About 4 years ago, when I decided to sign-up my kids for piano lessons, of course the first thing I did was to start thinking about which keyboard to buy.

I did extensive research online for keyboards: I did Google searches, visited an insane number of web sites, musician forums, read reviews on Amazon and other e-tailers, and even called up several music stores and asked for recommendations.

To make a long story short, it came down to two products: the Yamaha Motif XS and the Korg M3.

And I was really, really torn between the two, unable to make up my mind… until I saw this free video on YouTube…

Yup, literally one free video on Youtube sealed the deal for Yamaha, and they literally reached into my pocket and sucked $3,200 out of my credit card (it costs like $2500 now!)

So yes, video does help you sell better.

And actually, it’s not just about “selling”. Video basically helps you “persuade” and “close” better – regardless of what the goal is.

So video rocks whether you’re selling a product, building a brand, building a reputation, or simply trying to make a very cool viral video…

And creating such videos is a LOT simpler than you can imagine.

Andy Jenkins, a marketer whom I admire and am a big fan of, has released 3 spectacular videos that show you how easy it is to create videos that work.

Yes, the videos are free.

One thing I can guarantee you: If you’re not totally impressed by the production quality, humor, fast-paced and multiple-sensory-stimulating narration in the videos, then I will let you smack me silly and call me “Ravioli”

So click here to watch them all for free before they get taken down when the actual product launches in 2 days…

And don’t forget to leave a comment below about what you thought about this post (or Andy’s videos).

Cheers!

- Ravi Jayagopal

Smartphones are evolving at such breakneck speed, thanks to Apple and Google, that they’re killing a whole range of gadgets…

The demise of the legendary Flip camcorder says it all.

Is your product (or company) geared to deal with such an incredible onslaught of change?

Did you know: Google recently launched their first, full-length, online magazine called ThinkQuarterly.

At Google, we often think that speed is the forgotten ‘killer application’ – the ingredient that can differentiate winners from the rest. We know that the faster we deliver results, the more useful people find our service.

But in a world of accelerating change, we all need time to reflect. Think Quarterly is a breathing space in a busy world. It’s a place to take time out and consider what’s happening and why it matters.

Our first issue is dedicated to Data – amongst a morass of information, how can you find the magic metrics that will help transform your business? We hope that you find inspiration, insights, and more, in Think Quarterly.

Matt Brittin
Managing Director, UK & Ireland Operations, Google

Awesome idea!

Know that thing that happens after you stare into the sun and then close your eyes? Know how you see a bright ring that then gradually fades away?

BMW came up with the same concept and created an ad that did that to viewers.

Now the idea itself is nothing groundbreaking. But what’s really cool is, that they actually did it, and now everyone’s talking about it.

I’m blogging about it.

And you’re reading about it.

And shortly you’re going to watch a video about it.

And then you’ll probably blog (or tweet, or facebook message) about it.

And thus the cycle starts all over again.

That’s the power in creating something “viral”. That’s the power of doing something that starts a conversation.

And that is what is cool about doing something like this.

Now go do something really cool yourself, somehow tie it to your product or service or brand. And see if you can get a conversation started about it.

“It was the best of times, and it was the worst of times”, wrote Charles Dickens.

That’s exactly how it has felt for the last couple of years.

On one hand, my wife’s father, and both my parents – all passed away in a span of 3 years, leaving our kids with no grandparents, and leaving us utterly devastated.

And on the other hand, my career has gone from good to Great to UNBELIEVABLE! (including the ALL CAPS & “exclamation point”). My wife and I both have been able to quit high-paying jobs, become full-time entrepreneurs, move to beautiful and pleasantly sunny San Diego, California. We work full time from home, we’re always there when the kids come home from school, we eat lunch together as a family every single day, we basically do whatever the heck we want, whenever we want – all while we grew our business by 1,000% (yup, one thousand percent) in less than 1.5 years.

So yes, it has been the best of times, and it has been the worst of times. A very big roller coaster ride.

And as the year comes to an end, I have been reflecting on where to go from here.

From a career perspective, I do have a best-selling book under my belt, a successful online business together with my wife, and am part of a wonderful community of customers, associates, partners, peers, and fans (yup, I apparently have some fans too!)

I am looking to take my personal brand to a new level this forthcoming year: I plan on doing more blogging, more speaking, more consulting and more coaching. And it was during this time that I happened upon a course called “Experts Academy” being promoted by a person named Brendon Burchard.

I was first introduced to Brendon’s products earlier this year when all of the big marketers in the industry were promoting his product. I received an email from at least 20 different people pitching his product “in my face”.

To be honest, I was a little turned off at that point. Plus I was in a different place in my life at that point, and did not give it further thought.

