This week I talk about Facebook Video. It’s a relatively new tool that is easy to use and provides a great way to create a personal video that can be shared and commented via Facebook.

Audio and Video, included below at no extra charge.

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Why Facebook?
Facebook is the most widely used social network on the planet with over 300 million active users. It is just remarkable how many people are using Facebook to connect with friends and share their message. By this virtue alone, Facebook is a great place to share your personal and business message. Hopefully you are already among us.

Why Video?
Obviously, video is a very personal medium that allows your friends and associates to see you deliver your message. While it removes much of the anonymous nature of Internet communications, it also opens the door for a more personal touch and allows people to see that you are genuine about your message. And it can be fun, too!

How?

It’s pretty easy; you simply go to your Facebook page and click the ‘Video’ icon just below your status update window where you normally type a new message to your friends.

Clicking the video icon will expand a window that presents two options; you can either record directly from your webcam attached to your computer, or you can upload a video that you recorded with your handi-cam or iphone, or whatever.

Selecting the webcam video will expand the screen and open a small permissions box asking for permission to access your video camera. Once you provide permission, the window will open a video stream and you’ll probably see yourself right there on your Facebook page.

Don’t be alarmed; we’re not recording yet and no-one can see you. You’ll want to straighten your hair and fix your collar before selecting the red ‘Record’ button at the bottom of the video screen; once you do this, you are recording. So be ready.

When you are finished recording your message, click the ‘Stop’ button (now in the place of the record button) and you are finished. You now have the ability to review the video, delete the video, or share the video with your Facebook friends. Easy!

Here’s a quick video I made of the process:

Note that there are a couple things you will want to do to prepare…

For starters, if you plan to record from a webcam, you’ll obviously need one attached to your computer. Many laptops and monitors have them built right in these days, or you can always purchase one to add to your desktop. They start around $30 and go up to about $300. The cheap ones are plenty good for doing an occasional Facebook video.

You’ll also want to have a basic script of your message so you don’t waste a lot of time trying to think of your next item. You’ll also want to do a double check on your background to make sure you are not revealing anything in your home or office that you don’t want to be broadcast publicly, and you’ll want to send the kids outside and turn off your cell phone so an accidental interruption doesn’t ruin the perfect take.

Finally; get out and give it a try. Just say ‘hello’ to your friends to get started. Create a outline of what you’d like to accomplish and make a plan to share a message on a regular schedule. Before you know it, you’ll be a star. At least on your own Facebook page.

And that’s my tip of the week! Check out the audio, below…

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Recently I presented a Social Media Marketing Plan at the Social Media Club of Utah Valley (SMCUV). I promised to post the slides from the event.

Here they are, with a few ‘extras’ attached. You can download my presentation as a PDF if you prefer to just look at the pictures.

I took a few minutes to re-record the presentation in a shorter 30-minute version, and uploaded it to YouTube in four parts. I have embedded them at the bottom of this post. Or simply go watch Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4 on YouTube.

(Updated…)

If you want to watch the actual presentation video, I captured a terrible recording with my handy-cam and inserted the slides for better viewing in this Social Media QuickTime Presentation. It’s not pretty, but does capture the flavor of a live event. It is a remarkable 55 minutes long; why didn’t anyone stop me!?!

Here are the YouTube videos:

Don’t forget to make comments and spread the word through your own social media communities!

Thank you, —Cary

A Facebook account is one of the most valuable tools you can use as a blogger. Sharing your content with friends and family is the first step in getting the word out that you have new content to read on your blog. This also gives your friends and family an opportunity to support you by posting comments and reposting to their friends.

If you haven’t started a Facebook account, there is no time like the present to get moving. You won’t want to be the last one aboard, and I think we are down to the final ten. If you are one of them, click here to get started with Facebook.

Why do you need a Facebook account? Facebook is a great way to stay connected. You’ll connect with friends and family, reconnect with old buddies, and meet new acquaintances. Most importantly, Facebook is a great way to remain in touch with a larger group than you otherwise could manage. Sharing your blog content with your greater audience of friends is a great way to spread the word, get good feedback, and even test the waters among people who will give you some encouragement.

How to share on your Facebook account? It’s easy, and it’s free. All you need to do is get an account; just visit http://facebook.com and complete a quick form. Look for a few friendly names and you can be up and running in just a couple of minutes. Now all you have to do is ’share’ your content. Sharing is fairly easy, and can be as difficult as copying the URL for your post and copying it to your Facebook account (not really THAT hard), or installing a plugin to provide a simple button that will automatically publish your post to your Facebook account.

A couple of Wordpress plugins that I really like for sharing include Social Bookmarking Reloaded and Add To Any. I like Social Bookmarking Reloaded because it is easy, and allows you to select the specific icons you want to show on your posts. Add to Any is my current favorite because it reads your reader’s browser history and automatically displays the icons they use the most. It also includes an email forwarding option, which is a great idea.

When should you share your posts with your Facebook friends? Every time you have new content on your blog. Plain and simple. Social media marketing is easy to do, but requires diligence in order to be effective. Get in the habit of sharing your posts as often as you create them. Your Facebook friends will become regular followers in no time.

Using FireFox? Use Facebook toolbar to make it even easier to post your blogs to Facebook. I use this toolbar every day and have grown to depend on it because it is so convenient; I can post to Facebook, stay in touch, or make some comments without the hassle. It saves me time and keeps me in the loop.

I talked about Facebook in this week’s tech call with Paul Jensen. Here’s an excerpt:

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We recently added a new section to our ListPipe Content Notification emails titled ‘Social Media Marketing Tips‘.

Every time we post new content, our customers receive an email notification announcing the availability of the new content, including a complete review of the article, graphics, and links to the user’s blog.

I am pleased to announce that we have added the new social marketing tips with every notification as a reminder to perform four basic steps with the arrival of your new content. For those of you not participating in ListPipe, you can easily perform these steps with your own blog content.

So, when you have new content, take a minute to get the word out in four easy steps…

1. Visit your new post and share it to your Facebook page; Just click the Facebook Share button at the bottom of the article.
2. Tweet your post to your followers on Twitter; copy the URL to the new article and paste it into your Twitter post field with a comment.
3. Post your new article to Stumbleupon; Click the StumbleUpon Share button at the bottom of the article and complete the StumbleUpon profile.
4. Email the new article to four friends; Simply copy the URL for the article and paste it into an email with a short, personal invitation to read it.

Do this every time you receive or post a new article in order to grow your opportunities in social media marketing!