The Economy Rap

The glorious world of online video just got better.  In this video, fee-only CFP Kenneth Robinson raps about the economy and why "It Won't Go to Zero." And he's even got the bling to match!

For the past 12 years Robinson has educated people about personal finance issues offering one-on-one counseling as well as group workshops and seminars, and he's even written a book, "Don't Make a Budget: Why it's so Hard to Save Money and What to do About It."

According to one of Robinson's websites, he has created this rap as an educational tool.  He notes:

I wrote this to explain that a recovery of the stock market is inevitable. Instead of a talking-head lecture, a non-traditional approach was called for, especially given the depth of the anxiety that has accompanied the recession.

Robinson understands that he must create content that his audience wants to see and will most likely remember.  On his Financial Self-Confidence website, he offers to customize his rap messages to target specific seminar audiences. This is actually a very clever way to help people learn because it is action and emotion that aid in memory.

While rapping about your services or a new product is probably not the direction you'll want to take when deciding to make online videos, Robinson's rap video highlights two great points.  

One is simply to communicate with your clients as if they are people.  This video speaks volumes about Robinson. It shows he is a humorous, light-hearted person willing to poke fun at himself. He probably doesn't often rap to his friends, but the idea that you can imagine joking around with this man is huge.  It's humanizing for him and creates a connection with the audience because he is treating them as if they were there with him.

Of course rapping is not the only way to do this, in fact a simple sincere message may serve you better in terms of gaining trust!

The other point this video makes is the importance of standing out.  Not everyone needs to run around trying to find a great gimmick, but it helps to show a little bit of your personality. In an earlier post we talked about some ways to help you get your message across on-camera. One of the most important tips to take away was that being yourself is best. When there are equally qualified people offering similar services, you have to be yourself because that is what makes you unique.

So go ahead, get your rap on.  I mean, your video.