Playing golf without a putter is a fool's errand. With 70 percent (some say 80 percent) broadband penetration in the U.S., streaming video is no longer optional, it is a must-have club in your marketing bag. According to eMarketer, 123 million Americans watch a video at least once a month and three-quarters of those people tell a friend about a video they have seen.

Whether you are a B2B or B2C marketer, video represents an enormous opportunity to engage, educate and entertain your target. Ninety-two percent of newspapers now have video content on their websites, up from 61 percent in 2006. Lots of brands are creating informative instructional videos to help their customers understand how to install or use their particular product or service. Others are creating pure entertainment with the hope that it will build brand affinity or drive web traffic, but the ubiquity of video is not without its challenges.

With more than 7 million hours of video content on the web, cutting through will require quality storytelling and judicious editing. One 2007 study notes that video viewing drops off dramatically after just 30 seconds. Short and sweet videos will be the "up and down" of 2008, getting your web traffic up and your complaint calls down.