Friday, March 20, 2020
Personal Statement Ideas
Personal Statement Ideas It has come time for you to write your personal statement, but where should you begin? Weââ¬â¢ve gathered ideas for personal statements that will get your wheels turning and your pen writing! These personal statement ideas will help you draft the ideal statement for your college application and leave you in a shining light. Ideas for Personal Statement When you are beginning to think about how to write your personal statement, you might become overwhelmed with all the possibilities and where you should start. A personal statement for college is how you will explain what sets you apart, and how you are the right choice for the newest addition to the course. Even if you are not familiar with the specific format of a personal statement for college, you can go ahead and brainstorm ideas about what you want to include. Ideas for a personal statement draft can include: Articulating the Self Creating a thinking family tree Framing the sentences of purpose In order to draft your personal statement, take some time over a period of a few days to jot down notes. In your notes, write down anything and everything you have achieved, experienced, or currently do. Especially pay attention to anything that will be relevant to the course you want to study as well as the career path you intend to take. After all, any ideas for personal statement can be used as long as they are relevant to your personal journey and/or the course you want to pursue. To take a further look of the above examples on how to generate ideas for a personal statement, we have expanded the above examples in a step-by-step guide. ARTICULATING THE SELF Divide a sheet of paper into three columns: Traits, Values, and Key Moments Think about someone who knows you really well, a close friend or family member. Write down any negative and positive traits they would use to describe you and do not be afraid to write down the negative parts! For example, you might include: impatient, bold, creative, messy, etcâ⬠¦ In the second column, Values, write down everything that is important to you. Expand on ideas such as family, friends, or love and find the root of why these things are important to you. Does someone always have your back? What strong routines does living with your family make it so special? Everyone will have similar aspects of life they value, but the little differences will help you stand out. In the final column, take twenty minutes or so to think about your memories before jotting anything down. These key moments can be large or small, but they should be moments in your life that helped define who you are today. These moments should be when you felt the most alive. Describe one or two of these moments in a few paragraphs with a purpose of showing the reader how you felt and what you experienced. Taking the time to describe the moment in as much detail as possible will help you find your voice. The more moments you describe, the easier it will be to trace a pattern of similarities within the key moments of your life. They will show who you once were, who you are now, and who you aspire to be. And the more you write, the more confident your voice will be. CREATING A THINKING FAMILY TREE This exercise is more difficult but it is recommended to help you with your personal statement. Everyone of us has been influenced by individuals in our life that are not our family. To help discover yours, draw out a family tree or find a template to use. Once you have your family tree, start to fill in the blanks of who your intellectual or spiritual ââ¬Ëfamilyââ¬â¢ members are. For example, if you are directly influenced by a singer or author, she could be your intellectual ââ¬Ëmotherââ¬â¢. Naming all the individuals who make up your ââ¬Ëthinking family treeââ¬â¢ will help you articulate your priorities and how youââ¬â¢ve learned to make your way in the world. These influences can directly transfer to creating your personal statement. FRAMING THE SENTENCES OF PURPOSE Being direct and specific can oftentimes be the best brainstorming activity. Some questions you can answer to help trigger ideas for a personal statement could be: What mistakes have you made that have taught you something about yourself? When have you been so involved in an activity that time seemed to melt away? Make a list of honest ideas, books, theories or movements that have impacted your life. How do your current commitments reflect your values? Where or when in your life do you seem to waste the most time? When do you find that you do your best and most creative work? Explain how you are you a typical product of your generation and/or culture? How can you deviate from what is considered normal? Personal Statement Topic Ideas When it comes to writing a personal statement, you need to be sure to include personal statement ideas for college. This specific format is expected to be used when you submit your personal statement with your college application. Personal statement topic ideas that you can use are: Telling your personal experiences that are relevant to the course of interest. Tell your readers why you are interested in the course. Share what you have done outside the classroom. This could be anything from your work experience, volunteering, conferences you have attended (that are relevant to the course). Explain why your personal experiences are relevant to the course. Explain why and how your personal experiences will be relevant to your future career. Demonstrate any transferable skills. Show the readers you are a critical thinker. Explain your long-term plan. What will you be doing in five years? Ten years? Any real world applications you have done or used that are relevant to the course. Keep a positive and enthusiastic tone in your writing. Remember, your personal statement is exactly that, personal! Share your story and anything that can help you stand out, and the admissions boards will be excited to learn more about you!
Wednesday, March 4, 2020
16 Video Marketing Tips That Will Skyrocket Your Traffic - CoSchedule
16 Video Marketing Tips That Will Skyrocket Your Traffic Whatââ¬â¢s the one thing people want aside from love and acceptance? More web traffic, of course! Okay, maybe thatââ¬â¢s overstating the case. But what marketers donââ¬â¢t covet more qualified traffic to their blogs, landing pages, and websites? None that I know. Increasing blog trafficà is something we rs are always working on, as well. And weââ¬â¢ve shared some strategies that work extremely well like nailing your personasà and taking data-driven approaches. Today, Iââ¬â¢ll share another angle to attract the right folks at the right time: video marketing. Why? Well, some pretty big claims have been made about its effectiveness and future relevance. For instance, research shows that: Video will be responsible for 80 percent of the worldââ¬â¢s internet trafficà by 2019. 75 percent of mobile web trafficà will be video by 2020. And today, 33 percent of all online activity isâ⬠¦ you guessed itâ⬠¦ watching video. One thingââ¬â¢s for sure: with videoââ¬â¢s upward trend, we marketers better know how to use it well if weââ¬â¢re going to keep audiences engaged andà coming back for more. After all, your audience spends hours watching YouTube, too ðŸËŽ Since creating video content takes real effort, Iââ¬â¢ve assembled this list as a foolproof way to crush every video marketing campaign- every time. And itââ¬â¢s focused on what you can do to drive traffic using your video after itââ¬â¢s been created. The big question is, ââ¬Å"How can you ensure both you and your audience get as much value out of your video content as possible?â⬠From these actionable tips, youââ¬â¢ll learn: How to skyrocket qualified traffic with your video marketing. How to extract every ounce of value from your video marketing efforts. How to ensure you donââ¬â¢t miss a single tactic available to the savvy video marketer. 16 Video Marketing Tips That Will Skyrocket Your TrafficFirst, Make Sure to Download Your Free, 7-Resource Video Marketing Kit There are loads of details, tactics, and how-tos in the tips below. To make sure you get the most out of them, we bundled together some essential tools. Your video marketing kit includes: Video Marketing Checklist Infographic: A rundown for implementing the tactics in this action-packed post! 180+ Power Words for Emotional Headlines: Harness the power of emotions to drive traffic and viewers with your video marketing. Catchy Blog Titles: Want clicks? Write headlines- and video titles- that stick. Content Calendar Template: Stay organized with all written, video, and visual content. Social Media Editorial Calendar Template: Keep your social media post organized so you know exactly how- and when- video marketing should take center stage. Best Times To Postà Infographic: Timing is everything! Learn to post during the ââ¬Å"rush hourâ⬠times when youââ¬â¢ll have your audienceââ¬â¢s attention. Micro-Influencer Marketing Checklist: Reach out to thought leaders in your industry to promote your videos with authority. Jump to a section: YouTube Video Marketing Tips Facebook Video Marketing Tips Twitter and Instagram Video Marketing Tips Tips to Use Video for Blogging + Email Now, letââ¬â¢s get started with sixteen video marketing tips thatââ¬â¢ll have your audience clicking like mad and coming back for more! YouTube Video Marketing Tips Alright, letââ¬â¢s kick this off with the video juggernaut even our grandmas use: YouTube. If youââ¬â¢re reading this, youââ¬â¢ve probably heard the stat that YouTube is the second-largest search engine on the web. With our collective Google SERPà obsession, YouTube is an obvious choice for video marketing. While you can take a deeper dive with YouTubeââ¬â¢s Creator Academy, weââ¬â¢ll cut to the chase with seven actionable tips to help you grab views and generate web traffic with your video content. 1) Create Awesome YouTube Thumbnails Even though theyââ¬â¢re a seemingly small detail, YouTube thumbnails can make or break your chances at getting clicks. My favorite analogy comes from writer Maria Jose: ââ¬Å"The YouTube thumbnail is the 21st centuryââ¬â¢s book cover.â⬠Thumbnails are the small, clickable pics that visually represent each video. They also have a job to do: click and stick. Thumbnails need to attract people to click and then stick around to watch it. Here are five rules of what makes a quality thumbnail: Pair well with the first 10ââ¬â15 seconds of your video content.à Peopleââ¬â¢s attention spans are tiny. So, your thumbnail should closely pair with the beginning of your videoà for a seamless experience that avoids disorienting viewers.Put simply, you donââ¬â¢t want people scratching their heads wondering, ââ¬Å"Is this the right video?â⬠For example, I love this thumbnail from Grant Cardone: Not only does it show exactly who the viewer will see within the first four seconds of the video, it also evokes an emotional response with the pair facing off.Which leads us well into rule number two.Exception:à If you have a super-duper interesting image from later on in your video, take a chance on using it. In that case, it could act as a teaser and/or reward to keep people watching. Just make sure itââ¬â¢s actually a frame from your video. Use people- especially closeups of their faces- whenever possible.à Because people are emotional, theyââ¬â¢re affected by emotions. Admit it, youââ¬â¢ve teared up at least once watching a video of a soldier reuniting with his or her family (likeà this oneÃ Ã°Å¸Ë ).Psychological research shows that people will mirrorà both the emotional states and behavior of people theyââ¬â¢re positively engaged with.So take this opportunity to put human psychology to work for you by using appropriate, and compelling, close-ups from your video that showcase emotion. Video Credit: Actualized.org Think twice about using the same background for a video series and its thumbnails.