and information with
your friends, customers, colleagues and relatives. It is a bit difficult
to communicate when the person is very far away staying in some other
country or state. But technology has advanced so much that it is now
possible to interact with people all over the world with much ease. Thanks
to the advent of the Internet, emails can now connect people from
different countries in just seconds. What is more interesting is that it
is now possible to communicate better than plain email. Yes, now we have
the video emailing technology.
Video communication through video emails helps you to communicate better
as you can see the person and talk as if you are right in front of him or her.
Video communication is better than plain emailing because with it you can feel the
presence of the person right in front of you and you may be able to express your thoughts better.
Video emailing can be of great use for the Internet marketing.
With the help of video emails you can convince your customers better about your
products or services. It would be just like meeting your customer right at
his place. Video emails can also help to prevent as misconceptions or
misinterpretations that ruin relationships. Long distance calls are very
expensive Video emails help you to stay connected with your loved ones.
Video technology also helps you to enhance the performance of your
business and you can gain huge profits. There is an innovative technology
what is known as video blogging. Video blog is a web blog, which is used
as a communication vehicle. These video blogs also include supporting text
and images. Video blogging is now the fastest growing technology in the
field of Internet marketing. Video blogs help you to grasp the attention
of your customer faster than a plain email because we are all living in a
visual society. We get attracted to a product when we are able to see it
personally. You can now use video blogging to promote your website, to
boost up your Internet marketing by using video emails instead of simple
newsletters. You can use videos to build up your customer list and reap
huge profits. You can also send your customer a video blog to show how to
use a product.
Video technology has now made it possible to communicate
with your loved ones through video emails and also through video chatting.
Communication is always better through videos because we understand a lot
of things through the facial gestures and body language of the person.
This helps to build a strong relationship and bonding. With faster
computers and Internet connections, video technology is the next
revolution of this decade. Video technology has now made it possible to
communicate with your loved ones through video emails and also through
video chatting and that too free of cost.
Communication is always better
through videos because we understand a lot of things through the facial
gestures and body language of the person. This helps to build a strong
relationship and bonding. It is now possible for you to stay connected
with their cell phones, computers, iPods through video chatting and
emails. Hello World Company boasts the first fully integrated system of
video communication and it offers various facilities such as hello mail,
hello instant messenger and hello live. Hello mail offers its users the
facility of sending videotexts and messages. Hello instant messenger is
the hottest messenger tool, which allows you to send video clips and
messages to your friends. This facility is available along with the hello
mail. Hello live is a web casting tool which helps you to broadcast to
more than 100 viewers at a time and this would be of great help to the
small business owners. With faster computers and Internet connections,
video technology is the next revolution of this decade.
Bogdana Baska
http://www.vmdirect.com/bogdana_baska
September 27, 2004
Businesses and individuals alike are constantly looking to find new ways to communicate for work related and entertainment purposes. Things like How to chat through Macromedia Flash Communication Server are some of the most commonly sought out information by those looking for better communication options over the internet.
The Macromedia Flash Communication Server really does offer users an eclectic assortment of services. Some of the ways how to chat through Macromedia Flash Communication Server include virtual conference rooms, whiteboard applications, multi-player games and live messaging just to name a few. The Macromedia Flash Communication Server is the only system you will find at the moment that can handle numerous different communication and media applications. While those wondering how to chat through Macromedia Flash Communication Server would not actually be using a server it is simply called this because of all of the functions and capabilities that it offers users.
One of the best features users will come across while learning how to chat through a Macromedia Communication Server is it’s ability to increase the speed of real time message distribution. By being able to provide scripting, storage, security, and management a Macromedia Flash Communication Server can perform like a traditional application server that is dedicated to it’s own applications. However the one thing it cannot do that an application server can is provide connections to external data such as databases. If users wanting to know how to chat through a macromedia flash player wish to do this they need the assist of an additional product.
Even though a Macromedia Flash Communication Server can provide it’s users with a great number of combinations of applications it’s one downside is it’s need to be aided by other Macromedia Flash products. One of most products most relied upon by the Macromedia Flash Communication Server is Macromedia Flash Player 6. The flash player is the primary user interface for those wanting to know how to chat through a Macromedia Flash Communication Server and is needed for just about all applications offered by the communication server.
