Can You Imagine?

Every week we find new developments within the social web that stem from those who imagine then create. The innovations flow like rivers swelling into waves of change unexpected, unforeseen and unknowable accept for those that create the innovations from their imaginations.

We’ve witnessed massive shifts in media, communications and advertising all fueled by new social computing technologies. The masses have been enabled and empowered to publish, collaborate and connect in ways only imaginable just five years ago.

The phenomena has sparked creativity by the small with the BIG chasing the latest and greatest widget, gadget, trend and attraction tool the masses find useful, valuable and unique.

The race for creativity and innovation is speeding up with every new development within a global community of prosumers and groups united with common purposes, create and facilitate.

Ready for the Next Disruptive Shift?

Well don’t sit down rather stand up and get ready to run. Thanks to YouTube, web surfers throughout the world have grown comfortable posting and watching online videos. So it’s no surprise to see niche sites pop up with videos focused on specialized topics. Last June RealPeopleRealStuff, a just-launched video classified ad site that challenged users to create and star in their own commercials. RealPeopleRealStuff wisely sought out partnerships with newspapers to increase visitor traffic in a channel that—eBay notwithstanding—is still highly localized

With some 28 billion videos streamed online in 2007–up 50% from 2006–it’s not surprising that new businesses are sprouting up around this digital explosion. Each day on YouTube, more than 40 million video views are delivered and 35,000 new clips are uploaded. Google and Yahoo have video search sites and large caches of moving content. Apple’s iTunes Music Store sold 12 million video clips for $1.99 each over the span of just a few months.

Now, just over half a year later, RealPeopleRealStuff’s founders have launched a sister site named VideoJobShop.com, a kind of Monster, YouTube, Craigslist, Facebook mix. For rates ranging from free to USD $25 or more, VideoJobShop.com lets employers post videos describing the work and benefits they offer. To help them, the site contains a lengthy library of pre-recorded videos describing common occupations. Job hunters, meanwhile, can upload their video resumes in the hopes of catching an employer’s eye. A widget lets them link their online resumes to their Facebook profiles.

VideoJobShop isn’t the only site harnessing video for job seekers. Back in 2006, HireVue, a site that lets job seekers tape their responses to employers’ questions, creating what might be termed speed-dating for employment. Then we found CareerTours, where companies post videos touting the benefits they offer new hires.

The video employment space will no doubt continue to evolve, opening up fresh opportunities for entrepreneurs. It’s not hard to imagine sites devoted to health professionals or video game programmers. Focusing on niches may be the best strategy for avoiding the danger that major sites such as Monster or its IT counterpart Dice.com will heavily promote low-cost video job descriptions and resumes, decisively trouncing new entrants.

But Can Video Create a Much Larger Utility for 600 Million Users of Social networks?.

Imagine being able to broadcast anything, everything and doing so everywhere, blogs, profiles etc. with different messages and different wrappers and you have totally control over the content, length, style, message and frequency. What are the possibilities?

  1. Imagine creating your own “broadcast channel” and having it aggregated into Virtual Broadcast Networks
  2. Imagine starting your own “Social Broadcast Network” and collaborating with others to create their own channels
  3. Imagine joining other subject matter experts and creating a channel relative to your topic, your industry or your market
  4. Imagine having your channel or your network being broadcast in blogs, networks, web sites and over any and all mobile devices
  5. Imaging having your broadcast integrated with cable TV
  6. Imagine Advertisers sponsoring your channel
  7. Imagine the impact of all the above and more…….

Self expression has become the “storm” created by the masses. The movement is now shifting forward with the introduction of new broadcast capabilities that go way beyond YouTube and leveraged throughout the social web. No downloads, anyone can produce channel content and everyone can view and listen either from their desktop or throughout the web.

Self expression has just been shifted to a new level and possibilities are endless to those individuals and businesses wishing to take the social web to the next level. Stay tuned to launch your own channel or broadcast network. Send me a note if you want to learn more…….

What say you?