Just the other day as I was walking through Times Square, I couldn’t help but notice that the majority, if not all of the billboard screens now constantly stream video advertisements. I even tried to count the total number of video billboards all simultaneously playing around me as I walked and lost count (numbers were never my strong suit, hence why I went into PR… but I digress). This revelation made me realize two very important things.
1. I should probably pay more attention to my surroundings while walking through the city.
2. Videos, both offline and online, are becoming more than just a backdrop or accessory. They are becoming one of the main distribution channels of information for millions of people every day.
The online video world is quietly bubbling up around us. The stats pretty much speak for themselves with ComScore recently reporting that nearly 178 million U.S. Internet users watched online videos in December 2009, totaling almost 33.2 billion videos viewed during the month.
At a recent PRSA NY panel discussing social media, questions surrounding online videos popped up again and again. From a method to bring to light the personalities behind brands, to building communities and last but not least to help strengthen relationships between consumers and their brands.
At another panel, ‘Journalism after Print’ attended by a colleague on the West Coast, discussions on the changing world of journalism concluded that with the huge adoption of tablets, eReaders, and new media, stories are increasingly being told in real time through videos and rich media content.
As communications professionals the task at hand is evident. With the demand and use of online video set to spiral, how can we best incorporate online videos as part of our storytelling efforts?
It seems as though it will it only be a matter of time before we look to YouTube or Hulu to bring us the breaking news and stories happening in real time. And, in order to test my hypothesis I did a quick YouTube search for the most viewed videos right now to find the Oscars being at the top of the list. Definitely a news item I’ve been following these past few days.
Lastly, let’s not forget about the recent turmoil between Conan and NBC. Nick Bilton at the NYTimes wrote a very interesting blog post discussing the consequences of Conan O’Brien taking his show online. I know I was particularly intrigued by his proposition having tuned into the final Tonight Show episodes hosted by Conan on Hulu as opposed to watching it on television. I can see it now, a huge Coco online community waiting for the next online show to appear on YouTube.
So, while we move full force into 2010 and jump into our communications plans for the year, let’s make sure to ask ourselves, are we telling content rich and online video worthy stories? If not, why not?