Those of you who follow my channels will know that I have a few favourite social media tools. These are the ones that I can’t live without and include AgoraPulse, Canva, Tweetdeck and ITTT. I also have a few favourite website tools. That said, I’m always open to adding a new tool to my online arsenal so when I heard about Uscreen , the subscription video platform, I signed up for a free trial to check it out.
What Is Uscreen?
Uscreen is a video platform that allows you to sell your videos online. Wait, it doesn’t just allow you… it gives you every possible tool to help you set up, promote and collect revenue from your videos. Uscreen powers over 1000 customers who have set up subscription or membership sites and these range from educational videos, self-help right through to entertainment. Imagine building your own streaming site like Netflix and collecting a monthly revenue from it.
A Look At Video Streaming
If 2017 has taught us one thing, it’s never to underestimate the power of paid video subscriptions. Remember Blockbuster video stores? No, me neither.
In Q1 of 2017, Netflix streaming subscribers in the United States passed the 50 million mark for the first time. Wait a second – 50 million? This means that 54% of all TV households in the country had a Netflix subscription in 2017. That’s huge! In fact, digital video show subscription channels are expected to rise to over 800 million in 2021. Rentals or subscription-based services such as Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime Instant Video are expected to account for 30% of this, with forecasted revenues of 16 billion U.S. dollars by 2021.
And I’m not only talking about entertainment subscriptions. Subscriptions for online learning have massively risen too. Remember when you used to have to attend a physical class to learn about something? When you had to make time in your busy schedule for night classes? You now have a digital platform of online videos, downloadable learning materials and online assistance to help you take courses. Projections show that the e-learning market worldwide will surpass 243 billion U.S. dollars by 2022. With Facebook adverts enabling the sellers of online courses to reach a captive and targeted audience, there are more video subscriptions being sold than ever before. So, then we should be asking ourselves a question. Why is it that only Netflix can make money from online video subscriptions and why can’t I? This is where Uscreen comes in, because this is a tool that can help you do just that.
Who’s Using Uscreen?
Uscreen is not a small player in the video subscription market. This is a well-established platform that’s already being used by some of the biggest brands around. Here’s a quick look at its top clients and their profits:
Magic Stream generates over $50,000 a month in video sales using Uscreen teaching subscribers how to do magic online.
Total Immersion Academy generates $35,000/month in sales using Uscreen to teach anyone how to swim.
Tmilly is a Youtuber who came over to Uscreen to monetize content and has since grabbed 3,000 subscribers in less than 6 months
Tawzer Dog generates over 100K selling dog training videos online.
So How Does Uscreen Work?
Uscreen allows you to upload your videos, presentations, images and documents and then using HLS Apple streaming technology it transcodes them to be viewable on any device without buffering. This is extremely important if you’re going to be charging for video subscriptions because buffering is really, really annoying!
When you sign up to Uscreen and upload your videos, you enter a complete admin panel that’s user friendly and not dissimilar to WordPress.
On your left you will find a menu which includes tabs for content, sales and analytics that enable you to create a complete sales and marketing funnel for your videos.
For example, the sales functionality allows you to create pricing packages for subscriptions, bundled offers or trials. Working in a panel that’s a lot like WordPress, you can title videos, add descriptions, adjust your SEO and even manage your targeted regions and user demographics. When you do run a campaign, Uscreen gives you super accurate stats about the number of views and signups you received.
You can also create private offers that won’t appear in your shop or catalogue or create specific user based rules.
Uscreen is not just a “video uploader” tool. Uscreen is a complete sales and marketing funnel for anyone wanting to sell subscription videos. That means that it also gives you complete customisation for your store’s themes, colours and designs. It links with Facebook pixel tracking, Google analytics and MailChimp for your campaigns and it also helps you to set up your payment options. You want to get paid for all this don’t you? Payment options include Uscreen’s own payment option, Stripe or Braintree which connects with PayPal for convenience.
There are tons of juicy marketing tools in the Uscreen panel such as automatic email templates to welcome new subscribers and an easy white label template that allows you to upload your logo and brand everything.
Uscreen also manages your active subscribers by collecting subscription payments, reminding users of missed payments and even allowing you to retarget and message your web visitors using the Facebook pixel tracker.
Top Uscreen Features
Now I’m thinking as someone who might upload a chargeable video series, I can easily see the benefits that this platform could bring to business owners:
- Fully white label allowing you to brand everything
- Easy to use but with tons of tools and add-ons
- Lots of customisation & flexibility in setting up your own look & feel
- In-depth analytics to track and monitor every campaign
- Fully Branded Native Apps & OTT Apps
- Built-in billing & subscription engine
- Marketing & community tools
- Full integration with marketing essentials such as Facebook and MailChimp
- Excellent video explainers plus 24/7 support
- A simple monthly fee of $99 per month +
So, What Could Your Business Do With Uscreen?
If you got a little disconcerted when I mentioned Netflix and Hulu then I hear you. These are big big players selling mainstream movies and entertainment. How could that possibly relate to a small business? Well, if you want to make money with Uscreen then it could be easier than you think. Here are some of the small business I know who could use this tool.
Self Help/ Motivation Classes– if you’re a self-help guru then you could easily upload a payable series for your subscribers. You don’t need fancy video equipment, actors or a studio. Just you, your voice and your time.
Exercise & Lifestyle– I know tons of super awesome fitness instructors, Pilates teachers and yoga gurus who could be using this. Add a free video to showcase your teaching and then set up a series of paid classes explaining the exercises, moves and breathing techniques.
Arts & Crafts- If, like many of my friends, you’re a crafty card maker, painter or model maker, you could set up a series of “how to” videos explaining how your subscribers can create their own beautiful craftworks.
Cookery & Baking – Now here’s one I would subscribe to. As someone who really does need help in the kitchen, talented bakers and chefs can now set up easy cookery tutorials for novice or advanced subscribers. The beauty of Uscreen is that you can create different funnels for different subscribers. I’m the beginner in this category!
Social & Web Experts– Your knowledge is incredibly valuable, especially if you’re a top influencer in your field of expertise. Share your marketing, web or social media tips and secrets in a series of paid subscriber videos. Again, you can customise these for beginner, intermediate and advanced audiences.
So, you see, you don’t need a million-dollar budget to start creating beautiful videos and with Uscreen you can actually cash in on them. If you like the look of Uscreen then why not sign up for a free 14-day trial and start testing it for yourself. Did you find this review useful? Tweet me @Charli_Says and let me know!