Here are the ones I use and recommend:

Webcams

Webcams are excellent, good-value devices for recording video via your PC or Mac. Most PCs nowadays have basic webcams built-in.

For example, this means you can login directly to YouTube and create videos using the 'Quick Capture' option

Logitech Pro 9000

If you want to record higher quality video via a webcam, however, you need to use a more sophisticated device. The most widely recommended 'professional' webcam I've seen recommended and used personally is the Logitech Pro 9000 (£50). This webcam records video at a resolution of 2MB so the quality of your 'talking head' video will be much higher than most basic laptop webcams.

Mobile Video

Webcams are fine if you're sat in front of your computer, but obviously that format has some limitations. You can't exactly record outside, for example, or when you're networking at events.

The new kid on the block, however, for recording videos is undoubtedly the new generation of high quality mobile video recording devices. While many mobile phones can now record video, the quality is still generally poor, plus its generally not that easy to take the video that you've recorded on the phone and do something useful with it – like upload it to YouTube and put it on your website.

There are now a number of different mobile video cameras, but there is undoubtedly only one major player…

Flip Video Cameras

The Flip camera is probably the hottest gadget of the last 12 months (after the iphone). You know when something is a phenomenon when people refer to it to describe a category of product.

'Flip' video cameras are mobile-phone sized devices that are really simple to use. There are only a few buttons to press… record / stop /playback / delete is about all. Simplicity and ease-of-use is paramount, and much like the iphone, the combination of simplicity and quality output has created some raving fans – including me…

Its called 'flip' because when you've recorded a video and you want to upload it to your PC or Mac, you simply 'flip' open a little USB connector that simply connects to your computer.

What's more, when you attach the Flip Video to your computer, the camera automatically starts up its own software that quickly and easily allows you to upload your videos to YouTube, or download them to your machine and edit them if you prefer.

There are three types of Flip Video, the Ultra (£80), the Mino (now reduced to £95) and the Mino HD (£170). The main difference between the first two and the last is that the Mino HD records video in amazing High Definition. You can now even watch videos on YouTube in HD mode, and the quality is amazing.

The non-HD Ultra, however, despite being half the price can still produce more than impressive results, and for just £80 its a great. If you're on a budget, however, the new reduced price Mino (non-HD version) is probably the best deal, as its a smaller, sleeker version of the original Ultra.

I personally use the Mino HD, however, and if you'd like to see examples of my videos check out my YouTube Channel and or my blog.

There are other brands of 'flip' video from manufacturers like Kodak ZX1 (£136). However, from the reviews I've read the quality of these don't quite match the original Flip Videos – hence I'd recommend sticking with the original Flip brand itself.

The lesson is this… creating video content has never been as simple or as cost-effective… and creating video products or even your own TV channel is now within reach of anyone. Are you going to take advantage of this opportunity for your internet business?

Click here to view the embedded video.

I had a great conversation with Sports Success Consultant Jonathan Griffin this week, after he contacted me and asked to take me up on my free 30m telephone consultation call offer.

Before Jonathan saw me speak at the recent Coaches and Consultants Superconference, he was pretty-well confused about web sites. He wasn't sure what his website should look like, nor more importantly how to get one created without spending thousands and thousands with predatory web design companies…

After watching my presentation about just how straightforward it can be to set up a proper-looking, 'normal' website using inexpensive easy-to-use blogging software like Wordpress, he immediately took action. Within a few days he'd registered his own domain – www.jonathangriffin.co.uk – got his own low-cost hosting account, installed a copy of Wordpress and instantly his website was live!

Although Wordpress is designed primarily as blogging software, its also immensely flexible and can easily be used as a 'content management system' i.e. a means to create and edit basic pages on your website. For example, I used Wordpress to create a website for a local Osteopath client of mine, even though it doesn't have a blog at all. But now at least the Clinic owner and all the practitioners can edit and update their pages themselves without having to pay the web designer they had to previously.

During our call, I was able to give Jon some further pointers about where to find the best Wordpress themes, what some of the key plugins are you need to allow you to track your website visitor statistics, easily embed videos onto your pages, and ensure that all your pages are naturally optimized to rank well in Google search engines.

We also discussed the vital importance of building an email list via an opt-in page and again, I gave Jon some useful resources to use to kick-start his new coaching business.

So, if you're a coach or consultant who currently either don't have a website at all, or have one that your not happy with and would like to change or at least take control of, then you too need to contact me and request a *free* 30m telephone consultation.

