Cool Tips and Hacks from Fellow Online-Video Author

So it’s this Woodstock of social media, with web-only attendance. Yeah I think I’ve got that right…

Steve Garfield, our favorite, provides us with some actionable tips courtesy of CedarStage Marketing. Garfield, videoblogging pioneer and author of Get Seen, promised numerous tips for putting videos online, and he “did not disappoint.”

He emphasized that you don’t need to spend a lot of money to get started.  In fact, begin with the camera you have, like your webcam or your smartphone.  The iPhone4, Droid X and Nokia N8 all record great quality HD video.  Even the new iMac has an HD webcam.  Here are many of the tips that Steve mentioned during his talk:

1. Good alternatives to the Flip are the Sony Bloggie, Kodak Playsport, Kodak Playfull and Nokia N8.  Although Cisco has discontinued the Flip, there is still demand for standalone pocket HD videocameras.  One reason is that only 25% of people have smartphones with HD video. Plus, you might prefer using a pocket HD videocam if you want to conserve your smartphone battery, or if you’d like to give cameras to your team to use. 
2. Both YouTube and Facebook have options to either record from a webcam or to upload your already recorded video.  When recording from a webcam, do check the quality because it varies depending on your computer and your connection.
3. Use Livestream or Ustream to stream live.  Both are free as web interface versions, and they also have paid fuller-featured versions available as a desktop app.  Steve now uses the desktop apps exclusively because of the improved connection and video quality, as well as the enhanced features.  The Ustream ProducerPro desktop version even has the ability to have multiple cameras without an additional hardware solution such as TriCaster.
4. You can also do live streaming from a smartphone.  (Only 7% of the audience had ever tried this.) Steve sees this “happenstance broadcasting” as a big opportunity and encouraged people to try it. You’re not encumbered by a laptop or huge camera – you just walk around with your smartphone. Use Qik (just acquired by Skype) or Ustream Broadcaster on your smartphone to do this. For better quality, try to get on wifi instead of using your phone’s cell service.
5. The latest iMovie version makes video editing and direct sharing very simple. You can save directly to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook and CNN iReport.  Apple just announced it’s working on a new version of Final Cut Pro, which combines current Final Cut Pro features and iMovie features. PC people seem to like Adobe Premiere.
6. CNN iReport, a user-generated section of CNN.com, presents another big opportunity. You share your video on CNN’s iReport page and it appears live.  If CNN producers like it, they pass it on to CNN.com.  If those producers like it, they then pass it on to CNN television.
7. Use Wetoku to record side-by-side remote interviews. You sign in and get an invite code, which you email to your interviewee.  She clicks on it and then pops up on the other side of the screen. When the interview is over, you save it and put the embed code anywhere you want.
8. To make videos with a completely different look and feel, consider using Stupeflix for remixed video themes, or Xtranormal or Goanimate for editable animated videos.

I’ve included pretty much the entire write-up on Steve, written by Suzanne Doughty (Cedar Stage Marketing).
Cedar Sage Marketing