à Take this tip with a grain of salt and use them wisely.Using the same background in your videos- and thumbnails- can occasionally make viewers mistakenly think theyââ¬â¢re seeing the same video pop up in a feed or sidebar.Make sure your thumbnails look different enough to avoid missing valuable traffic from such a simple oversight. Be brand consistent.à Like all of your content, video marketing is another opportunity to build brand awarenessà through consistent visuals.The Mental_Floss YouTube channelà is an excellent example of this.They use similar graphics with text treatments that tell you exactly what to expect in the video. Then, their incredible host, John Green, hangs out in the same eclectic mishmash-of-a-set for every video.This is a conscience brand decision that delivers consistency without feeling played out. Have no text in the bottom right-hand corner.à Lastly, avoid adding any text to the bottom right-hand corner of your thumbnail. Thatââ¬â¢s where YouTube overlays your videoââ¬â¢s time stamp, which would obscure any text/info you put there! Now that youââ¬â¢re armed with five rules for killer thumbnails, letââ¬â¢s take a look at how to create them. Of course, you can always use pro software like Photoshopà or CorelDraw. But what if you either donââ¬â¢t have access to programs like these or your designer is swamped? Never fear, Canvaà is here! Canva is a freemium design app that helps anybody create pro-level graphics faster than this high-fiving puppy will make you smile. To begin, go to Canvaââ¬â¢s custom YouTube thumbnail creator, which will land you at this screen: Next, click the big green button to get started by creating a new account or signing in. If itââ¬â¢s your first time using this tool, youââ¬â¢ll be prompted to take a quick tour- which I highly recommend. It shows you the ins-and-outs of using their drag-and-drop editor. After youââ¬â¢ve seen how it works, itââ¬â¢s time to get started. From here, there are two paths to take: Create a thumbnail image from a blank canvas, Or, customize one of their pre-designed templates. In this example, weââ¬â¢ll use one of their templates (which I highly recommend unless youââ¬â¢ve got some design chops). Choose a template from one of the left-hand columns. As you hover over the options, youââ¬â¢ll notice some are free, while others cost a dollar or two. Find the design that best represents your brand and video, then click on it. This will auto-populate the template on your design canvas. Next, double-click on the title text to add your videoââ¬â¢s title and subtitle. If you need more text, you can add it by clicking on the text icon at the far left. Just make sure your thumbnail isnââ¬â¢t too busy- you donââ¬â¢t have much real estate to work with, after all. Now you will change the all-important background image. There are two ways to go about this. First, you can click in the search field at the upper left-hand corner. There you can search through myriad stock photos that run the gamut of free to paid. If you go the stock photo route, click on the image you like and itââ¬â¢ll populate on your design canvas. Once it does, drag it into place. You may need to choose the ââ¬Å"arrangeâ⬠option in the upper right-hand corner if you want to send your image behind other layers- like your title text, for instance. The other way to set your background image is to use your own- which I recommend. Instead of searching through stock photos, youââ¬â¢ll click on the ââ¬Å"uploadâ⬠icon at the bottom of the tools column at the far left. Simply choose the image youââ¬â¢d like to use and upload it. Just make sure itââ¬â¢s sized at 1280x720 pixels- or a 16:9 ratio. Thatââ¬â¢s YouTubeââ¬â¢s preferred thumbnail size. (If you need help resizing a still image from your video, you can use an app like picresizeà or ResizeImage.netà for free.) Finally, the moment weââ¬â¢ve all been waiting for... Itââ¬â¢s time to download your freshly-created YouTube thumbnail. Do this by clicking on the ââ¬Å"Downloadâ⬠button on the top bar. Then, choose whether youââ¬â¢d like a JPG or PNG. (Note that PDFs wonââ¬â¢t work in this instance, as YouTube doesnââ¬â¢t accept that file type for thumbnails.) And voila- youââ¬â¢re all set! Now itââ¬â¢s time to upload your custom thumbnail to YouTube. This is an easy process that you can follow step-by-step via YouTubeââ¬â¢s video below: One more thing... However, there is a final snag you may run into if youââ¬â¢re new to this. To use custom thumbnails, your YouTube channel must be verified, meaning you have confirmed ownership and liability of the account. And also, that you agree to follow their community guidelines. With that, youââ¬â¢re all set to create awesome thumbnails for clicks that stick every single time. #YouTube marketing tip: create awesome thumbnails to get clicks that stick2) Write Compellingà Titles/Headlines Yes, killer titles and headlines are a thing for video marketing, too. As marketing legend, David Ogilvy, said: ââ¬Å"On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.â⬠Titles- like headlines- have big shoes to fill. But whenever youââ¬â¢re looking for advice, youââ¬â¢ll find tons of generic tips like: ââ¬Å"Make it memorable and catchy!â⬠Advice like that usually leaves me thinking: sarcasm ââ¬Å"Gee, thanksâ⬠¦ I never wouldaââ¬â¢ thought of that on my own.â⬠/sarcasm Instead, letââ¬â¢s chat about some less-obvious tips and tricks of writing traffic-driving headlinesà and emotionally-charged titles. Be searchable:à What keywords relate directly to your video content? To write freakinââ¬â¢ awesome titles, they must: Make a promise:à What problem will your content help your viewer solve? Tickle the emotions: Are you connecting intellectually, empathetically, or spiritually? Be the cream of the crop:à Have you written at least 20ââ¬â30 headlines and chosen the best one? Letââ¬â¢s tackle an example together, shall we? Letââ¬â¢s say weââ¬â¢ve just pressed export on a video about how to write great headlines. You know what I would be thinking? ââ¬Å"My headline better be freakinââ¬â¢ awesomeâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ To begin, letââ¬â¢s hit our mini-headline checklist above. We need to make it searchable, which means using words that match our core subject- headline writing- with other related phrases viewers are searching for. Hereââ¬â¢s a dead-simple way to do this:à Use YouTubeââ¬â¢s search bar for related title ideas. Sometimes this little trick will surprise you. For instance, I didnââ¬â¢t immediately think of a journalism angle or tie in. Now that I see the related search, though, it makes sense. Journalists are writing headlines all of the time. For our imaginary video, then, Iââ¬â¢m going to choose the following title, then unpack a few other reasons why: ââ¬Å"How to Write Headlines That Will Make Journalists Jealousâ⬠Now that I know Iââ¬â¢m capitalizing on searchability without keyword-stuffing the daylights out of the title- I need to ensure it makes a promise. While there are plenty of ways to do this well, one of my favorites is to use the ââ¬Å"How toâ⬠¦ That Willâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ formula. If we break down the headline I wrote, itââ¬â¢s exactly that. Hereââ¬â¢s the skeleton: ââ¬Å"How toà [subject] That Willà [promise made + pain solved]â⬠(ââ¬Å"How toà Write Headlinesà That Will Make Journalists Jealousâ⬠) The predictable success of this headline is further backed up by the Headline Analyzer tool I mentioned above. ( Seriously, I use the peanuts outtaââ¬â¢ this thing.) This title clocks in with a score of 81. Notice also that it tickles the emotions with both the promise and the power word ââ¬Å"jealous.â⬠However, in the spirit of full disclosure, I could arguably strengthen this headline by using more Emotional Marketing Valueà (EMV) words. But for the purposes of our video, Iââ¬â¢m satisfied with combining the ââ¬Å"how to + that willâ⬠angle with the searchability hook of journalism. Tip: Make sure you downloaded the free video marketing kit! It includes a list of 180+ emotional power words perfect for your headlines. Itââ¬â¢s a great shortcut to eliminate guesswork. Finally, always use the title/headline thatââ¬â¢s the cream of the crop- which is often easier said than done. At , our go-to practice is to write at least 20ââ¬â30 different headlines before we ever settle on one. As you write different headlines, youââ¬â¢ll piece together what works, and what doesnââ¬â¢t. For example, if you read some of my headline examples in the screenshot above, youââ¬â¢ll notice I thought better of using a phrase like ââ¬Å"beat a journalist.â⬠I happen to like journalists and would hate to be misunderstood :) There you have it! If you follow the tips and use the tools above, youââ¬â¢re well on your way to writing titles that drive traffic all day long. Whatââ¬â¢s also cool is that the headline analyzer is a baked in part of . So every headline you write is scored inside the tool like magic. I use it for every post I write- even this one! You can snag a free trial hereà to try including it in your content marketing workflow. #YouTube marketing tip: Make sure your video title is catchy and compelling3)à Use YouTube Cards to Increase Engagement (R.I.P. Annotations) If youââ¬â¢ve spent any time on YouTube, youââ¬â¢ve seen annotations littered across videos aplenty. Theyââ¬â¢re the clickable boxes, bubbles, and blurbs that float above videos as they play. However, to the dismay of some content creators- but the joy of many viewers- YouTube recently announcedà that annotations are a dying breed and destined for extinction. The annotation is dead; long live theâ⬠¦ ââ¬Å"Cardâ⬠? Yep. Thereââ¬â¢s a new sheriff in town. And this one is far less obnoxious. Hereââ¬â¢s what you need to know about YouTube Cards how to start using them straight away. The Cardsà feature shines while a video is playing. Especially because they can be launched on either desktop or mobile (which was a limitation to annotations). To interact, the viewer will see a card indicated by a small ââ¬Å"iâ⬠icon at the top right of the video. To date, there are five types of YouTube cards you can use to enhance your videos on both desktop and mobile. Video or playlistà to promote your other videos. Channelà to send traffic to another channel. Donationà for encouraging donations to nonprofit organizations. Pollà to ask your viewers a question, get their responses, and then provide the results instantly. Linksà to approved websites. To add cards to your videos, first, login to YouTube Creator Studio. Then use the drop-down arrowà next to ââ¬Å"editâ⬠to add a card. From here, you can choose both the timestamp for when youââ¬â¢d like the card to appear andà the type of card youââ¬â¢d like to use. Letââ¬â¢s say we wanted to add a ââ¬Å"Pollâ⬠card to our video to discover answers to the most important question of all: What kind of bear does your audience think is best? First, we click on the blue ââ¬Å"Add cardâ⬠button and then select ââ¬Å"Pollâ⬠as the type of card weââ¬â¢d like to add. Then we type in our question along with the answers- of which you can have up to five. Once youââ¬â¢ve filled out your poll questions and answers, click on the blue ââ¬Å"Create cardâ⬠button at the bottom right. Now youââ¬â¢ve got yourself a card. Then, when a viewer clicks on your card, theyââ¬â¢ll see both the poll andà the overall results. As a bonus, polls can give you additional insights by asking your audience more about their pain points and what theyââ¬â¢d like to