Because my time is limited, however, so are the number of spots available, and these will be filled strictly on a first-come first-serve basis. So, don't delay, and I look forward to also getting you 'unstuck' with your website soon.

Click here to view the embedded video.

On Sunday I'll be speaking to an audience of Coaches and Entrepreneurs at the Coaches Top Gun Superconference in London. As you can imagine I'm very excited at the prospect of being able to talk for over an hour about a subject very dear to my heart – namely the use of technology to build the businesses of Coaches, Therapists and other similar 'Solopreneurs'.

I don't quite know what to expect. But I also can't wait…

There'll even be a live blog update during the session – using my trusty Flip Video. So… watch this space!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Thanks  to my brand new Flip Mino HD video camera this brief clip was filmed on location in London yesterday, while I was attending an event for 30+ internet marketers interested in building their business both online and offline.

I manage pretty-well to resist gadgets that aren't genuinely useful, but this is one tool that has already become essential for my need to create and share easy-to-produce, valuable content for this blog and elsewhere.

If you're a coach or consultant then just think how this could apply to you. You could interview other people, or get other people to interview you about your subject of expertise, ready to share with the world and immediately increase your perceived authority and status.

The software that comes with the camera makes it incredibly easy to both edit and add captions to your movie, then upload it instantly to YouTube.

Embed the video onto your blog and there you have it. High, quality engaging content that will only help build trust and rapport with your audience.

So, coaches everywhere… what are you waiting for?

Click here to view the embedded video.

My thanks to social media expert Dwayne Kerr for revealing the one strategy any coach can employ to grow their business and get more clients by using the power of online social networking.

A quick search on Google reveals that in July 2008 "142 million, or 75%, of internet users watched online videos in July. The average number of videos watched per viewer is 80."

In 2009, online advertising is set to overtake advertising spent on TV for the first time ever. One possible factor influencing this shift in advertising spend is that online video viewers are more active and engaged in their viewing compared to those watching television more 'passively'.

Consequently more and more savvy internet marketers are using video as their primary means of communicating messages. Frank Kern's InfoMillionaire Product during the pre-launch and actual launch basically only uses large-sized videos on a squeeze page in order to capture new leads and customers.

Even some of the very best direct marketers – who've built their reputations over the years with successful offline marketing – are now turning to video sales letters and video landing-pages for their online marketing. Bill Glazer from Glazer-Kennedy Marketing made it clear in the GKIC 2008 Info Summit Conference that video sales letters are the way they are going from now on – although often in conjunction with a normal long-copy sales letter as well.

Successful bloggers are also really starting to catch on to the increase in viral traffic and reader/viewer engagement they can get using online video. Yaro Starak and Gideon Shalwick have even pioneered a how-to-start-a-blog membership site thanks to the massive viral traffic they got because of the high-quality videos they give away for free.

But here's the good news…

Even if you're just starting out on the road to building your business online, perhaps with a new brochure website or blog, then here are 5 ways you can use online video to get more viral traffic to your site and build your business.

1) Create your own 30-second 'talking-head' video commercial

This is a 30-second spot I recorded for a local Osteopath client of mine. It took about 5 minutes to prepare for and record, and about 10 minutes to upload to my Mac and quickly add a professional title graphic in iMovie. Uploading to the Viddler video-sharing site took about 2 minutes. Its then childs-play to take the embed code the video site produces for you and embed it into this post.

Note that this is not a 'professional-quality' production. It doesn't need to be and there are even a few advantages to having a clearly 'home-made' look and feel. For one, it is more authentic and genuine than a traditional tv-commercial. Its unpretentious and non-salesy, which helps to establish rapport and trust, both vital in getting new patients to get in contact and book a treatment session.

2) Create a video testimonial from one of your clients

The best way to explain how you can help people is with the words of your current customers. And without doubt the video testimonial is the strongest form of endorsement you can get. The next time you're in a coaching session with a client, or in a treatment session with a patient, keep a video camera handy, or even one of the new amazing-quality flip video cameras.

I created this before doing the 'spot' above for my client. If you're afraid of asking for a testimonial (why??) then why not offer to make a quick commercial for your client in return? That seems like a great 'win-win' as they can then use it on their own website.

How grateful for this would your client be? How likely are they to refer new customers to you afterwards? Considering the extra 10 minutes it takes how much value will there be for you in return?

