How to Add Marketing Links to Your Online Video Clips
Friday, May 22, 2009 at 09:19PM A Comparison of Two Methods to Add Clickable Links to Your Online Video:
LinkedTube and Camtasia Studio
Image of Video with Link at Top
If you have ever created and embedded video on a website, blog or forum you have almost surely added marketing hyperlinks somewhere on the page near the video. Link marketing, also known as hypertext or hyperlink marketing, can be a very effective way to guide the viewer through your internet marketing funnel. When they click on the link, they are directed to the location you have set in the link code.
Unfortunately, people will sometimes read the text link before watching your video, and make a snap decision about your intentions. Other people will watch the video and then completely miss your link, which is outside their focal point. The ideal solution is to put the link right in your video, so the viewer can clearly see where you would like them to go next.
Until recently, only programmers who knew how to use flash could achieve this. Advancements in technology have leveled the playing field, and now you can add your own links to your video with ease. I will share two different options for you, Camtasia Studio and LinkedTube. There are pros and cons of using each, and I will cover them for you.
Add Video Links with 'LinkedTube'
Your first option is to use a new service called LinkedTube. This is a free online service which works in conjunction with your own YouTube videos. LinkedTube is very easy to set up and use. The website presents you with a short list of options for creating your video link. After inserting the YouTube code for your video and selecting your link text and display options, you are ready to generate the embed code which you can copy and paste wherever you are hosting your video (such as your blog or website).
Video with Links Added Using 'LinkedTube'
As you can see above, the link appears at the top of the video, and remains for the entire duration. When you hover your mouse over the video window, the link display changes, depending on how you set your preferences on the LinkedTube site. I like this feature because it gives the viewer a sense of control over the video.
There are some drawbacks to using LinkedTube you should know about. You only get one link per video, and it has to be there for the entire clip. The 'hover' option makes up for this a little bit, though. You also don’t get to pick the spot where the link displays or what color it is. You should also know that this won’t affect the video as it plays on YouTube itself. You can only use the feature if you can use the embed code from LinkedTube to post it elsewhere, or use a text link right to the video, which LinkedTube provides you in addition to the embed code. You should also be aware that this new version of your video is being hosted by LinkedTube. If their service goes down, your video goes with it.
Add Video Links with 'Camtasia Studio'
Camtasia Studio is popular screen capture and video editing software which allows you to edit and add elements to your final video production. Camtasiagives you more flexibility when adding video links. You can have multiple links, and they may appear whenever and wherever you specify in your production settings. You can even have a picture appear and make it a clickable link if you want. Since you are producing the video yourself, you will always have access to the video, providing you save the file on your computer after uploading it.
Same Video with Links Added Using 'Camtasia Studio'.
Can you Spot the Differences?
For functionality, Camtasia is clearly superior, but that superiority comes at a price. The software costs about $300, which can be a lot for new network marketers trying to build their business on a budget. There is also a much steeper learning curve to use it. You must produce the video in a certain format, and upload in a specific way to get the links to work. That being said, there is excellent beginning training (if I do say so myself) on this in Renegade University which will help guide you through this process and is the portal to more training at Renegade Professional.
Which is the Best Way to Add Clickable Links to Your Video?
There are pros and cons of each choice, and they differ from one another in several ways. The best option is to have access to both services, and use whichever is most appropriate to your current needs. If you only want one link in a video you’ve already produced and uploaded to YouTube, then LinkedTube may be your best choice. If you want advanced features with many more options for your links, then Camtasia is the clear winner.
Regardless of which service you choose, there are many benefits to creating links in your video. You can guide the viewer more deliberately with this method, in a more engaging and dynamic way. With more and more content being created in a video format, now is the time to learn how to use these methods to market you and your business more effectively.
I am not entirely clear how the search engine spiders handle links contained in a video. Since this method is using flash, and the videos are often hosted on other servers, this may affect the SEO of your video. Further research is required to determine exactly how this will affect you.
Lane Romero-Reiss is an internet network marketing coach and trainer. He is also a member of the Renegade Professional Super Guides. Lane can help guide you through the often confusing terrain of trying to build your business online. He specializes in media marketing, social marketing, and business building for health and wellness professionals.
Lane is very enthusiastically developing a new business model based on the principles of attraction marketing, collaboration, and the consultative approach. The business is named Renegade Referrals, and the feedback on the concept within the internet network marketing community has been overwhelmingly positive.
Reader Comments (2)
Nice work. I would like to learn more about Linked Tube. This is an excellent article. Thank you.
Eric
Nice Post!
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