When an individual learns how to chat through a macromedia flash communication server they really do have the opportunity to create some very rich media and communication applications. Some say users can even create applications without having to utilize a large number of other macromedia flash products. To really utilize a MacroMedia Flash Communication Sever users should have an excellent understanding of all the applications that they are using,be able to experiment with applications that are created and most of all have a lot of patience.
Even with potential system flaws, by deciding to learn how to chat through a macromedia flash player businesses and individuals alike can really make the most of communicating through the internet.
http://www.torontochat.ca/
Toronto Chat
June 30, 2004
The Eyes Have It
Remember your high school speech class? Your teacher told you that eye contact is extremely critical to making a good speech. The more you look down, or over your audience’s heads, or to the side of the room instead of eyeballing them, the less effective your speech, presentation, or monologue is.
You know this is true. How often have you listened closely to a teacher who lectures to the class without ever looking up? How powerful is the preacher who reads his sermon and never connects eye to eye, with you or anyone else?
One important key to effective video marketing is to establish good eye contact immediately and maintain it throughout your video shoot.
Tips for Improving Eye Contact
Here are a few pointers to help you along the way toward creating dynamic video marketing clips.
- Get used to looking directly at the eye of the camera. It’s going to feel weird at first, but with some practice you can get used to it.
- Imagine you are talking with a good friend, and that the camera is his or her eyes. The more natural you can be talking with your friend in normal conversational tone, the more natural your video will come across.
- Avoid himming and hawing on camera. You have to make yourself painfully aware of all the times you say ‘um’ and ‘uh.’ Many people do this only when they are intimidated by the all-seeing eye of the video camera. Two or three brief pauses in which you are silent are a hundred times better than saying ‘uh’ even once.
- Have a good idea of what you want to say. The best videos you can produce are when you consistently look right into the camera and speak from the heart. Once more, practice will make you better and better at extemporizing.
- If you have trouble speaking extemporaneously (having a general message in mind, but making up the actual words you’ll use as you go along), you will have to find a useful alternative. For example…
- You can memorize your script. This can be very effective if you have a good memory or practice enough to get your wording ‘down cold.’ The danger is that you will miss a few words and have trouble getting back on track. Your mind can easily go blank as you stare into the camera. Another danger is that you will remember all of your lines, but won’t deliver it naturally. You may tend to rush or develop a ’sing-songy’ delivery that destroys your effectiveness.
- You can use notecards or a printed script. You can look down, quickly read the next thing you will say, and then look into the camera again. Many news anchors use this method. If you develop the art of glancing down only once in a while, this method can still be very effective.
- You can create a script that you are reading off the computer screen as it scrolls just below the camera. Vertical scrolling software is available on the web for free, as well as software for scrolling for which you pay a reasonable shareware fee. Of course, you can only glance down at the script and then look up again, but if you are able to do it skillfully, you can be quite effective.
- You can purchase a teleprompter that enables you to read your script as it scrolls right in front of the camera. The advantage of a teleprompter is that you can read and look at the camera simultaneously. The disadvantage is that teleprompters can cost hundreds, even thousands of dollars.
- You can make your own teleprompter for less than $80 and use free scrolling software available on the web. This is the solution I have chosen, and I am very satisfied with it. You still have to develop the skill of reading effectively, but at least you have continual eye contact.
Hold ‘Em with Your Eyes
Whichever option you choose, you will find that as you video production experience grows and your eye contact becomes more frequent and more natural, your video marketing will double and triple in its effectiveness.
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Copyright ©2006 Steve Singleton
Steve Singleton has written and edited several books and numerous articles. He has been an editor, reporter, and public relations consultant. He has taught college-level Greek, Bible, and religious studies courses and has taught seminars in 11 states and the Caribbean.
Go to his DeeperStudy.com for Bible study resources, no matter what your level of expertise. Explore ‘The Shallows,’ plumb ‘The Depths,’ or use the well-organized ‘Study Links’ for original sources in English translation. Check out the DeeperStudy Bookstore for great e-books, free books, and great discounts. Subscribe to his free ‘DeeperStudy Newsletter’ or ‘DeeperStudy Blog.’
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