Google seems to know it all, doesn’t it? I have found if I simply type in my exact question in a Google search, I am able to find out more than I ever wanted to know.
Most recently, I have been asked about uploading videos to the web. Uploading videos has actually become quite an easy and seamless process.
The first step would be to Google “how do I post video to the web.” You will be directed to this link Before You Upload a Video to the Web.
Before uploading any video, consider your needs in a video host. Will the site be blocked in your school? This component is huge! Keep in mind; even if a site is not blocked in YOUR school, chances are it may be in MANY others.
So if you truly want a wide reach for your audience, you may decide against a host that won’t be available for students during the school day. Of course students could access blocked sites from their mobile device by switching over to 3G or 4G. Yet, it makes sense to me to have my student material published in the most available way.
Therefore, our multimedia publication uses SchoolTube.com to host our videos, because 99.5% of schools do not block it. Once our video is uploaded to SchoolTube, our students embed their videos to our publication site or their own personal digital portfolio.
Here are some tutorial videos to get you started on SchoolTube.
YouTube, which unfortunately happens to still be blocked in many schools, is still a popular choice due to its potential of an enormous audience. Here are a couple of step-by-step guides if this is your choice to host.
Another popular host is Vimeo. Vimeo is a great service, but also is unfortunately blocked even more than YouTube in schools. A guide to the basics can be found here:
A couple of other important points when uploading your videos to the web:
- Chose a friendly, searchable title that is SEO friendly.
- Tag your videos with specific search terms to make your video easy to find. At minimum, use your school name, the producer’s name, the type of video it is, the title of it. You can’t have too many tags.
- Write a short, simple, concise description of your video so your viewers have an interest or general idea for what they are about to watch. Including URL’s or contact information is also a good idea if applicable.
Ultimately, it makes sense to have an Internet site host your videos, as opposed to your school’s tech department, so you can simply embed the videos onto your school website or online journalism publication site. You will be able to find simple instructions on embedding videos by searching Google, or by checking the FAQs of your main web host as well.
Written By: Don Goble