If video killed the radio star, online video will eventually beat down the slumbering mix of text and photos on most modern Web sites. Thank goodness.

The evidence is everywhere.

• Overall, growth in online video is robust, increasing 45 percent in 2008 from the year prior to 13.5 billion total monthly views. Thanks, YouTube!
• B2B and B2C marketers in the U.S. will take a closer look at online video in 2009, according to a survey conducted in December 2008 by PermissionTV. Most place it first on their digital marketing to-do list, topping social networking, podcasting and the like.
• More than two-thirds of respondents said they would focus their budgets on online video this year.
• More than one-half of respondents are also expected to be implementing or extending an online video project in Q2 2009. Less than one-third said they were doing so currently.
• Roughly one in four top 100 law and top 50 accounting/consulting firms use video on the Web today (mostly on career sections of firm Web sites or recruiting specific sub-sites).

Speaking of recruiting, it’s important to note that videos are not only for the young and young of heart. While Generation Y (ages 18–32) has the highest percentage of people using the Web for watching and downloading videos, Pew Research reports that nearly the same percentage of Generation Xers (ages 33–44) and almost half of Young Boomers (ages 45–54) watch online video.

So more online video is inevitable. Getting yours watched and remembered is not.

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Choate, Hall & Stewart launched a groundbreaking Web site earlier this summer to critical acclaim and a large dose of industry buzz. While the entire site is a stand out, the Careers section earned the most attention. It integrates reality-TV style vignettes, professionally acted commercial videos, vintage film footage and a healthy dose of humor—all to communicate the many benefits of working at Choate. Check it out yourself at choate.com/careers.

Hitting the mark

Targeted campus recruits give the site high marks for its form and function. They think the videos “put a human side” on the firm that they aren’t seeing at other firms and they especially appreciate the professionally acted videos for “saying it all while saying so little.” At the same time, Choate recruiters report that the Web site is getting rave reviews. A typical interview starts with a student smiling and remarking that he or she likes the Web site. Recruiters also feel that their job is easier because some points have already been made before the students meet them.

Can it get any better than that for a marketer?

You bet. Off campus, choate.com earned the attention of the press and the general legal community. Since its mid-July launch, the site has been featured in The Wall Street Journal’s legal blog, the Boston Business Journal, The National Law Journal and in an upcoming issue of The American Lawyer. On top of that coverage is the resoundingly positive banter on several legal marketing sites and blogs.

What’s the hullabaloo? And why the buzz?

Well, first, choate.com is the sharp execution of a smart idea. But it’s also a true original in the legal space. Choate is the first mover. And as a result, Choate gains the first mover advantage. Choate joins a class of notable marketers who have dared to be different and set new precedents.

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