Video blogging is something we all should be doing, yours truly included. If I had to name one of the top experts in using video on a blog, Gerry Oginski would be my go to guy. In fact Gerry is a great example of how a professional service provider can use video to get their message out and how it can be used to provide information to their audience. While Gerry’s focus is using video to promote a legal practice. His advice and techniques can be applied to anyone. I just wish I could get Gerry to be a regular contributor to Blog For Profit.

Guest post by Gerry Oginski, Esq.

Most attorneys think that once they post a video online it will magically turn viral and be watched by millions of people around the world. This fallacy leads attorneys to become lazy once their videos are posted to YouTube and other video sharing sites.

Once your videos have been uploaded, the real work begins. Now, it is your opportunity to let the world know that you have created the most important, educational, and fascinating video for consumers ever made on the planet. The best way to do this is with social networking tools.

Here are the 5 best ways to tell the world about your video that you are so proud of:

1. Tell all of your friends.
2. Tell all of your friends on Facebook and MySpace about it.
3. Call your parents and tell them to watch your video. Make sure to tell them to call all of their friends and relatives so they too can watch it. Importantly, have them leave relevant comments. (By the way, don’t have the mom leave comments saying “Oy, my son is such a good boy, please call him so he can put food on his table and eat. He looks so thin and he needs food now.”).
4. Tell all your newsletter readers about your great new videos.
5. Write a blog post telling the world about your video.

Here is what you should not do when you tell your friends, family, colleagues, and acquaintances about your new video:

Do not post a message to twitter saying “Immigration attorney, call me” with a link to your video.

Don’t leave a Tweet saying “Personal injury attorney handling accident cases in California. Check out the video.”

Don’t post a link on Facebook with a comment that says “If you’ve been injured please call my law firm, and by the way take a look at my incredible video.”

I guarantee that if you leave those types of messages and comments on the different social networking sites you will be ignored and your videos will never be watched. Why?
Simple. Social networking is about interacting with people and forming relationships. Someone who doesn’t know you and doesn’t care about you will ignore your message about your video, no matter how great you think it is.

So how do you tell the world about your video without appearing to be a salesman trying to sell your legal services? The answer is easier than you think.

Before I answer the question I want to describe the following scenario. When you walk into a car showroom to buy a car, what type of salesmen do you prefer to deal with? Would you rather have a salesman try and sell you a car you may not want, or would you rather have a salesman educate you about the car that he sells so that you can make an educated decision about whether this car is right for you?

Re-read the paragraph above and you’ll begin to get an idea of how to tell the world about your great video. To answer the question directly, you need to educate your social networks about how much useful information you have in your video and how it will help inform them about your particular topic. In your messages on Twitter and Facebook, do not sell your services. I will say that again for those lawyers who still don’t get it. Do not sell your services on the social networking sites. Instead, take the time to educate the people who are in your social network about people you have helped in the past. That’s the key to using social networking to boost your video.

About Gerry

Gerry created the Lawyers’ Video Studio to help lawyers get onto video.
If you need help getting onto video, then I strongly recommend you explore the Lawyers’ Video Studio to learn how video can help you market your legal services. If you just need a bit of guidance to do it yourself, Gerry can help. If you need a turn-key, all-in-one service where all you do is show up for the video shoot Gerry can help as well. Call him at 516-487-8207 or by email at lawmed10@yahoo.com .