learn more about. #YouTube marketing tip: Drive more engagement using YouTube cards4) Use YouTube End Screens to Drive Contextual Traffic End Screens are a great way to drive contextual traffic to your related content. Theyââ¬â¢re the part of a video that shows up at the last 5ââ¬â20 seconds and can include one to four clickable elements. These elements can send people to other videos, your channel, your *approved* websites, or invite them to subscribe. They also have a touch of interactivity. On desktop, they can show additional info upon hover. And on mobile, they do so upon tap. Pretty nifty. Original photo: YouTube Hereââ¬â¢s how you get started. First, if youââ¬â¢re working with a video currently using annotations, youââ¬â¢ll have to give them the axe. But donââ¬â¢t worry, the system knows all. So itââ¬â¢ll ask you to unpublish them automatically. When youââ¬â¢re ready to start, here are the exact steps to takeà (source): ââ¬Å"Sign in to the your YouTube account. In the top right, click your account icon Creator Studio. In the left menu, select Video Manager Videos. For the video you want to add the end screen to, click Edit. In the top tab bar, click End screen. If the selected video contains annotations, follow the instructions to unpublish them. You can re-publish them at any time. Youââ¬â¢ll see your video with the predefined grid and a timeline below that indicates the available part for the end screen. Click Add element. You can add up to four elements, and one of them must be a video or playlist. Choose how to build your end screen: Add element:à You can add up to four elements to a video. At least one element must be a video or playlist. Select each element and fill in the required information, then click Create element. Copy from video: You can copy an end screen from another one of your videos and edit the elements. YouTube template: You can choose from predefined formats that show combinations of elements. You'll need to define the content for the elements in the end screen, such as add the channel to be featured. Adjust the placement and size of each element on the grid. Adjust the time for the element to show in the timeline below. Click Save.â⬠Then, once youââ¬â¢ve wrapped up these steps, select Previewà to grab a sneak peek and ensure things look the way you intended them to. You can also check out this sweet how-to breakdown + explainer video: Lastly, donââ¬â¢t forget to take full advantage of analytics and dataà to incorporate into your ongoing content marketing efforts. Checking out your end screen reportsà is easy. Make sure youââ¬â¢re signed in to the right channel. Then hop into your Creator Studioà and choose YouTube Analytics, then End Screensà to check performance and find ways to optimize. To do this, youââ¬â¢ll want to pay attention to these metrics especially. End screen element clicks. This will show you how many total times an end screen element was clicked. Clicks per end screen element. This will tell the story of how often an end screen element was clicked when displayed. End screen elements. And these data show the number of times elements were actually shown. (Which is a good data-point to pair with view duration to see if people are sticking around to the end- found in your Audience Retention Report.) Maximizing Traffic Using End Screens To maximize end screens (and even cards) for driving traffic, think about the related content you should link to beyond ââ¬Å"related content.â⬠Instead, think about what additional or related problems your viewer might need to solve next, and what other pieces of content youââ¬â¢ve created that can do that. This will help you align with intent at just the right time. #YouTube marketing tip: Drive more traffic with optimized end screens5) Tag It Up! If youââ¬â¢ve ever uploaded a video to YouTube before, itââ¬â¢s likely you know what tags are. However, if youââ¬â¢re new to the idea, no sweat. Tags are a way of adding descriptive pieces of text to your video so YouTube understands what your video is about. YouTube expert Derral Eaves breaks tags down further into four categories in this video (and he also shows step-by-step how to add them): Specific Tagsà (1:37):à One word descriptions of the content. Compound Tagsà (2:12):à Several words that form a single tag. (Much like a long-tail keywords for you SEO peeps.) Generic Tagsà (3:07):à A higher-level descriptor of the type of content youââ¬â¢re offering. Misspellingsà (4:03):à Very clever way to compensate for human error. Now, outside of the obvious ways to tag your video (e.g., simply describing what your video content is about), Iââ¬â¢d like to share a nerdy insight with you. When you watch YouTube videos, one thing youââ¬â¢ll notice is that while the YouTube algorithm seems to know a what a video is tagged with, theyââ¬â¢re not visible to the viewers. Unless you get all Sherlock Holmes and do some sleuthing, that is. As you know, we at are all about research- the skyscraper techniqueà in particular. To apply this technique to your video marketing, youââ¬â¢re going to need to look underneath the hood. So, find a top-performing YouTube video in your niche and then use the following steps to snoop out the tags theyââ¬â¢re using to get some ideas. Hereââ¬â¢s how to do it in Google Chromeà in under 5 seconds: First, simply prepend your competitorââ¬â¢s video URL with ââ¬Å"view-source:â⬠in Chrome. Next, youââ¬â¢ll notice you get taken to a screen that looks like a robotââ¬â¢s love letter. If youââ¬â¢re not a developer (like me), youââ¬â¢re first instinct may be to run away. However, you donââ¬â¢t need to worry about all the technical stuff. Our quarry is summoned with a simple search command. Use the find keystroke (cmd + F on Mac; cntrl + F on PC) and type in ââ¬Å"keywordsâ⬠in the search box. Then, youââ¬â¢ll find a list of all the keywords a given video is using. Pretty stealthy, eh? Congrats, youââ¬â¢re now ready to use tags to your advantage. #YouTube marketing tip: Use tags to your advantage6) Translate Tags into Foreign Languages (if aligned with business objectives) Now that you know how to better use tags, hereââ¬â¢s another five-second hack. If you have an existing audience in multilingual markets- OR youââ¬â¢re trying to break into a foreign market- use Google Translate to tag your videos in the appropriate language(s). Letââ¬â¢s tackle a quick example. To begin, visit the Google Translate page. You will see two boxes. On the left you will type your origin language words and phrases. And on the right, you will see the translated outputs. In this example, I translated English ââ â Spanish. However, you can choose any available language using the arrow drop-down selections. While Google Translate isnââ¬â¢t always 100 percent accurate, youââ¬â¢re pretty safe using it to translate simple words and phrases to use as tags for your video content. à ¡Muy bien! #YouTube marketing tip: Translate your tags into foreign languages to break into foreign markets7) Use YouTube to Improve SEO Everyone wants better search engine optimization, right? Well, video is another opportunity to excel in this all-important marketing strategy. And for those in the know, YouTube has huge SEO potential. Not convinced? Just take a look at the screenshot below. Google loves YouTube and frequently gives it some prime real estate in search results. So, if youââ¬â¢re going to maximize on YouTubeââ¬â¢s reach, a small but mighty tip is to optimize your videoââ¬â¢s description. The Anatomy of a Winning YouTube Description To see it in action, hereââ¬â¢s a great example of an optimized YouTube video description from genius SEO Brian Dean. Original image credit: Backlinko In his ultimate guide, Brian explains that the most effective video descriptions have these four things in common: The link you want to send traffic to at the top of your description to increase click-through-rates (CTRs). Your target keyword appears within the first twenty-five words of the description. Your videoââ¬â¢s description is at least 250 words long. Your keyword is included three to four times in the description. To nail your video descriptions, then, make sure you know: What keyword youââ¬â¢re targeting via smart research. Know where you want to send traffic + why your audience would logically visit the link as a next-step from your video. Exactly what value your video adds to your viewers. This way you can write copy that marries the promise youââ¬â¢re making with how youââ¬â¢re going to deliver on it. #YouTube marketing tip: Pay attention to YouTube #SEO!While YouTube mastery is an art in itself, now you have seven solid video marketing tips to rock on the worldââ¬â¢s favorite video viewing platformà and increase your traffic. Now keep cruisingâ⬠¦ There are more video marketing tips where that came from! Recommended Reading: How to Make a Video Content Marketing Strategy to Boost Your New Series Facebook Video Marketing Tips According to research by Animoto, Facebook is the most impactful social channel for video content, outperforming all other channels 8.4x. With the huge potential payoff of Facebook video marketing for driving engagement and traffic, letââ¬â¢s jump into some of our best tips. 8) Hack the Process With Best Time Scheduling + Social Video One of the most common questions weââ¬â¢ve encountered at is a simple one: ââ¬Å"What are the best times to post on social media for the most traction?â⬠Thatââ¬â¢s a great question. And itââ¬â¢s answer is all about the numbers. Fortunately, weââ¬â¢ve got your back. We took a deep dive and analyzed 20 studiesà to determine the exact answer- and for every major platform. The result was our best time schedulingà tool thatââ¬â¢s built right in to . Itââ¬â¢s fueled by all the latest data so there is zero guesswork about when to post on any given social channel. Essentially, itââ¬â¢s the best way to harness the power of analytics + automation to increase your video marketing reach. Hereââ¬â¢s a quick video about how it works: Best Time Scheduling Where this tool really goes to work for your video marketing efforts is when combined with one of my other fave marketing weapons: social video. With social video, you can share and manage ALL of your social media videos in one place. Introducing Social Video From Blog When used together, you simply need to upload your video(s) and select the networks youââ¬â¢d like them posted to using best time scheduling. And youââ¬â¢re done. Simple as that. Both features are part of . However, if you prefer a method with a bit more elbow grease involved, you can use the Time to Post Kità that came in your free Video Marketing Kit (download it now if you havenââ¬â¢t already!). As you dig in, youââ¬â¢ll notice some seriously interesting finds that bear huge implications for posting times. For instance, did you know that 80 percent of the U.S. population is located in the Central and Eastern time zones? From there, youââ¬â¢ll see an infographic breakdown of: What days to post on every major social channel, What times to post on those channels, And what percentage of engagement you can expect. Additionally, youââ¬â¢ll find three custom Google Analytics reports to help you measure your own progress and video marketing success. Best Time Scheduling + Social Video = Facebook video marketing automation bliss in @:9) How to Add Captions for Silent Viewing Ready for a show-stopping stat? 85 percent of Facebook videosà are watched with no sound. Wowzers. So letââ¬â¢s take a look at the easiest way to make your videos perform well even without sound. In this tip, youââ¬â¢re going to learn how to create captions for your Facebook videos. At first blush, the process seems pretty technical and tough. However, thereââ¬â¢s an easy, and