Patience, Bigfoot, and Other Myths

At the Mashable Media Summit held yesterday in Manhattan, CollegeHumor co-founder and CEO Ricky Van Veen presented his list of "10 Web Content Urban Legends." Meeting planners who want to promote their upcoming event using online content should take note — unless, of course, you've already stopped reading: According to Van Veen, in his remarks regarding Myth No. 2 — "People will be patient with your content" — "35% tune out soon after starting to watch a web video."

What does that mean for aspiring online meeting marketers? It means you better make it interesting — and quick. In that spirit, here are Van Veen's 10 Web Content Urban Legends, followed by a video of his talk. But it's 40 minutes long. So don't feel guilty if you tune out. (The 10 Legends portion of the keynote starts at about the 4:10 mark.)

Myth #1). People will want to watch your branded content.
Myth #2). People will be patient with your content.
Myth #3). People will find your content.
Myth #4). The Internet is a level playing field.
Myth #5). We have no idea why things go viral.
Myth #6). Experience beats documentation.
Myth #7). You should build your own community and tools.
Myth #8). Keep things professional.
Myth #9). Traditional media is irrelevant to the web.
Myth #10). People will create good content for you.