A recent study by business video platform provider Qumu examined the topic of Employee Generated Content (EGC) in the enterprise, asking executives who produces these videos, what content they focus on, and whether they are interesting and effective. The results revealed that while EGC video is on the rise, just over half (51%) of executives are concerned that employees will “upload irresponsible content to the company network.”
Out of the 240 managers and executives surveyed – across a variety of disciplines – concerns go even further for a few: 12% are worried about employees uploading embarrassing videos of them from company parties. However, 100% of respondents “have never seen an inappropriate video uploaded to the company network.”
In fact, despite the concerns about content, in general videos being uploaded to enterprise networks are effective, with top comments by executives about employee generated videos including “useful” (38%) and “appropriate” (35%).
Who is producing these videos, and which of them are the most interesting? CEOs produce the majority of videos, with 51% vs only 13.5% for co-workers. However, co-workers topped the list of “most interesting” corporate videos, with 45.5%. The most popular types of video being generated include:
- how-to videos (76%)
- communication from management (48.5%)
- town hall meetings (42%)
How-to videos – particularly those from customer service personnel – are expected to gain in popularity: Gartner Analyst Johan Jacobs says that “By 2015, how-to customer service videos will be an essential part of Web customer service strategies.”
In general, the videos are having a positive effect. Nearly 3 in 4 (73%) of respondents say these videos have “increased their productivity to some degree,” and 81% of executives believe the demand for these videos will increase.
According to Sharon Spinelly-McGowan, Director of Corporate Communications at Avid, “We are seeing a fast-growing increase in the demand for employees to generate video content and be able to share it.” This includes a new Qumu product that incorporates social sharing – it “allows our employees to create and upload video right from their browser into a social video sharing portal.”
Is your company using employee generated video? If so, for what purposes?
It should also be noted Qumu (the company behind the study) provides business video platforms, and therefore has an interest in seeing employee generated video continue to grow. Click here for the press release about Qumu’s April 2012 Business Video Behavior Project.