3) Create a video slideshow for your readers and viewers

This is an extremely powerful and increasingly widespread approach to online video. It's very flexible as the audio file can be recorded by itself and then later matched to the images you'd like it to go with.

Possibly the simplest way of doing this is by using an online service called Animoto. This amazing software has been created by former TV and Film producers, the concept is very simple.

You upload some digital images and an audio mp3 file and the software automatically combines them together into a video. And that's it – you literally do nothing else. If its not important how the images and audio go together, the results can be fantastic.

You can make under 30 second video clips completely free, or pay $3 for each unlimited length video you'd like to make. Finally, $30 per year allows you to make as many videos as you'd like and of whatever length. Here is an example clip I made for our Italian deli in Bath.

If you want to be able to adjust the order and duration of each image with the audio backing, then you can use a very simple and popular free program from Microsoft called Photo Story 3. This allows you to sequence the images precisely with the audio but without either the complexity or more advanced features of video editing software like Windows Movie Maker.

Windows Movie Maker is the free video-editing software that comes with your PC, but you might want to see the professional-looking results the more advanced editing functionality. The Mac alternative is the even easier-to-use iMovie, which makes basic video-editing very easy to pick-up.

Another way of making slideshow videos is by preparing some slides in something like Powerpoint and recording your computer's screen as you talk through the slideshow. See Tip 5 for how to do this.

4) Start your own YouTube-style video blog

Tip 1 was to create a short 'talking-head' video recording with a video camera, 'You-Tube' style. But you could develop this concept much further by producing a series of video recordings of you talking to camera about subjects that would be of interest to your potential clients.

Don't talk about what you had for breakfast, unless its relevant to your business, and keep the theme of the video on topic, as you should with any good blog or website. If you search for 'life coach' in YouTube you'll find many examples, such as life-coach Alkistis Agiorgiti, who has even created her own YouTube TV Channel, called AlkistisTV, to demonstrate her coaching skills and thus promote her business.

Fortunately you don't have to use a video camera to achieve this, however. A simple webcam would be enough to be able to record your headshot while you talk. You can use a higher-quality webcam if you want to record a bigger area or just have a higher quality recording.

Its easier if you're Tony Robbins, of course, when someone can do the video-work for you, but the principal is the same. However, I suggest that, unlike Tony, you make sure you publish your video to a video-publishing service that people can then embed onto their blogs and websites.

You're much more likely to watch embedded videos like the ones elsewhere on this post, rather than click on a link to watch Tony's videos on his own site. Remember, you want your videos to get the widest possible audience.

5) Create a screen-capture video of your computer desktop.

This final tip for creating a screen-capture video is a great way of either recording an audio and video slideshow in one take, or else just a recording of you demonstrating how to do something on your computer or on the internet.

For example, I created a video slideshow and recorded my computer screen as I went through and discussed each slide, as well as quickly showing a couple of example webpages. The only preparation for this was to make the slides themselves in a great new online presentation tool called SlideRocket. The preparation of the slides took about 30m maximum.

I then used special screen recording software called Camtasia Studio. This software isn't cheap but you can get a 30 day trial to at least try it out. It is probably only worth investing in, however, if you think you are going to use it fairly frequently to get good value. For Mac users, Screenflow is an excellent but cheaper alternative to Camtasia Studio that also comes recommended.

There are a number of free alternatives for screen-capture software if you're on a budget. CamStudio is the most well-known free open-source screen-capture tool. If you're needs are basic then check this out before buying Camtasia, it might do all you need to do perfectly well.

Another free alternative I've used is Jing by Techsmith, who are the same people that make Camtasia Studio. Jing is a very easy-to-use free tool that allows you to make up to 5 minute-long screen recordings and upload them either to your own website or else to your own hosting account that Techsmith will give you at screencast.com. The free account gives you up to 2GB of storage and bandwidth which is plenty!

One disadvantage with Jing is that the recordings can only be made in full-screen, which makes it difficult to play it on your blog. But you can certainly point people to the link for the full-screen version quite easily. All-in-all, Jing is a great tool which I recommend. I use it a lot when I want to make a very quick video to share with a client or partner.

So those are my five tips for introducing online video into your marketing plan.

Once you have produced your videos the next step is to promote them…

And if you would like to know more about how you can use online video to build your coaching or therapist business then enter your details below…

Finally… are you already using video well? Or do you have a question about any of these five tips?

If so, feel free to leave your comment or question below!