economical, way to get the job done. You can always use Facebookââ¬â¢s automatically generated captions feature. However, some folks have trouble with the system misunderstanding words or phrases and adding gibberish. So, if you want to be in charge of quality control and accuracy, hereââ¬â¢s how it works. First, understand that Facebook uses a special file called a SubRipà that will have end with ââ¬Å".srtâ⬠. To use captions, you will need to create a SubRip file with your videoââ¬â¢s transcription included. There are many ways to create this kind of file. In this tip, Iââ¬â¢ll give you two. One will cost a few bucks and the other is free- though itââ¬â¢ll cost you some time. Use a Professional Transcription Service The quickest way to create this kind of file is by using a professional transcription service. You can use a service like Revà for quick turnaround with low costs, starting at a buck per minute. This option makes a lot of sense if youââ¬â¢re working with a short video because you donââ¬â¢t have to spend the time transcribing. You can simply upload a video or share a link to the published video if itââ¬â¢s on YouTube or Vimeo already. Bam. Done. Now, there is also a way to do this for free if youââ¬â¢re working on a super tight budget. So Iââ¬â¢ll touch on that, too. Then, weââ¬â¢ll cover how to upload your SubRip file to Facebook. Use a YouTube Hack to Auto-Transcribe The next way to create this kind of file is by using YouTube to hack the process. Youââ¬â¢ll need a YouTube channel to implement this tip, so if you donââ¬â¢t have one, make sure to create one. To start, login to Creator Studioà by clicking on your profile pic in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. Next, if youââ¬â¢ve already uploaded the video, go ahead and select it. And if itââ¬â¢s a video you donââ¬â¢t ultimately want public on your YouTube channel, you can choose to upload it via the Video Managerà with a ââ¬Å"Privateâ⬠listing. That way you wonââ¬â¢t notify your subscribers about a video that wonââ¬â¢t be sticking around! Next, navigate to your video manager and find the video youââ¬â¢re creating captions for. Click on the drop-down arrow next to the ââ¬Å"editâ⬠button and select ââ¬Å"Subtitles/CCâ⬠from the list. (If itââ¬â¢s your first time youââ¬â¢ll be prompted to select the language your video is in.) Next, youââ¬â¢ll click on the blue ââ¬Å"Add new subtitles or CCâ⬠à button, then choose the appropriate language. Youââ¬â¢ll then choose ââ¬Å"Transcribe and auto-syncâ⬠to manually type your transcription and then auto-sync the newly-written caption with the spoken words in the video. Once youââ¬â¢ve done this, a transcription box will appear and you can start typing away. By default, thereââ¬â¢s a nice setting that pauses the video while youââ¬â¢re typing so you can keep up. Then, once completed, click the blue ââ¬Å"Set timingsâ⬠button. YouTube will then put itââ¬â¢s smarty-pants brain to work syncing your transcription up with your video contentââ¬â¢s audio. Now youââ¬â¢re on the final stretch of creating the .srt file. To bring it in for a landing, follow this sequenceà using the screenshots below. Click on the ââ¬Å"Save changesâ⬠button. Click on ââ¬Å"Englishâ⬠(or whichever language your caption was created in). Finally, click on the ââ¬Å"Actionsâ⬠drop-down and select ââ¬Å".srtâ⬠to download the file. Well done, you. Now youââ¬â¢ve got a fresh .srt file thatââ¬â¢s ready to enhance your Facebook videoââ¬â¢s silent-viewing goodness. How to Add Your .srt File to a Facebook Video Now that youââ¬â¢ve either received your .srt file from a pro service or downloaded one you just created on your own, itââ¬â¢s time to finish the job. For starters, make sure the file is named correctly using Facebookââ¬â¢s naming convention: filename.[language code]_[country code].srt So, if youââ¬â¢re in the U.S., it would look like this: video_name.en_US.srt (If youââ¬â¢re not in the U.S., hop over here to view all available country codes.) Now that youââ¬â¢re file is in ship-shape, you can work through the step-by-step directionsà below that come straight from Big Blue itself: Add Captions to Your Page's Video With a SubRip (.srt) File: Make sure that your caption files are correctly namedà and formattedà before you upload them. Click Share a photo or videoà at the top of your Page's Timeline. Click Upload Photos/Videoà and select a video from your computer. Click Captions, then click Upload SRT File. Choose a .srt file from your computer. Select an optional Default Language. If you select a default language, captions will appear in this language when a viewer's preferred language isn't available. Finish adding details to your video and click Publish. To add captions to an existing video on your Page, find the post on your Page's Timeline, click à in the top-right corner, select Edit Postà and follow the steps above. Note: People who watch your Page's video with sound turned off will automatically see captions. People who watch your video with sound turned on will need to turn on captions to see them. The language people see captions in is determined by their preferred language. Finally, if youââ¬â¢re interested in taking a shot at Facebookââ¬â¢s automatic captions feature, here are the step-by-step instructions: Automatically Generate Captions for Your Page's Video Click Share a photo or videoà at the top of your Page's Timeline Click Upload Photos/Video and select a video from your computer Click Publish Once your video has been published, click Generateà from the banner at the top of your post Edit the captions and click Save to Video Note: Generating captions for videos is currently only available in US English. Now, your video is ready to be viewed silently on desktop and mobile for all the world to see. Nice work, youââ¬â¢ve just increased the odds of your video being viewed by 12 percent. #Facebook video marketing tip: Use captions (85% of video on platform watched w/o sound)10) How to Understand Facebook Video Metrics When it comes to social media metrics, there is data aplenty. But the real trick to data-driven video marketing is knowing what numbers to pay attention to. In this tip, Iââ¬â¢m going to break down the essential in-app Facebook video metrics to help you discern what success looks like for you. Then, once you know what numbers tell your marketing story, you can optimize, optimize, optimize! Begin With the End in Mind As the quotable Dr. Stephen R. Covey said: ââ¬Å"Begin with the end in mind.â⬠The same is true when weââ¬â¢re talking data. To understand what stats matter, you must first decide the action(s) youââ¬â¢re trying to inspire with your video marketing. In this post, the focus has been on driving traffic to a specific place- whether a website, landing page, other video content, or any place else. For our aims, then, Iââ¬â¢m not going to focus on views- as thatââ¬â¢s often a vanity metric. After all, Facebook counts a view when someone watches at least 3 seconds or moreà (while YouTube counts a view after 30 seconds or so). If you ask me, itââ¬â¢s tough to make a case for basing content optimization decisions off of 3-second video ââ¬Å"views.â⬠Instead, letââ¬â¢s look at video retention, video engagement, and clicksà on your video. To view the data for each of these, login to Facebook, then navigate to your page. From here, click on the ââ¬Å"Insightsâ⬠tab and then choose the ââ¬Å"Videosâ⬠option on the left-hand column. Video Retention Video retention is a key metric because it helps you understand just how many people are sticking around for your videos. You can view these stats all the way down to individual posts. From there, you can filter the data into: auto-played vs. clicked-to-play or paid vs. organic. In the image below, you can see that about 67 percent of this videoââ¬â¢s viewers dropped off after only 5ââ¬â6 seconds of view time. While Facebook analytics would count that as a ââ¬Å"view,â⬠itââ¬â¢s really helpful to know that only 5ââ¬â10 percent of viewers actually hung around to the end. (Original image source: Facebook; Notes ours.) Video Engagement Video engagement measures all of the actions (likes, comments, shares, and clicks) your viewers took. Youââ¬â¢ll notice there are two really big numbers on the top of the screenshot below: 59,456à people reached, And 21,625à video views. Donââ¬â¢t jump to those numbers right away- even if theyââ¬â¢re big. Iââ¬â¢m not discounting their potential relevance. For example, reach is helpful in seeing how many opted-in fans vs. non-fans have seen your content. However, if your focus is traffic, zero in on the three metrics in boxes below: likes, shares, and link clicks. (Original image source: Facebook; Notes ours.) Why Likes, Shares, and Clicks Matter Often, ââ¬Å"likesâ⬠get a bad rap as a vanity metric. However, an interesting study from the National Academy of Sciencesà conducted with 86,000 volunteers showed that their ââ¬Å"likesâ⬠revealed their political leaning between with an astounding 85 percent accuracy. So, as Steve Rayson wrote: ââ¬Å"This would appear to indicate quite strongly that people ââ¬Ëlikeââ¬â¢ content that resonates with them.â⬠Bottom line, you can at leastà trust likes to give you insight into whether or not your video content resonates with your audience or not. Though Iââ¬â¢d never encourage you to build a social media strategyà based on them. Next, marketers often value shares more highly than likes because they cost people more in terms of social capital. Shares display specific user intent and reaction to your content. In essence, shares signal that viewers explicitly thought their friends needed to see a given video (for good reasons or for bad!). And lastly, link clicks are important to traffic becauseâ⬠¦ Well, you have to get people to click on links to get to your stuff! The Easiest Way to Get It Right Those are only three of the many valuable analytics available on every social platform. If youââ¬â¢re looking for a painless way to see how every video and social post is doing across a variety of channels, our social analytics tool isà a frictionless way to do so. Social Analytics from : Prove the ROI of the work you do! #Facebook video marketing tip: analyze video post performance with Social Analytics in @:Continued analysis is the key to learning and becoming a better marketer. The more often you pay attention to the right data- and let them drive your decisions- the more effective youââ¬â¢ll become. Just like how Susan Moellerà of BuzzSumoà described her process in an episodeà of the Actionable Marketing Podcast: ââ¬Å"I like to actually do the research and see what comes out of [it] even if the result does tell you that yes, puppies and babies are popular on Facebook.â⬠Recommended Reading: How to Do Facbeook Video Marketing the Right Way Twitter and Instagram Video Marketing Tips Great news. On Twitter, videos are six times more likelyà to be retweeted than photos.à And Instagram users share over 95 million photos and videos per day. So, letââ¬â¢s take a look at how you can make the most of those tasty stats. 