Did you see the story on the front/home page of today’s New York Times in which Brian Stelter reveals how some of the more prolific YouTube feeders can earn six figures in the process?
“All he needed was a $2,000 Canon camera, a $6 piece of fabric for a backdrop and a pair of work lights from Home Depot. Mr. Buckley is an example of the Internet’s democratizing effect on publishing. Sites like YouTube allow anyone with a high-speed connection to find a fan following, simply by posting material and promoting it online…Mr. Buckley said he was earning over $100,000 from YouTube advertisements.”
It reminded me of the kitchen table businesses that spawned out of eBay in its nascent stages.
But it’s not only consumer-generated video that’s proliferating and profiteering online. Virtually every marketing-driven enterprise I know is experimenting with professionally produced digital moving images to draw eyeballs and drive business.
Just this week, my NYTimes.com client bowed a fab new marketing campaign in which a dozen recognizable personalities — from Cynthia Nixon to Kenneth Cole and Padma Lakshmi (above) to the Giants Defensive Linebacker Justin Tuck (incongruously paired with actress Lynn Redgrave) – wax poetic on what about NYTimes.com gives them a charge. Its definitely worth a visit.
Separately, my old friend Josh Seftel pointed me to a similar online video campaign that he directed for MIT. Called The Human Factor, it too showcased a range of individuals — not of the celebrity variety — but equally alluring. The nine featured students talked effusively about their academic and extracurricular endeavors. The link was sent to MIT’s donor base, which apparently responded in a big $$$ way.