GREAT 71 IDEA: Post Videos and Photos on Your Web Site

With so many affordable digital cameras, there's no excuse not to have lots of photos and video clips on your web site and social media pages. I have a Flip HD camcorder, which cost about $200. It's very easy to use and comes with simple editing software.

Just shoot something and, within minutes, you can post clips to your YouTube.com page. If you prefer to pay someone to edit and post video clips, check out Pixability.com.

Ask your clients and customers if you can post their photos on your site. If you sell products online, it might be best to hire a professional photographer to shoot the pictures. Be sure shoppers can enlarge and rotate the images.

Stock photos or illustrations are a great way to jazz up your site. I use iStock.com. That site is terrific. It makes it easy to access hundreds of thousands of affordable, royalty-free photos and images. You use a credit card to buy credits for your account. Then, you review images and store the ones you like in a “light box.” Once you find the perfect image, download and purchase the size you need.

Small jpeg files download within seconds. You can also purchase large, high-resolution files for print or animation projects. Check out the cool animation based on my book cover image on the 201GreatIdeas.com site. We bought the rights from Getty Images for under $100. Scrolling through stock photos can give your brain an inspirational jolt.