www.FridaysVideoNews.com reports big growth in video press releases and short product-demo movies. ‘Fast, simple, cost-effective package’ is key to its success says Richard McCann

Following last year’s launch of a revolutionary video news service by www.FridaysVideoNews.com there's been a surge in use of short videos to communicate between businesses and their customers, taking over from e-newsletters and similar “outdated” media.

Little surprise when research suggests recipients of the new video news are up to 12 times more likely to watch a three-minute video news programme than to read a printed or digital news where click-throughs have dipped below one per cent in some cases.

Some 92 per cent of those surveyed said they much preferred the experience and 72 per cent said they would be much more likely to opt into a video newsletter than a standard email.

Businesses are using the short, inexpensive and quickly-produced movies for everything from digital press releases, new product launches, Smartphone and iPad presentations, exhibition loops and emailers. Clients can host on Friday’s own YouTube Channel http://bit.ly/qqx9vu or create their own such as http://bit.ly/pdUPm9 – in addition to hosting on the world’s busiest journalist news wires see http://www.sourcewire.com/releases/rel_display.php?relid=657... and http://www.sourcewire.com/releases/rel_display.php?relid=652....

www.FridaysVideoNews.com said demand was rising month-on-month for its highly affordable new service. Businesses using video news as a new form of communication include Investment Trust, Euromoney, Randstad Group, IMC Group, VISA, Ordnance Survey, MatsSoft, Versapak Group, Sellebrity, Eaton Corporation, Direct Marketing Association, BPMA and CIPR.

After achieving growth of 25 per cent in Q4 2010, Friday’s Video News MD Richard McCann is predicting treble digit growth by the end of 2011.

Internet marketing author Dave Chaffey says that the level of what he calls “emotional unsubscribing” – where people don’t unsubscribe but tune out and never open or click – is the biggest challenge of marketing today, and calls for a ‘more refined approach’.

“The day when I received more than 80 e-shots and releases and deleted almost all of them immediately as a simple coping strategy was when I realised that something different was needed to grab people’s attention” said McCann. “That’s what the Video News concept does.”

“The importance of video in search engine optimisation strategies is also significant”, added McCann. According to Forrester Research, an online video is 50 times more likely to hit the front page of Google than a single text web page.

“The initial use of the video news releases concept was to create short weekly or monthly video bulletins for use in B2B and B2C campaigns,” said McCann.

“However, we are now seeing a trend towards video news for employee communications, press releases, home page currency, product launches, market-specific demonstrations, presentations and exhibitions, iPhone broadcasts and even reception area videos, since the cost is in hundreds rather than thousands. So investment is comparable to e-shot campaigns but with far better engagement and lots of opportunity to leverage its use.”

Business Development Director, Tony Lockwood added: “The wider success of this service has been particularly successful within the world of Public Relations. Our last client video received nearly 5000 viewings within a week on ResponseSource”.

The www.FridaysVideoNews.com offering is fast, easy and cost-effective - clients go to the website and choose from a range of professional newsreaders and impressive virtual news studios. Businesses can then either submit their own news story and supporting images or Friday’s Video News can create the script if required.

Once the £899 video is approved by the client, www.FridaysVideoNews.com will upload their news programme on to their website and desired social media sites and they can then start emailing the link to staff, clients and prospects. The video news programmes can be used in business receptions and at conferences and they can also be used on mobile phones and can add additional content to apps. If the business is international, Friday’s Video News Service can also provide native foreign language newsreaders or add subtitles to the bulletins.

(EDITOR: Or if you record your own video, That's Business will host it free of charge on That's Business, with links to other appropriate websites and social media sites. Please email afj_uk@yahoo.com for further details)