11) Use Video Replies in Addition to Tweets Okay, technically this isnââ¬â¢t a tip to market your videos, per se. But it is a sweet, low-effort-high-reward way to use video on Twitter. Itââ¬â¢s all about spending a few extra seconds on your replies. When people tweet @ you, theyââ¬â¢re doing so because they care about both you andà your content. So, when is there a better time to deepen a social media interaction than when theyââ¬â¢re talking to you? The concept is simple: When someone replies, retweets, or mentions you on Twitter, hit them back with a video response instead of text. If you want some inspiration on how to execute this tip, spend a few minutes watching @garyveeà show us how itââ¬â¢s done. PS:à While weââ¬â¢re on this kick, why donââ¬â¢t you swing by and tweet me a video hello @Jordan_Loftis?! Iââ¬â¢d be happy to strike up a conversation. #Twitter video marketing tip: Interact with your audience using video replies12) Go Beyond the ââ¬Å"Link in Bioâ⬠Tactic With This Nifty Tool As you know, Instagram is a bully when it comes to links in posts. Because they donââ¬â¢t allow them, most Instagramers use the ââ¬Å"fresh link in bioâ⬠trick. Thatââ¬â¢s where you change the one link youââ¬â¢re allowed to have in your bio with each relevant post. However, thereââ¬â¢s a nifty service called elink.ioà thatââ¬â¢s built a better mousetrap- or at least a better way to use your solitary Instagram link. In essence, it allows you to create a sort of Inceptionà of links (links within links). When you create such a link, elink.io launches a unique page with curated links. This means that not only can you update it with fresh content, but you can add a host of related links with ease. Hereââ¬â¢s how it works. To start, signup for an account (they have free option to get started). Then, you can choose to watch their quick tutorial or jump straight in and get your hands dirty. Weââ¬â¢ll throw caution to the wind and get started right away. Edgy, I know. Once youââ¬â¢re in, itââ¬â¢s time to create your first link. Simply click on ââ¬Å"Create Newâ⬠on the left. From here, you have some customization options. But itââ¬â¢s easiest to start with a template. Weââ¬â¢ll use the one named ââ¬Å"Legian.â⬠Next, itââ¬â¢s time to paste in the bevy of links youââ¬â¢d like to include. Iââ¬â¢m going to use a roundup to some of my favorite articles and my Twitter profile. As you add links, your template will fill out with each one. The interface gives you a nice preview on the right half of the screen, as well. Once youââ¬â¢re happy, click the blue ââ¬Å"Nextâ⬠button to press on. After youââ¬â¢ve added your links there are just a few steps left. Youââ¬â¢ll select a header, enter in a title and description, and then smash the ââ¬Å"Create Linkâ⬠button to go live! Select a Header Enter a Title + Description Create Your Custom Linkà (and add profile info if youââ¬â¢d like!) Hereââ¬â¢s my final product: https://elink.io/p/social-media-mastery-roundup Obviously this tool has more applications than Instagram only. But itââ¬â¢s certainly a way to up your Instagram video marketing game! #Instagram video marketing tip: Use this tip with @elink_io to make the most of your bio link13) Automatically-Schedule Promo Posts Using One of social media marketingââ¬â¢s perpetual woes is Instagramââ¬â¢s closed API. This shuts down almost every third-party app from posting to the social platform on your behalf. That is...except for Ã°Å¸ËÆ' We already have some detailed postsà on exactly howà to use to do this. So in this tip Iââ¬â¢ll describe the highlightsâ⬠¦ Or, you can watch this quick video: Schedule Instagram Posts Along With Everything Else Schedule all your Twitter and Instagram posts (and more) with @How it Works To put this feature to work for your video marketing, youââ¬â¢ll need to download the mobile app (available on iPhoneà + Android). You can schedule Instagram posts right from your marketing calendar. Then, when itââ¬â¢s time for the post to land, youââ¬â¢ll see a push notification from the app with the exact message youââ¬â¢ve already created. Then, with a few taps, you can hop into Instagram and drop your post in. An additional bonus is that you can also schedule Instagram posts automatically with ReQueue! Recommended Reading: How to Get Started With Twitter Video Marketing Tips to Use Video For Blogging + Email Of course your video content will make many an appearance on your blog. Plus, if youââ¬â¢ve gone through the work of creating videos, youââ¬â¢ll want to cash in on the fact that using video in emails leads to a 200ââ¬â300 percent increaseà in click-through-rate. In this section of tips, weââ¬â¢ll cover some overlooked insights on doing both well. 14) Embed Videos Wisely Have you ever wondered what the difference between adding a link to a video and embedding it? Wonder no more! In a nutshell, embedding a video means a viewer doesnââ¬â¢t have to leave his or her current web page to watch the video. Whereas linking to a video means the same viewer will be redirected to the destination URL. Basically, embedding videos keeps people in their seats while links send them somewhere else. Both have their advantages. But embedding videos rather than linking to them from your website or blog is a great way to keep them on your site for longer. And itââ¬â¢s an absolutely essential tactic to use for landing pages that convert. Alright, letââ¬â¢s use YouTube as an example of how to use this nifty spell of internet magic. YouTube: Linking vs. Embedding Hereââ¬â¢s the video weââ¬â¢ll be working with: As an example, hereââ¬â¢s how you would grab the code to embed a YouTube video on your blog. Instead of clicking on the ââ¬Å"Shareâ⬠tab, like in the image above, click on the ââ¬Å"Embedâ⬠tab, like in the image below. Once you click on this tab, you can copy the necessary embed code and paste it directly onto your site. This way, viewers can watch the video without ever leaving your site. This, as said above, gives you much greater ownership and control of their experience. However, there is one concern to keep in mind when it comes to embedding videos: page load speedââ¬â¢s impact on SEO. Said Mark Robertson, founder of ReelSEO (now Tubular Insights): ââ¬Å"Aside from making sure that video adds value and fits into the context of your message, there are a few video publishing best practices to keep in mind that, if done improperly, can potentially harm SEO efforts. The most important of these, is to follow best practices for mobile friendliness (e.g. HTML5) and page speed considerations. ââ¬Å"As an example, adding multiple video embeds to a single page, if not done correctly, can greatly increase page load times. We know that page speed is a ranking factor, but even worse would be if potential visitors abandon your page altogether- negating any user benefits and sending additional negative signals to the algorithms.â⬠The moral of the story is to make the most of video embedding by balancing viewer-experience control with page-load-speed considerations. If you simply must embed a legion of YouTube videos on a single post or page, however, you may want to consider this clever methodà for doing so without increasing page load speeds. 15) Know How Video Content Fits Into Your Overall Strategy Weââ¬â¢re not advocates of #strategy as a #buzzword. Our goal is never to heap extra work, planning, tasks, follow ups, and more onto your marketing plate. To us, strategy should be pretty dang simple and straightforward: Video content is no different. So, how can you make your video content work best for driving traffic to your other content? One tip is understanding what problem your video solves, and how that problem relates to other content youââ¬â¢ve created. How to drive traffic using the PSP Framework Think about it in the problem-solution-problem (PSP) framework (which I learned through a free workshop via Jeff Walker). Youââ¬â¢ve likely heard of the problem-solution framework, as thatââ¬â¢s a pretty popular method of writing essays in school. Simply put, this strategy introduces a problem, then offers a solution. With the PSP structure, however, you tag on an additional problem at the end that sets your audience up to crave more. Here are the bones of the strategy. If your current video content solves a problem, you can introduce a logically related problem to compel the viewer to click further down your content funnel. For instance, letââ¬â¢s say you created a video about how to train your dog to catch a ball. (Which, incredibly, is actually possible.) Now your viewers know the ins and outs of teaching their dogs an awesome new trick. However, letââ¬â¢s take a step back and ask an important question, ââ¬Å"What other content have I created that solves a related problem?â⬠For instance, maybe youââ¬â¢ve written the ultimate guide to teaching your dog how to catch 1,000 balls. (^ I like to keep my examples pretty true to life.) In this far-fetched example, you can add some copy, a YouTube card or end screen, or even a quick ââ¬Å"pro-tipâ⬠that helps your viewers see that not only have you solved their current problem, but youââ¬â¢ve already solved their next one as well. This is a great way to go beyond the standard ââ¬Å"related postsâ⬠fare and drive traffic. #Video marketing tip: Make sure you understand how video is integrated into the rest of your...16) Use GIFS for Using Video in Email Marketing Good newsâ⬠¦ Thereââ¬â¢s a better way to promote your video content Thereââ¬â¢s a slight problem with video marketing and email- most email clients wonââ¬â¢t display embedded video content. This means your videos will get stripped from your emails. Thatââ¬â¢s where the beloved GIF enters the picture. Which is great, because everyone loves GIFs. Not only can they be hilarious: But they can also serve an excellent video marketing purpose. Namely, as video previews in email marketing. Letââ¬â¢s take a look at how to create GIFs for use in email. The most painless way Iââ¬â¢ve found is using the popular GIF site called GIPHY. They have a function that allows you to create your own using already published videos or uploading your own files. In this example, weââ¬â¢ll use a video from ââ¬â¢s YouTube channel. Letââ¬â¢s say weââ¬â¢re promoting this video thatââ¬â¢s about what itââ¬â¢s like to work here. (^ Itââ¬â¢s a blast, btw.) To create our GIF, start by copying the videoââ¬â¢s URL. Then, visit GIPHYââ¬â¢s GIF Maker tool. Youââ¬â¢ll land on this page ^^^ and select one of three ways to create your GIF. After pasting your link or uploading your files, itââ¬â¢s time to get creative. Making the GIF has a few steps: Make sure you have the right URL pasted. Choose when your GIF starts. Select the overall duration of your GIF. (Optionally, you can also add a caption or tags.) Click create! Then, after it crunches the GIF into existence, you can copy the link, share it on social media, embed it on a website, or download it as a file! Hereââ¬â¢s what my preview GIF looks like: Now, there are some email clients that donââ¬â¢t display GIFs well, like Outlook. However, in that case, you can still use your GIF as a static image. Just make sure the opening image makes sense and looks good! Hereââ¬â¢s a list of some popular email marketing platforms that offer GIF support along with links on how to get it done: Campaign Monitor Mailchimp Emma Aweber Constant Contact
Sunday, February 16, 2020
Pros and cons Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words
Pros and cons - Essay Example The pros of the chosen plan would be important: a) there are no competitors nearby; the specific coffee bar would be the only serving gourmet coffee in-house; b) since no competitor exists in the area, new customers would be easily attracted while existing customers would be interested in enjoying their coffee while tasting their favorite gourmet food, which would be also offered in the coffee bar along with baked goods and pastries. The cons of opening a coffee bar instead of carrying cookbooks and food magazines in the adjacent space would be the following: the costs for setting up a coffee shop can be high. The second plan could be realized with a quite low investment, just for adding 1-2 bookcases and shelves for putting the books/ magazines involved. The opening of a coffee bar would be the most appropriate use for the particular adjacent space. The average profit of such shop is at least $50,000 (SBDC 2012) which means that the startup costs could be easily covered approximately in 5 years since the business establishment, a fact that would eliminate the cons of the specific plan compared to the second plan
