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Introducing The Video White Paper
By Joe Purcell
Expert Author
Article Date: 2011-05-26
An article on video white papers noted that a "B-to-B study found that 78% of respondents believe video makes online content more compelling." The statistics that say we retain 10% of what we read and 50% of what we see and hear, and the like, allegedly come from misrepresentations of Edgar Dale's Cone of Experience. Whether or not we retain the information better with video, white papers are finding their way into the video medium with much popularity.
The video white paper has yet to be defined, even on Wikipedia, though some have tackled the topic. Let's start with the definition of a white paper: an authoritative report or guide that helps solve a problem or educate an audience. That report can come in various forms, most commonly as a sheet of paper. In general, a video white paper is a specific form of a presentation that communicates a white paper in audio-visual format.
This can be confused with other types of media, and we'll look at two. A webinar is a video seminar given in real time, and a webcast is a video streamed over the internet. Webinars and webcasts are just specific ways to communicate ideas, thus, a video white paper can be communicated as a webinar or a webcast. Another way to think about it is that a video white paper is a genre of visual media.
Video white papers are storming the web, and here's one of the best examples. There are already companies offering the service of converting white papers to video format, such as Accela Communications. Biomni has a video on their home page in a video white paper style. Tubetorial is a great example of video white papers. White papers could even come in the form of slide shows.
An obvious concern is that video white papers are going to replace white papers, or that white papers will become obsolete. Thinking that way misses the essential point of a white paper. Video white papers are just the result of white papers evolving. Consider the white paper's evolution into digital format: PDFs and Word documents. Video white papers are the next step.
The internet has been transforming how we communicate. White papers, as forms of communication, is following suit. Taking white papers into other media formats can have huge marketing benefits in the current age of media explosion.
About the Author:
Joe Purcell is a technology virtuoso, cyberspace frontiersman, and connoisseur of Linux, Mac, and Windows alike.
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