anything media

Where’s your copy of The Yellow Pages? I’ve gotten to the point where as soon as I see the obvious bag on the porch containing the latest copy it goes straight into the trash. I used to feel guilty so I’d keep them in the garage for at least a couple of months… then they’d go into the trash. While I know we’re not the typical consumer when it comes to electronic vs. paper, I’m sure the number of Yellow Page searches for businesses is beginning to take a hit.

Several months ago, Google and YouTube announced another great way businesses can benefit from their services and one that will certainly contribute to the decline of Yellow Pages use. Your Goolge Maps Business Listing can now include a web commercial about your business (Did you know about Google Maps Business Listings?) which can help give you a leg up on the competition. Here’s my favorite example of this great service in use: I Dream of Cake in San Francisco CA.

Zeke Camusio posted a great article (Video Marketing – How to Promote Your Business Using Videos) about using video to boost customer’s visibility. Here’s five steps he suggests for producing a video:

5 Steps to Producing a Video

1. Decide what kind of video you want to record (talking head, based on a PowerPoint presentation, from your computer screen, interview, etc.)
2. Get a good microphone and a camera. It doesn’t have to be a professional camera. Sometimes a simple digital camera is enough.
3. Write the script or prepare the content. Do a practice run first.
4. Record it.
5. Do some minor editing using free software such as Windows Movie Maker. You will probably need to trim out the end and the beginning, and add a watermark with the URL of your website.

This is a great list of steps to create a video for your business. If you have the equipment and aren’t afraid to experiment I’d say go for it! Get your web-mercial shot, edited and uploaded to your business listing. If you are not quite as sure about doing it yourself, find someone in your area to help you. Area community colleges, or even high schools could be a great source to find someone with skills and equipment itching to help with a project like shooting your web-mercial.

It won’t be long before businesses begin transitioning marketing dollars spent on Yellow Pages for decades to capitalize on new media opportunities. Kendall Media Group has begun to specialize in creating videos for businesses, and assisting businesses with setting up their Google Maps Business Listings. If you are in the Denver area, or a business within a day’s drive and you’d like to talk about how your business can take advantage of Google Maps Business Listing or about having a video to place on your listing we can help. Shoot us an email. We can help get you up and running!