Over the months to follow, after the hype had died down and the launch had ended, I somehow kept running into Brendon’s videos, audio and other content from time to time, and the more I watched and absorbed his material, the more his brand grew on me. And I found the stuff he was teaching to be something not too many people taught (or taught like he did), very powerful and eye-opening – even for me, someone who has “been there, done that” in the online marketing world.

So this time around, when I found out that he’s re-opening the doors, the timing couldn’t have been more perfect.

I’m in a place right now where I am looking to actively and aggressively go into the “Expert” space, and launch more products in the coaching, consulting and seminar space.

This is exactly what the doctor ordered for me. And I have already decided to buy the course. Most people would consider it “expensive”, but for me, it’s going to be pretty “cheap”, because this is exactly what I’ve been wanting to learn, courses like this from someone who has proven themselves are rare to come by, genuinely good people like Brendon are even rarer, and the value I’m going to be getting from this is going to be so immense, that it is going to be the best gift I’ve bought myself in a long time.

Going by his free videos, his reputation, and his results, I predict this is going to be the product of the year. And if you could purchase just one thing over the next entire year, then let it be this one.

Even if you don’t buy the course, it would be crazy not to at least check out the bucket-loads of amazing free coaching that he’s giving away as part of this product launch. And as you watch each video, be sure to study the whole launch strategy – especially the “12 positioning tools” video that teaches how to market yourself as a a high-value, highly-paid expert starting starting today.

I have never, ever watched any “how-to” video for longer than 10-15 minutes at a time – ever. But I watched the first video which is like 45+ minutes long, in one sitting, completely mesmerized, furiously taking notes, while my brain was going so nuclear with all of the possibilities, that it could’ve probably powered my entire San Diego neighborhood!

Oh, and use this free FireFox plugin (one of my favorites) to download the launch videos, as even the free information is just too good to be skipped and forgotten. You will be watching them many times over, so make sure you save them to your computer for offline viewing.

- Ravi Jayagopal

P.S: So Where You At? What have you planned for 2011?
Do comment below.

PPS: Some of the links in this blog may result in an affiliate earning for this web site. We do not recommend products for the sake of earning a commission. Rather it’s the other way around. When we want to recommend something, we check if they have an affiliate program. If not, we recommend it anyway.

The difference is pretty simple, actually

Quit Smoking
Simple: We all know the health benefits of not smoking. Quit smoking, live longer.
But Not Easy: The actual act of quitting is really hard.

Losing Weight
Simple: Do it and you will look good, feel good, and have more energy
But Not Easy: Working out frequently, cutting down on your favorite fatty foods, and eating healthy, is the hardest thing to do when you’re overweight.

Raving Fans
Simple: Take good care of your customers, and address their questions and concerns quickly.
But Not Easy: The amount of time and effort spent and processes you need to put in place. And sincerely caring about your customers.

Creating Something “Remarkable”
Simple: Build something that people want or need with a unique twist, go really deep in features, and address all the benefits.
But Not Easy: Think Microsoft. All the money and resources and clout in the world, yet they give us Windows ME and Vista.

Earning A Recurring Income
Simple: Build a membership site, add great content, price it well and market it well.
But Not Easy: Implementing the right membership software, creating great content consistently, doing the research and testing on pricing, implementing solid marketing.

If you just looked at what needs to be done, a lot of things in life are actually quite simple.

But the act of just doing it, doing it well, and continuing to do it well, is never ever easy.

Hope you don’t settle for the easy in life. Because nothing worth doing in life is ever easy.

Simple, may be, but never easy.

I use Amazon S3 to host my business videos.

S3 offers incredible performance, unlimited storage, and is extremely affordable. Another Purple Cow from Amazon.

Plus it looks a lot more professional than hosting your business videos on a crowded social video site with user generated videos and ads surrounding it.

• Amazon S3 for video hosting.
• Camtasia / Jing (both from the same folks) for screen capture.
• S3 Fox Free FireFox plugin to upload videos to your Amazon S3 account.
• FlowPlayer free flv player (flowplayer.org) to play the videos.

And I’m done!

Check out some videos I have hosted on S3.

Excellent interview by Charlie Rose.

And the discussion about monetizing FaceBook is very interesting.

And a cool thing about Google Video (not to be confused with YouTube) is that you get a link right on the page, to download the video (iPod/iPhone friendly). So load up for offline viewing at the gym or on the train!

Yet another incredible presentation from Seth Godin.

I can’t seem to get enough of what he talks about…

Ok, I was being dramatic. Plus I’m straight (and I think Seth is too).

Last evening, I was fortunate to be a part of a private group that participated in Seth presentation for his new book, “Tribes” .

The presentation was “remarkable!”, as Seth would’ve said himself.

Filled with extraordinary images, and almost no text, Seth walks the Garr Reynolds talk.

Came away with some terrific ideas for building and nurturing my own tribe.

Thanks Seth!

If you haven’t watched this presentation he gave at Google, it’s a must-see.

`