Ha, the title sounds a bit confusing, doesn't it. You'll understand what I mean after reading the following.
Two of the current marketing trends in tourism are:

1. The importance of video on your website - and definitely on your home page. Video helps sell your product and convert to booking much more efficiently than static images. A videos also looks great as a background header.
   
2. Another trend is site speed. If your site takes longer than 3-5 seconds to load, you'll lose a lot of visitors and sales. The issue with HD video is that it can slow down your site if the files are very big, which they often are.
   

So to have HD videos on your website without compromising your site speed, read on..

I found this great (free!) little tool: Clipchamp. Clipchamp lets users convert, compress, edit and record videos in the browser. It's a free service that doesn't require installing software or uploading files to an online video converter or compressor.
I have just used it for a client's website, and it is fantastic! I reduced a 300MB file to 30MB and it's still super sharp! And SO much faster!

There are no input file size restrictions (it has been successfully tested with videos of up to 20GB). Our output format options are MP4, WebM, WMV, FLV and GIF.
Clipchamp is also very easy to use! I have also verified that it's a safe site to use.

So, give it a go and upload some great videos to your site! Go to: www.clipchamp.com

Till next week, Marijke

WhatsApp is one of the best smartphone apps around. It’s so good that over 900 million people around the world are using it!
I know that many of you are already using it, but if I look at my contacts, I see that many are not, hence this little tip!
What’s app uses data, so it’s best to use it when you’re connected to Wifi.
These are the features and advantages of WhatsApp:

• You can send messages (texts) with it
• You can send photos and videos
• You can send voice messages
• You can talk to anyone in the world for free!!
• You can add groups
• It automatically uses the contacts on your phone and you can see who’s downloaded it
• It’s super user-friendly!
• It’s free for the first year, then it’s US$1 (one!!) per year.

To download it, go to the app store on your phone and search WhatsApp. Or you can visit this page on your smartphone and download the app: https://www.whatsapp.com/download/.

I use it all the time and love it! Have fun using WhatsApp!
Have a great weekend!
Marijke

Registrations now open for the 2016 Marketing for Success Programme. Don't miss it! Click here for more info!

Here's how to set up Google Alerts:

Have you seen the above icons on websites? They are share icons and encourage people to share content on your website.
It's a great way to increase quality traffic to your website!
By having a range of share options, the visitors to your website will share your content with their preferred social media platform or by email.

To add this to your website, go to: www.sharethis.com and follow instructions. And.. it's free!

PS: have a go and share this page!

Till next week, Marijke

After last week's tip about QR (Quick Response) codes, several people asked me how they could generate one themselves.
I've made a little video on how to do this (free!).
Have a great rest of your week!
Marijke