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Howcast.com Rocks The iPhone

Howcast.com, a well funded Silicon Valley startup founded by YouTube and Google veterans, has done an amazing job bringing how-to videos to the iPhone. The application is well scripted, interactive and useful. A true gem.

We’ve know Howcast.com for quite some time now. The site was launched in February of 2008 and joins the relatively crowded space of how-to videos with 5min and ExpertVillage. Since its launch, the site has been doing relatively well in its niche according to the Alexa stats, although the numbers have stagnated in recent months. Being a media company making money on ads, Howcast needs to grow it viewership from its current levels to become a viable company.

But traffic stats, especially Alexa.com’s, aren’t that significant especially that Howcast has content distribution deals with major outlets such as Verizon and MySpace. In other words, it is likely that Howcast gets more traffic and views outside of howcast.com. This brings us to their iPhone app, which is featured in one of the latest Apple commercials, which is quite an accomplishment.

The app is easy to install as it is directly available from the Apple Store and iTunes. Currently rated “3 stars” with about 4000 ratings, Howcast for the iPhone ties with other popular apps such as Skype in terms of user ratings.

The app itself shines by its simplicity: content cleanly featured, a good search with auto-complete of queries and definite “Apple feel” - the app is a success. Now actually playing the videos is a little more challenging even on a wifi connection as the videos pauses frequently to allow buffering, but that’s a minor detail.

Notice on the screenshot above how some of the key points are highlighted in plain text on the video. No animation of any kind of clickable links is possible on the iPhone yet, but Howcast does a nice job making sure some key overlays make it to the iPhone (as opposed to just having a plain video stream with no annotations).

Now what does this all mean for eCommerce? First, this example should serve as a model for iPhone integration for any company aspiring to build a presence on mobile devices. Howcast is arguably the best how-to iPhone application currently available. Second, we are seeing yet another clever video distribution strategy which does not rely on generating views on just one site - rather, the idea is to leverage good video content to gain exposure on various distribution channels. I believe this approach to video distribution - decentralized - is one of the most promising opportunities for video commerce because it allows to reach and acquire new customers at virtually no cost.

Extra: Watch the Howcast video presentation

Will the iPhone play a role in eCommerce Video

In just a few weeks now, Apple will release their new 3G iPhone to the masses. Here is Silicon Valley, people are rumbling about it. I met two friends this week end who were delaying their phone replacements by a month of two to get an iPhone this time.

The iPhone is an important piece of the puzzle in the nascent eCommerce Video space. In case you haven’t heard already, there are a number of mobile startups who have pre-announced iPhone applications capable of streaming video content from their phones. Qik is one of them, but there are others. And that opens up a world of possibilities. Let’s imagine that:

(1) Site chat applications evolve to accept video streams from a Webcam, or a phone. This would enable retailers to engage in a more powerful and engaging experience with their customers.

(2) Brick and Mortar stores with “people on the ground” can connect live with buyers, show them products, answer their questions right from their desks or shops.

(3) Customer support staffs can ask their clients to show them exactly what their problem is while talking to them on the phone.

Most of these examples are futuristic, but if the bandwidth connection is good, if it is to use these video applications from an iPhone, and if the user experience is positive and profitable, it’s not too much of a stretch to imagine this will soon happen. At least for some retail segments to start.