Three Tools to Make Adding Video to Your Site Easier
So our last blog talked about how adding video elements to your site will make things more interesting to your user and keep them on your site longer. The problem is, you still don’t know how to do it! The good news is that, just like for almost any other problem you might run into when it comes to your website, there are tools available that are able to help. Here are the three most popular, and how they might be able to help you get that video up today.
Animoto
Animoto might be the most user-friendly and basic of all types of video creation today, but it does only really fill one need. That’s the need of the person who doesn’t want to be seen on camera, or even heard. That being said, it is still very useful for those who have simple tutorials they want to show, such as cooking or craft projects, or those that just want to add a little bit of interest (such as a cartoon or funny clip) to their website. Animoto has slideshows that are already formatted with layout, and all you have to do is drag and drop items from your computer to the slideshow slots within Animoto. When you’re done, you can even set the entire piece to music, and your video will be finished. For the most basic slideshows available through Animoto you won’t have to pay a fee, but if you want many different options there is a fee.
Screencast
Screencast is another great tool for those that don’t want to be seen on camera, as it simply takes elements from your computer monitor to create a dynamic video. The difference between this and Animoto is that you can still speak on the video, which makes it easier to create how-to videos and tutorials, but still holds the advantage for those who are just getting started in video creation. Because you’re using elements on your computer screen, it can be either video you’ve taken yourself, pictures you’ve pieced together, or something you’re actually doing on the screen, such as showing someone how to use WordPress or install different things such as Java or different web browsers.
YouTube
If you want your video to be really interactive, and to clearly show you talking your visitors through different elements or tutorials, YouTube is the best option. And if your computer has a built-in webcam, you can use that along with the built-in web video recorder YouTube has provided. While you do need to register with YouTube first, it’s now part of the Google network and so you can use the same Gmail, AdWords, or AdSense login that you’re already using. After that there’s no fee to upload your video and it will even share it across the Google+ network if you so choose. Upon your first upload you will also be given your own YouTube channel, which you can continue to upload multiple videos to afterwards.
Now that you know how important it is to add video to your site, don’t be worried by the fact that it might simply be “too hard” for you to do. It’s really not, especially when you use any of these three most popular tools listed above!
Animoto
Animoto might be the most user-friendly and basic of all types of video creation today, but it does only really fill one need. That’s the need of the person who doesn’t want to be seen on camera, or even heard. That being said, it is still very useful for those who have simple tutorials they want to show, such as cooking or craft projects, or those that just want to add a little bit of interest (such as a cartoon or funny clip) to their website. Animoto has slideshows that are already formatted with layout, and all you have to do is drag and drop items from your computer to the slideshow slots within Animoto. When you’re done, you can even set the entire piece to music, and your video will be finished. For the most basic slideshows available through Animoto you won’t have to pay a fee, but if you want many different options there is a fee.
Screencast
Screencast is another great tool for those that don’t want to be seen on camera, as it simply takes elements from your computer monitor to create a dynamic video. The difference between this and Animoto is that you can still speak on the video, which makes it easier to create how-to videos and tutorials, but still holds the advantage for those who are just getting started in video creation. Because you’re using elements on your computer screen, it can be either video you’ve taken yourself, pictures you’ve pieced together, or something you’re actually doing on the screen, such as showing someone how to use WordPress or install different things such as Java or different web browsers.
YouTube
If you want your video to be really interactive, and to clearly show you talking your visitors through different elements or tutorials, YouTube is the best option. And if your computer has a built-in webcam, you can use that along with the built-in web video recorder YouTube has provided. While you do need to register with YouTube first, it’s now part of the Google network and so you can use the same Gmail, AdWords, or AdSense login that you’re already using. After that there’s no fee to upload your video and it will even share it across the Google+ network if you so choose. Upon your first upload you will also be given your own YouTube channel, which you can continue to upload multiple videos to afterwards.
Now that you know how important it is to add video to your site, don’t be worried by the fact that it might simply be “too hard” for you to do. It’s really not, especially when you use any of these three most popular tools listed above!