Monday, February 3, 2020
Contemporary HR and Management Practices Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words
Contemporary HR and Management Practices - Essay Example Therefore, it is the firm's workforce that provides the competitive advantage for companies, using its knowledge, commitment, skills and training. This is where the Human Resource Management's inevitable role comes to play. It devises policies that not only aim to improve organizational performance fostering innovation and flexibility, but also to improve employee well being. The human resource management uses mechanisms to build healthy two-way communication; provides healthy compensation, fair treatment and employee securities and career development and growth opportunities for all employees. Such HR activities deal with areas like employee morale, motivation, and performance; and workforce recruitment, retention, and turnover, which in turn increases various aspects of employee well being. As mentioned in the beginning, the changing scenario of working conditions and increasing competition due to globalization and rising awareness in customers, firms have to take decisions that not always end up in the best interest of the employees. Despite the capable policies of human resources and management in favor of the employees, contemporary HR and management practices do not succeed in meeting the promises of assuring well-being of the employees. Instead, the de-layering, restructuring and downsizing efforts of the HR and management of the firms are leading to work intensification. Work intensification is the extent to which employees are being forced to work faster and harder than they have been before. Where these decisions and policies cut financial and operational costs substantially, these are having inevitable impact on work intensification. In order to save their jobs and work up to the expectations of the management, employees have to perform more than they ever did before. The workforce has to get multi skilled in order to perform multiple tasks and give improved productivity. Not just to save jobs and survive in the organization, the workforce has to bear with the work intensification because of the performance related pay systems. The HR and management practices the productivity related compensation, which is originally intended to improve motivation and satisfaction amongst employees. Although such practices alongside add to the intensity of work and tasks and adversely affect the employee well being. A report specially made by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Job Insecurity and Work Intensification, says that work uncertainty amongst professional workers has become more severe in the 1990s. More than 60 percent of employees assert that the speed of work and the effort they have to put into their jobs has amplified over the past five years. Fright of joblessness is not the only facet of work uncertainty. Although many workers are not unjustifiably anxious about losing their jobs, they are particularly concerned about the loss of esteemed job features, such as their rank and prospect for promotion. The report concludes that the core reason of work uncertainty and work intensification happens to be the decreased recruitment levels pursued by
Saturday, January 25, 2020
Case Study of Management of Globalization at Ryanair
Case Study of Management of Globalization at Ryanair With increasing globalisation, numbers of companies are entering different foreign markets but some of them only attain success. This is because of their lack of knowledge about free markets advantages and limitations and role of enterprise within organisations (Brooke 1996). Firms that operate by assessing the impact of globalisation are much able to operate successfully rather than the firms that operate without analysing the impact of globalisation (Vittorio 2006). In this report all these aspects will be discussed with the help of a company, Ryan Air that is one of the oldest and most flourishing low-cost airlines of Europe (About Us 2011). This report will be completed by analyzing all previous researches or studies done in this field and its implications in real life. Different researchers and theorist have analysed free markets, globalisation and role of enterprise within organizations. With their analyses they have also given different theories and approaches that can be used in a workplace to maximise its opportunities. All these theories and approaches will be used to analyse that what extent free market conditions have allowed Ryan Air to grow and prosper (Iyer Masters 2000). As well it will also describe, at what extent the company had benefitted from free market conditions and to what extent it was constrained by limitations on this market. In addition to this, here it will also be analysed that how company and other markets are driven by enterprise led organisations. In the end, it will also be analysed that what extent the air travel market relies on globalisation and what is the importance of global expansion for Ryan Air. As well, in this report the importance of global markets in other industries will also be evaluated along with the analysis of importance of globalisation. Critical Evaluation of Ryan Airs Entry Ryan Air was established in the year 1985 and it entered low cost European air travel market as a low cost airline. The company attained huge success in Europe and it was all because of free market conditions (About Us 2011). The company success due to free market conditions can be understood effectively by critically evaluating it along with the discussion of its benefits and limitations. Significance of Free Market Conditions to Ryanair: Free market conditions refer to an economy or market in which buying and selling of products and services is done without any restriction related to price and valuation. European air travel market is also highly affected with free market conditions that in turn have also affected Ryan Air (Brooke 1996). The company is highly affected by free market conditions and it is an important reason of its growth and success. Due to the effect of free market conditions, the company along with its competitors has become able in allowing market forces to determine the price and values of air travel offered by them (Vittorio 2006). The free market concept was initially conceptualized throughout the First World War but in present it has become a reason of number of economies success. With the free market conditions of Europe, Ryan Air has derived various benefits like flexibility, freedom, and variety that in turn assist it in growing its business operations in Europe and in other foreign countries (Suneja 2000). With the free market conditions like deregulation and free market entry, Ryanair has been able to exploit the Irish and subsequently the European transport market (Brophy George 2003). With the free market conditions, the company has become able in switching its services on the basis of the widespread market conditions. For example, if there is demand on one route, the company is free to change its operations and other route so can take advantage of current profitable route or service (Iyer Masters 2000). The company is able to change its operations or process without undergoing the scrutiny of extreme government protocols. As well, the company management is also free to alter its services and their management according to their own suitability or accessibility for gaining a competitive edge (Rugman 2002). Benefits Limitations of Free Market Conditions to Ryanair: With the increasing free market conditions, Ryanair has attained several benefits in terms of increased freedom, flexibility and limited government controls or protocols. Free market conditions in Europe have allowed company to undertake activities that please them. Consequently, it can serve customers in a way it wants and sell services they think will help it in growing and prospering (Brophy George 2003). In this free market economy, the company also have freedom to change and alter their business operations. As well, government controls are very less to company operations that provide it with a benefit of increasing significantly at national as well as international level. Although there are some government guidelines to operate in air travel market that need to be followed by Ryanair but it has freedom to manage its operations in a way it feels appropriate or beneficial (Rugman 2002). The company have freedom to increase its number of flights and as well determine prices according to market forces or conditions. In condition of increased demand of air travels, the company is free to increase its number of flights so that more and more profits can be attained in comparison to existing competitors. The increased demand of customers can be satisfied significantly by undertaking diverse business decisions and increasing number of flights (Brophy George 2003). The free market conditions also present Ryanair with an advantage of serving its customers with innovative products and services. In regard to free market economy, the company have an advantage to determine what services it will render to its customers with diverse innovations so that they can be offered with best products and services (Vittorio 2006). In this way, it can be said that it is a tool through which Ryanair can easily attain competitive advantage and core competencies. In addition to significant extent of benefits, free market conditions have also presented Ryanair with several limitations like increased competition, high threat of new entrants, high bargaining power of customers etc (Iyer Masters 2000). In free market economy, there are number of low cost airline companies that operate in Europe and present customers with different innovative services. In this kind of environment, it becomes difficult to retain customers in long-run as well their bargaining power is also high as they have several choices available at a time (Rugman 2002). Threat of new entrants is also very high that several times have presented Ryanair with number of limitations. In starting, the company competitors were not as high as in present and due to this, it requires a more planned approach and business strategy (Ryan Air 2009). Free market conditions and economy have served company with number of benefits as well as with some limitations. Role of Enterprise in the Creation and Development of Ryanair In present the concept of an enterprise driven organization has emerged in which the whole organization is undertaken as an enterprise directed with continuous transformation and change. The emergence of this concept is due to uncertain market environment and rapid changes in consumers tastes. By creating and developing an enterprise driven organization, a businessman can significantly attain success (Box Byus 2007). Similar is the case with Ryanair that also made use of enterprise to become a successful low-cost European airline company. In the creation and development of Ryanair, enterprise played a substantial role that can be understood by critically reviewing its effect. Recognition of Ryanair as Enterprise Driven Organisation: Ryanair was started in the year 1985 with only 57 employees and with one 15 seater turboprop plane that used to carry 5000 passengers on one route. In subsequent year of its operations, the company employees increased along with the number of passengers it used to carry. In the year 1990-1991, the company passengers