5 Ideas for an Engaging Video Blog Post

In previous post I gave you some ideas for blog post alternatives that you can use when you just don’t have time to write.

One of those suggestions included posting a Youtube video, but what exactly should you make a video about?

If you’re already boring people with your written content you certainly don’t want to put them into a coma with your video? So what can you do to make sure it’s engaging? And why should you bother in the first place?

What Are The Benefits?

The great thing about videos, is that they help keep visitors on your site longer and simultaneously help optimize your blog.

When search engines see that people are clicking on videos that have the same title as those keywords you’ve been aiming for, it increases your ranking for those words as well. This encourages them to send more traffic to your blog.

This benefit alone is well worth it, but videos also saves you from having to write another post. So if you’re suffering from a bit of blogger’s block – a video is a good way to go.

Just as a rule of thumb, videos should be short. I know YouTube gives you about ten minutes, but really you don’t want more than 5 minutes. Most people spend no more than 2-3 minutes reading a blog post, so keep that in mind.

The good thing about keeping it short though, is that it gives you more opportunities to create more videos. You can always divide it up into parts and review each part in a new post over the course of a few days.

Just be sure not to end abruptly in the middle of a step. Each video should feel complete even if the next portion will be presented later.

Also, be sure to let your viewers know when you will be posting the next part and encourage them to subscribe so they won’t miss it (oh yeah, increasing your subscriber list is another beneficial way to use videos, but I’m sure you already knew that…I digress)

So here’s 5 ideas for creating an engaging video blog post:

(Since every niche will vary, I’ve intentional left these a little vague, so that they can be applied universally. Feel free to send your questions my way if you need clarification.)

Create a “How-to” Video

You could make a video that shows your audience how to do something. Show them step by step and talk them through it. This is probably the easiest kind because you’ll talk to them as if they were right there with you. Simple enough, right?

Create a Review Video

Make a video that shows how to use a product you’d like to promote, or one that demonstrates all of the beneficial features that the ordinary consumer wouldn’t know about. Think of this as an “insider’s secret” kind of video.

Create a Documentary Style Video

This could be a travel video where you document important events or trips related to your niche. Show your viewers a brief glimpse of the setting and then focus on the highlights of one main event per video.

If you’re going to a conference and can’t record it, you could do a news report style recap video in the lobby.

Create a Testimonial or an Interview Video

Get out and ask people questions related to your niche. Develop some questions as you would for an interview post, but allow the conversation to flow naturally and add or omit questions as necessary.

Create a Freestyle Video

Cut the camera on and start talking about what’s new in your blog niche. Then go back and edit it to give it focus.

So what do you think? Can you add number 6, 7 or 8? What video post ideas do you have to share? Let’s help each other out.

Author’s Bio: Darren Carter is an expert marketing consultant and is associated with an SEO and marketing agency. He is a proficient freelance writer who works for many online publications where he covers online business related topics. He also offers his knowledge, particularly on SEO, social media marketing and many more.