Video: The next biggest thing on the net?

It’s hard to believe that something that has entertained us for years would now be deemed the next hottest thing on the internet, but video took that distinction yesterday at B2B NetMarketing in Chicago.

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Oh sure, YouTube rocked our internet world a couple of years ago when broadband got its mojo and cable companies needed a promotional vehicle to drive demand for costly broadband thereby boosting revenue by satisfying customers with faster and faster line speeds. With Comcast’s The Fan you could nearly replace the national network’s newscasts with a customizable video library of the day’s events that interests you in the order you would like to see them. This was mighty favorable in our household and really raised our consciousness toward the various uses of video on the net. We don’t have to explain the benefits of video to explain its value – illustrations, demonstrations, visual enhancements.

And with a greater proliferation of broadband connectivity for residences came an increase in home offices and a growing trend toward the “work from home” day which in turn just pressed even more demand for yet faster broadband speeds.

Perhaps what pushed B2B marketers into video-as-content was the recent explosion of smartphones with video capability. Now a mobile sales staff or a buyer on-the-go has access to videos anytime, anywhere just as they do at their desks.

The B2B marketing world can be a bit slower than others when it comes to adoption of marketing technology. I know I’ll hear about it from others, but c’mon, consumer giants like Apple and Google have used video for selling and for training via their sites for years.

Al Maag, Chief Communications Officer for Avnet, calls online video “the wild wild West.” He quietly spent hundreds of thousands of dollars creating a portal that aggregates their various suppliers’ own videos into one convenient easily accessible location. Formats varied, platforms varied. He is standardizing that, and making an impact on his brand. User generated video? You bet. His junior staff grabbed some digital cams and shot a series of make-shift commercials. It’s not Hollywod, say Al, but he loves it.

Angela Sanders, Director of US Marketing Operations for Aon Risk Services, uses video testimonials as a means for establishing credibility for customer satisfaction claims and boosting the brand image especially during these turbulent times ; something their competitors choose not to do. They also create two-minute video podcasts of their whitepapers to inform and educate but ultimately a lead generation tool. During the AIG meltdown, they were busy providing video updates on fiduciary management via their “AON Situation Room.” Business must be good because she announced that AON will be the new sponsor for the world-exciting Manchester United costing north of $700 million dollars, according to rumors.

Here are 7 good reasons why B2B marketers should use online video?
•    Use as short training pieces
•    Use as short product or service demos
•    Use as client testimonials
•    Increase your Search rankings
•    Use as lead gen tactic
•    Use as thought leadership to complement whitepapers
•    Use as branding piece

Is online video really the next big thing for B2B marketers? If you’re a B2B marketer, I’m curious of your opinion.