increased to 700,000 (Box Byus 2007). For attaining growth, the company made use of several marketing strategies. As well, the company also transformed its management team so that effective operations can be brought out in the company. The success attained by the company shows that from the time of company initiation, it was having potential of becoming market leader. It was all due to the effect of Michael OLeary as CEO who kept company recognised as enterprise driven organization (Wallace, Tiernan White 2006). Although, the company have confronted several troubles, but from starting its CEO assisted its entrepreneurs to establish and develop their company as an enterprise. This in turn assisted in the creation of an enterprise culture in Ryanair (Graham Nafukho 2007, p. 130). From beginning, the company and its managers have confronted number of problems mainly in concern to handling business operations, management and cost structures. All these troubles have been resolved by implementing different marketing strategies and transforming old strategies. It would not have been possible, if company CEO have not developed an enterprise culture (Mattila, Nandhakumar, Hallikainen Rossi 2009). By becoming an enterprise driven organization, Ryanair has become able in surviving in the present competitive market and growing in the marketplace (Box Byus 2007). Its enterprise-driven culture has facilitated it in implementing different marketing strategy and attaining different competitive advantages like online booking, one class travel, point-to-point flying, in house marketing, ticketless boarding, reduced turnaround times, corporate partnerships, bargaining power, new aircrafts etc (Ryanairs Competitive Advantage 2009). Due to its effective business operations that are directed with an enterprise culture, it is regarded as the most punctual airline between Dublin and London. It is also recognised as the second largest airline in United Kingdom and Europes largest low-fares airline. It operates with a network of more than 57 routes in 11 countries. It is also served by a fleet of 31 Boeing 737-200 and -800 aircraft with more than 1,400 employees. Its enterprise driven culture help it in constantly concentrating on driving its own costs and serve customers with lowest possible fares and as well as continuously remain profitable. Effect of Enterprise Driven Organizations on Other Markets: With the discussion of Ryanair and effect of enterprise driven organizations on its development and creation, it can be said that enterprise driven organisation does not only affect travel and tourism industry. Other markets and industries are also highly affected by enterprise driven organizations (Graham Nafukho 2007, p. 129). In present almost all industries are confronting significant competition and high market uncertainty. For resolving this type of market threats, it has become essential to adopt enterprise-driven organization as it assists marketers in managing their organizations in regard to emerging changes. By creating and developing an enterprise-driven organization, it becomes easy for different fields marketers to manage their survival as well as growth. They become able to manage changes related to market and customers trends (Mattila, Nandhakumar, Hallikainen Rossi 2009). As well, it also benefits companies with an advantage to create an all-inclusive culture in which everyone operates with coordination and collaboration so that business can be handled effectively (Kongol 2010). In modern era, numbers of markets are encountered with environmental uncertainty and they are trying to improve their organizational efficiency, and eventually performance. This problem can be resolved effectively by creating and developing an enterprise-driven organization as it will assist them in implementing standardized processes and practices throughout borders and their different divisions (Kongol 2010). A consistently enforced enterprise culture assists in the standardization of business processes. As well it also helps in fulfilling all needs of management control by managing all information into one system and making it available. Enterprise-driven organisation become able in a creating an integrated organisation structure that in turn assist managers in anticipating future trends and operate accordingly. In this way, it can be said that enterprise driven organizations does not only affect travel market as it make a positive effect on almost all markets (Mattila, Nandhakumar, Hallikainen Rossi 2009). By creating and developing an enterprise culture all organisations can attain different advantages according to their own success needs and requirements. Impact of Globalisation on Organisations Globalisation is a new concept that refers to processes through which different economies and societies of the world are integrating with the help of a global network. The practice of globalisation is increasing day-by-day as it serves companies with number of advantages like global expansion, significant growth and worldwide image. The significant advantages of globalisation are encouraging present organizations to globalise their business operations that in turn are affecting their overall business activities (Wallace, Tiernan White 2006). This can be understood effectively with the help of Ryanair and air travel market affect of globalisation on it. Reliance of Air Travel Market on Globalisation: Air travel market success basically depends upon the travelling needs of customers. In present almost all countries people like to travel other countries with some or other reason that imposes challenges for air travel marketers to globalise their operations (Hartungi 2006, p.730). Due to this increasing trend of travel and tourism, it has become essential for air travel marketers to globalise and this in turn also renders with several advantages related to high growth and worldwide success. This altering travel trend of people demonstrates that travel market substantially relies on globalisation. If, a travel company is not able to operate at international level it would not be able to tap international market opportunities. Travel industry connects two places that may be from a single nation or country or from different countries (Marquardt 2007). For success in travel market, it is essential to globalise and serve customers with different national as well as international routes. Significance of globalisation can also be understood by evaluating its affect on Ryanair and its business operations (Townsend, Yeniyurt Talay 2009, p. 540). In starting, the company used to operate at two routes, but subsequently, it focussed on increasing its routes to different European countries. With globalisation and the EU air transport deregulation, the company opened up new routes to Continental Europe and carried more than 3 million passengers to 18 different routes. As well, with the effect of globalisation, the company also tried to focus on global expansion and it also initiated services to Stockholm, Oslo, Paris and Brussels. In present, Ryanair operates on more than 1000 routes throughout Europe. As well, in the year 2008, the company also entered US market with an aim of global expansion. These different expansions done by the company and been planned evidences importance of global expansion for the company and its management. Importance of Global Markets in other Industries: In addition to travel industry, globalisation is also important for other industries like electronic equipments, pharmaceutical, agriculture, food beverage, oil and petroleum etc. In present almost all industries wants to operate with the help of global markets so that they can attain more profits and growth (Hartungi 2006, p.729). With increasing globalisation and free market economies different economies of the world are trying to integrate their industries so that they can take advantage of each others skills and practices (Ricks 2006). As well, it has also become a trend for companies to operate in global markets as with this they can attain a global recognition that in turn can be used to attract potential customers. In present customers prefer global brands rather than traditional brands as their lifestyles and way of living has changed and improved also (Cheng Mittelhammer 2008, p. 860). Consumers, whether they belong to low, medium or high income group prefers global brands as it gives them a sense of high living standard. This change in consumers taste and preferences encourages companies to operate at international level and serve different global markets (Townsend, Yeniyurt Talay 2009, p. 540). Almost all industries customers have similar trends towards global market. Food and beverage marketers are also affected by this and due to this different global food and beverage items are available in each country (Hartungi 2006, p.730). This is also the case with oil and petroleum industry as all countries does not have similar resources. Some of the countries have effective resources and this in turn is encouraging them to serve the need of different global markets and attain huge profit and growth (Puig, Marques Ghauri 2009, p. 693). In this environment of increased globalisation there are also some industries for whom it is critical to globalise as otherwise they would not be able to maintain their position and survival in the long run (Marquardt 2007). In this concern, one of the substantial industries is manufacturing industry. Manufacturing industry is an industry in which manufacturing is done and products are developed that almost all of us use in our daily life. If this industry has to survive it has to improve its production and operations strategies that cannot be done with traditional modes of manufacturing (Puig, Marques Ghauri 2009, p. 694). By globalizing this industry can take advantages of different means and advanced technologies. Previously, in India or other developing countries, manufacturing was done with the help of traditional methods but now as it has entered different global markets; it has also become able in making use of advanced manufacturing methods. In this way, it can be said that globalisation is critical for almost all industries to maintain their survival in the long-run. Conclusion and Recommendations With the help of above discussion, it can be said that free market conditions serve organizations with different advantages as well as limitations. Ryanair also attained different advantages with free market conditions like expansion to different European countries and continents and as well as limitation like increased competition, high threat of new entrants (Ryanairs Competitive Advantage 2009). All these threats can be handled effectively, if appropriate strategies like enterprise driven organisation is created and developed. By developing an enterprise-culture a firm can easily resolve its different operations and change management related issues as done by Ryanair (Graham Nafukho 2007, p. 129). In addition to an enterprise-driven organization, a firm can also attain advantages with the help of globalisation and entering different global markets. In present, it has become critical to attain success and long-term survival that can only be done with the help of globalisation (Cheng Mittelhammer 2008, p. 860). Ryanair has also attained several advantages by entering different global markets and due to this only; the company has become able in maintaining its leading position in industry and air travel market (Hartungi 2006, p.730). With the considerations of free market conditions, enterprise-driven organisation and globalisation a firm can easily attain assured success as attained by Ryanair.
