In just a decade or so, the Internet has become the place to do commerce. The Internet is affordable, readily accessible to the public, and reaches a large segment of the population. All manner of businesses, both large and small, are using the Internet to make sales. The competition is fierce, however, and savvy marketers are always looking for better ways to reach potential customers. If you are trying to find a way to separate your business from that of your competition, you might want to consider a hot new tool: video.



Lots of business Websites consist only text and graphics and make their sales pitches using descriptions of what their products can do for their customers. For many products, a text description and a photo of the product is sufficient. For other types of products, customers might be more inclined to buy if they could actually see what the product does.

If, for example, you are selling a piece of software, you might devote a page of text that explains what the software does and how easy it is to use. For many customers, that might be sufficient, but others might benefit more if you could show them exactly how to use the software and demonstrate to them exactly how easily they can use your product.

Creating video used to be a difficult and cumbersome process that involved cameras and expensive and difficult to use editing software. With the introduction of Camtasia and other similar products, creating videos that capture the information on your computer screen couldn't possibly be easier. With these tools, you can plug in a microphone, start recording, and simply type or use your mouse to demonstrate whatever it is you want your customers to see on your computer screen. The built in editing functions in the video software make it possible to zoom, add subtitles or blur out portions of the screen that you don't want your customers to see. Then you can export the finished product in a number of different formats and upload it to your Website.

There are several advantages to using video in addition to text on a Website:

Visitors can see the product in action, rather than just read about it

People who do not read well or who get lost in technical descriptions might find video easier to follow.

A thorough demonstration video might answer questions the customers might have about the product that would otherwise have to be answered by tech support or customer service representatives.

Thanks to the introduction of easy to use screen capture video software, making sales presentations using video is easier than ever. The better your customers understand your products, the more likely they are to buy them.