Online Video Changes Employer Branding
Written by: Madeline Lass, 22 June 2011
Although we know that the Internet has changed the way we communicate with our target audiences, many businesses are failing to leverage this incredible resource. Reasons cited range from organisational red tape, fear of losing control of corporate messaging, territorial issues between HR and Marketing, resistance from Baby Boomers, fear of new technology, etc.
What to do? Accept that the world has changed. Forever. Then, start small and keep it simple. Begin by listening to what your audience has to say. Twitter is brilliant for this. Once you start listening it becomes clear that it’s not really about the technology — although the whole movement is technologically driven. It’s about a new way of being in the world.
Online Video
Among the many social media tools available to employer brand managers, online video is probably one of the most effective ways of engaging with Generation Y. One can hardly overstate the popularity of online video: YouTube has in excess of 2 billion views a day; 24 hours of video is uploaded every minute; the average person spends 15 minutes a day on YouTube; 70% of YouTube’s traffic comes from outside the US.
What makes online video so great for employer branding?
- It’s easier to watch video than read information
- Shares information in less time
- It brings your ideas to life
- It will attract more people to your careers website
- It has the ability to reach thousands of viewers
- It is relatively inexpensive.
There is a caveat though. Online video is different from the corporate videos that we all know, and it’s different from television. In a 2008 posting, David Rich,[1] senior vice president, sales and marketing for TurnHere, a leading Internet video production and advertising company that provides broadcast-quality online video for both large consumer brands and small businesses, says, “Making online video that drives action requires us to understand how the Web makes the video viewing experience different from TV. It’s an environment with infinite choice and limited attention spans with all of the control in the hands of the user. Once this lean forward dynamic is understood and accounted for, making actionable video becomes much easier. It’s the falling back on our collective TV-watching experience as the model for Internet video that stymies action and hurts the success of the video.”
Having a great online video on your own careers site, on YouTube, and on Career Magnet can be a real differentiator for your employer brand against your competitors; and it can help you do things that other people in your market are failing to do well.
http://mashable.com/2008/12/23/how-to-create-online-video/