Friday, January 17, 2020
Hamlet History
Hamlet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. The story recounts the acts how Prince Hamlet takes revenge on his uncle Claudia, who has murdered King Hamlet, then taken the throne, and married to his mother, Queen Gertrude. Shakespeare was successful making a puzzle surround Hamlet which reveals so many important ambiguities that even the audience of all times cannot resolve with certainty. One of those ambiguities is whether Hamlet seems to be more determined or more metaphysical freedom.In my perspective, I believe Hamlet is more on the determined did. He Is ââ¬Å"a product of many factors that have made him what he Is, and which continue to shape all of his behavior. â⬠(Washburn, pop) In the very first words of speech to court, Claudia quickly mentions of ââ¬Å"our sometime sister, now our queen,â⬠ââ¬Å"mirth in funeral,â⬠ââ¬Å"dirge in marriage,â⬠and ââ¬Å"taken to wifeâ⬠(Hamlet, 1. ââ¬Å". 8-14). All those words like splashing cold water straight on Hamlet's face. He knows he Is going to loss everything along with his mother, Queen Gertrude, who he is deeply in love with.That speech destroys family, love, hope, and confidence in his life. As a result, the sadness left over inside him causes the indignation and anger toward King Claudia and Queen Gertrude. Hamlet's worst fears about Claudia are also confirmed from this point because he obviously notices his uncle's motive and purpose. In the darkness, the ghost comes to rouse Hamlet to revenge his death. How can this nonphysical soul affect only Hamlet and his friends' physical nervous systems, but the entire characters?Washburn points out ââ¬Å"only physical things can affect other physical things. â⬠(Washburn, pop) I believe the scene Hamlet and the ghost is a determined plan. Let's say in other words. After the court, Hamlet meets his three friends. They have a change to talk about the story of how his father Is murder. After all, Claudia has committed a si n, that sin must to be returned with punishment. Hamlet must be the man who would inherited the throne as what he is meant to be. The plan of retributive Justice Is causally determined by Hamlet and his friends.He now carries both internal and external forces of: ââ¬Å"That ever I was born to set it right! â⬠(Hamlet, l. V. 21 1) Metaphysical libertarians believe that Hamlet is not pretending to be a madman. His behavior is ââ¬Å"not coerced or constrained by anythingâ⬠(Washburn, pop) because he actually has mental Issues. I agree that he Is certainly mad and upset over his father's death and his mother's remarriage, but he is not crazy. He Just does too good of pretending to be mad as he suggests.Imagining you fall into the same your uncle does not suspicious about you? Significantly, he declares, ââ¬Å"l am but mad north-north-west. When the wind is southerly, I know a hawk from a handsawâ⬠(Hamlet, al. Ii. 402-403). Hamlet knows himself is mad at certain time, and the rest he can distinguish between things that do not resemble each other. Therefore, an over acted madman is also determined by his plan and his actual madness. Washburn also says that: ââ¬Å"our thoughts and actions are determined because we know that all events are causally determined. (Washburn, pop) Similarly in this case, Hamlet's thoughts and actions are mainly determined after a simultaneous tragedy of his father's death and his mother's hasty marriage to his uncle. Furthermore, all of the sudden do not happen by chance. It is causally determined by Claudia, who stands behind all those tragedies with evil ambitions of power and sexuality. In other rods, it is reasonable to believe that Hamlet's behaviors are mostly determined from those horrible external forces, rather than metaphysical freedom. Question 2. So that in the first place, I put a general inclination of all mankind, a perpetual and restless desire of power after power, that acetates only in death. â⬠( Hobbes, pop) I agree that humans (socially) have ââ¬Å"a restless desire of power. â⬠They want the power of obtaining not only some current apparent good but also more future apparent goods, because they naturally want to satisfy themselves with better quality and quantity. Even thought, those desires are such different things; humans of all times still seek and acquire ââ¬Å"power after powerâ⬠in order to assure their satisfactions and avoid aversion of death.Humans do not need power to live among each other; however, without such desires they will stop and believe themselves to be complete satisfactions. Therefore, it may repel the human civilization, which causes uncounted loss in social. ââ¬Å"Competition of riches, honor, command, or other power, inclined to contention, enmity, and war; because the way of one competitor to the attaining of his desire to ill, subdue, supplant, or repel the other. â⬠(Hobbes, pop) I believe this state of chaos might happen dur ing Hobbes' social when human totally lacked of knowledge, moral, and law.Radical freedom enables them to complete their desires by harming others with ââ¬Å"contention, enmity, and war. â⬠Human in current social is different. They may have ââ¬Å"desire to killâ⬠to ââ¬Å"obscure the glory of the other. â⬠However, an improved social with higher knowledge and stronger law prevents them from making those evil desires; in order to make ââ¬Å"a restless desire of powerâ⬠become lately ââ¬Å"competition of riches, honor, command, or other power,â⬠which pushes a pressure on human kind to create more and more of better good. If any two men desire the same thing, which nevertheless they cannot both enjoy, they become enemies; and in the way to their end, which is principally their own conservation, and sometimes their delectation only, endeavor to destroy or subdue one another. â⬠(Hobbes, pop) In history of the late nineteenth century and early twentie th century, the vast China nation is like a giant cake for the more powerful countries. The power rulers at the mime are the USA, the I-J, Germany, Japan, French, and Russia.They all want to occupy China, and make it their own. ââ¬Å"From fear of death, or woundsâ⬠(Hobbes, [4], pop) these six counties turn enemies into partnerships so that everyone can afford to own exclusive piece of China. This example goes against Hobbes' theory, which indicates ââ¬Å"if any two men desire the same thingâ⬠they are not necessary to become enemies. There is no need for an end of destroying or subduing one another. The modern social is arming to this point, where the same desire can end with satisfaction.
Thursday, January 9, 2020
Exploring The Roots Of The Recurring Subjects And Symbols...
After nearly two centuries completely lacking in images, early Christians finally developed a pictorial language to express their faith. The conventions developed early on would come to define the middle ages, an entire era of almost exclusively Christian images. Early Christians adopted classical conventions for their art, which would serve an opposing purpose for outsiders and initiates. For outsiders, the symbols meant no harm. But to followers of the faith, the images are loaded with meaning. The meaning inherent in the history of the symbol, when combined with a biblical context, creates a full and multi-faceted iconographic tradition. The purpose of this paper is to explore the roots of the recurring subjects and symbols evident in the funerary paintings in Catacombs of Domitilla in Rome. Funerary paintings and sculpture provide the most thorough evidence of early Christian art. An exceptional visual tradition has been preserved in the vast network of underground burial systems: the Roman catacombs. One of the most extensive of these is the Catacomb of Domitilla. Beginning in the third century CE, the Catacombs of Domitilla housed thousands of bodies from families rich and poor, and extended for over seventeen kilometers in four distinct subterranean levels. In terms of style, most of the works are indistinguishable from Roman paintings. If anything, the art style is a more rushed and cramped version of illusionistic Roman wall painting. The use of iconography is
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