If you have a business and you want customers, you need video. It’s as simple as that. But who has the money and time to invest in it, right? Stop allowing those common excuses to hamper your success. You need to be in the video. Here are the reasons you need to embrace it and how you can begin to do that even if you hate the camera.

First, your audience is watching. 55% of internet users watch at least one video a day, every day. 54% of executives share work-related videos with colleagues weekly. (Which begs the question what percentage share non-work-related videos?) Clearly, video is used for much more than movie clips and funny pet tricks at this point.

But this likely isn’t news to you.  If you aren’t embracing video for your business at this point, there’s a reason. Do any of these sound familiar?

Cost

Video is no longer a high-end production effort. Phones and tripods can get the job done. You can even use some of the easy video editing software like Camtasia or Movie Maker. But they aren’t necessary. In fact, video no longer means edited anything. Go live. Skip editing altogether. Speaking of which...

Professional Quality

Now you don’t want videos that will make you look unprofessional but they needn’t have the polish of a Madison Avenue ad exec either. In fact, 80% of consumers say authenticity is their biggest driver in following a brand. So live stream as yourself without all of the filters and scripts. Let people get to know you.

Time

Many people think video requires endless cutting and retakes. While you can certainly do that, you can also do it in one take if you know what you want to say and you’re being human in your messaging. If there are a few “mmms” and “uhs” that’s okay. Just be genuine. You can do a video for your business in a few minutes.

Hosting Platform and Complicated Tech

In the days past you may have had to worry about this, but now you can upload your videos to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, or a number of other sites. You likely have all the tech you need already on your smartphone or your laptop/desktop.

Now that the excuses are quickly evaporating, let’s tackle the real reason you probably haven’t embraced video:

You hate the camera.

How to Start Loving the Camera So Customers Will Start Loving You

It’s not easy to embrace how you look on video. Many of us hate it. Even if you get over the looks aspect, you may feel self-conscious about your message. Get over that too. Your business (and customers) needs you to. Here are a few ways to start loving that camera:

1. Watch Gary V. Gary Vaynerchuk started off in his family’s liquor business and has become a well-known author and marketing guru. His style is uber casual. Watch his videos to get a feel for how “doable” video is.
2. Master what looks good on camera. Experiment with different things to look your best on camera. The better you feel you look, the more you’ll be willing to embrace the medium. That might mean knowing what colors look good on you, wearing darker makeup than usual so you don’t look washed out, finding or creating good lighting, using a backdrop you like, limiting loud patterns, not sitting in front of your light source, or a host of others.
3. Create a fun intro. If you’re doing a video series, consider paying someone to create a fun intro or do one yourself. It will give a professional look to your videos and make it clear they are part of an ongoing series.
4. Commit to them. If you commit to doing videos on a regular basis, you’ll begin to feel like you’re letting your audience down if you don’t keep up. This can be a powerful motivator.
5. Have a reason. Like any major goal in life, if you have a reason as to why you’re doing something, you’ll be more successful. For instance, when you go on a diet to lose weight, and you see that scale number decrease, it gives you motivation. If you set a goal tied to your videos, like gaining more followers or shares, seeing that happen will give you good reason to keep at it.

Video is an absolute necessity in today’s business. It helps potential customers or clients to get to know, like, and trust you. It’s a good medium to help you connect with your audience because they can see and hear you while they learn from you. If you’ve been putting it off, it’s time to give up the excuses and embrace this excellent opportunity for your business.