Instant video generator is a service that helps you record and put your videos online. The target for this service is marketers, and the emphasis is on easy to use. This is a review based on my experiences.

The Bad

Can’t save web recorded videos
The same old ‘gripe’ I had with audio generator. For the videos that you record on the web, there is no way to download that so you can save it later. When you cancel the service, all your videos go with it. Now there is a way to circumvent that somewhat because you have the option to upload a pre-recorded video but then that is the next problem.

Pre-recorded video format
Instant Video Generator only accepts one format for upload, (FLV)  which is a type of flash file. If that’s greek to you, this feature is not going to be very useful. If you’re a bit more adventourous, IVG recommends you get a program called Sorenson Squeeze but that’s the 2nd gripe. One shouldn’t need to buy new software to make this work. Besides, someone a little technologically advanced would quickly figure out, if you have Sorenson Squeeze, you won’t need Instant Video Generator. You can put video on your website with Sorenson Squeeze and it’s easy to use. But it’s all a catch 22 situation. If you generate your own videos and host it yourself, you must be prepared to get a very large reliable webhosting account which can cost a pretty penny.

The Good

Hosting
With Iinstant Video Generator, hosting and bandwidth is included. If you’ve ever tinkered with video on your website, you’ll know that one or two people viewing it is ok but if everyone of your visitors view it, your website would shut down almost instantly because you’ll very quickly max out your resources. The fact you can store unlimited videos in Instant Video Generator is a real value itself.

Dead easy
Instant Video Generator’s strong points is that it’s instant and because you can send a video postcard by email, you don’t need a website. These are indeed very powerful plusses but before you start thinking plug and play, let me warn you that video recording is a time consuming and can be a rather exhaustive process. Unless you’re a born natural in front of the camera and most people aren’t, you’re going to need to prepare, prepare and prepare. You are going to need to work on a script, rehearse and set up your ‘set’ so that the video isn’t too dark, red, bright, small etc etc. This has little to do with Instant Video Generator but the nature of the media. However what Instant Video Generator does best is, once you get all those right, it makes it awfully easy to record and publish those videos. It really is point and click simple. If you can use Yahoo chat you can use this.

Small but nice additions
And then there’s the teleprompter. It scrolls your script as you record so you can create truly professional videos. A very nice feature and awfully useful. I also loved their new postcard creator. You can actually point and click to change the headline, body text, url and even move the items like headline, video box, body text etc around using drag and drop. Super easy.

Verdict
It really depends whether you think you will utilize it or not. Armand and Alex says that video can and has increased their conversion so much that Armand credits video to be one of the major factors the last Big Seminar was so successful. And between you and me, one of the biggest convincing factors I purchased John Reese’s Traffic Secrets is not because of the copy (though excellent) but I saw snippets of what the course contained. So I’m not arguing the point that video can really boost your conversion and help you make more. In fact, I’m so convinced, I’ll be using IVG to run some tests on TBM itself. But we are not all gurus with boat loads of cash to spend. We need to choose our tools wisely. If at the moment the very same thing can be achieved by the less inexpensive audio, go with audio first. Audio still works wonderfully and like Alex Mandossian says himself, you’ll have much more occassion to use audio than video.

Now on the flip side, if you are working on a physical product like gift baskets, fashion, crafts. I think IVG would be excellent to actually show people in 3 dimension how your product looks like and will be like a relentless sales person for you, very well worth it to invest. Or if you sell to people who sell physical products this is a good affiliate opportunity. Don’t know about you but have you ever been convinced by those late night infomercials or even shop at home channels even though you take it with a grain of salt? I have. Too often! That really is the power of video. It’s like the classic case of the vacuum sales person breaking a bulb on the CaRPet, vacuuming it up and then walks on the CaRPet barefoot. Very powerful and now you can do it.

Does this mean you shouldn’t use it if you don’t sell physical goods? No, in fact you can use it many ways like exit popups, and can get really creative & personal to help you gain newsletter signups or whatever the call to action may be. Just take a look at how Instant Video Generator uses it themselves. Imagine, if you’re leaving a site and a popup with your face on it ‘talks’ to people directly. That is really personal. I strongly encourage you to give Instant Video Generator a try because no matter what, my opinions are going to be tainted by my experiences. Right now you can get a 7 day free trial and $39.95 after. Even if you’re charged $39.95, you still get another 30 days to evaluate or get your money back so in essence, you are getting a 37 day risk free trial. Grab your trial account now.

P/S: This isn’t only for business. If you’re really trying to sell this as an affiliate you should really look into selling for personal use. Lot’s of people would like video on their websites for countless reasons. Rock bands showing their latest gig, mom and dads showing off baby to grandma and grandpa you name it.

Update: A lot has happened with online video since I wrote this review. There are plenty of places you can host videos even for free, Google Video being one of them. My use of video also has changed from talking heads to screencasts. Video is now primarily a promotional tool as well as a product creation tool. In that sense, I’ve outgrown my need for Instant Video Generator.

This doesn’t mean the tool has no more uses for you. If you just can’t bear to think technology and getting into the more advanced aspects of video (and mind you video is not as simple as audio) it is still a good option.

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