By Jim Staylor of Staylor-Made Communications, Inc.   http://www.staylor-made.com/

July 29, 2009

What makes a video posted on the Internet spread like a pandemic? What do the most watched viral videos have in common? I believe it’s the fact they each touch emotions.

Think of recent web video links you sent or received. You likely experienced a strong feeling accompanied by some sort of physiological or behavioral change in your body while you watched? Your jaw dropped, you cringed, you cried, you smiled, you gasped, or you laughed out loud. This reaction is mostly what gives these videos such traction.

In addition to serendipitously capturing a magical moment or actually working to achieve a certain level of production value to elicit emotions, what else can you do so people will find your video and get your message?

What emotion do you want to elicit? Humor, Pity, Fear, Compassion, Pick one and be sure to focus everything you do during the production process on driving you there.

It’s challenging to produce an obviously staged video and have it be respected and watched. Your best bet is to at least have decent quality. This means the writing, directing, acting, and all technical aspects such as camerawork, lighting and audio all have to be good.

You wouldn’t hire an orthopedic surgeon to perform bypass surgery. Sure, he or she may have done a cardiac rotation and could do the heart surgery, but it makes much more sense to hire the right professional. The same is true for video.

In addition to achieving a certain level of production value, you must then get lots of people to find your video to get your message. Besides emotion the other key ingredient is motion.

Multiple sites host web video: YouTube, Revver, MetaCafe, etc. YouTube is most accessed and therefore most important for spreading viral videos. Then you must aim to create massive movement among the various on-line channels of communication – email, blogs, social media sites, comments on video sites, etc.

It may be a good start to ask your family, friends, and Facebook fellows to take a look and pass it on. But after that, your video must stand on its own merits.

Basic tips for achieving the best possible results with web videos:

• Keep it short – 15 to 30 seconds is ideal, longer is okay with the right message

• Use a professional producer and production crew

• Avoid making it an outright ad

• Appeal to sex and other emotions

• Spread the word through numerous sites and methods

Resources:

STAYLOR•MADE COMMUNICATIONS, Inc. | MOVING MESSAGES • BRILLIANT RESULTS | www.staylor-made.com | (800) 711-6699

Are you a  prosumer video maker? How to make video, how to capture audio, how to edit, how to select the right camcorder and buy the right accessories. Tips about lighting, casting, chromakey, camera platforms, etc.