• The New York Times, Monday, February 5, 2007 11:01 AM

E-commerce companies are hoping Web video can result in more product sales. Companies like 1-800-Flowers and Blendtec, which sells blenders, are experimenting with video, though they don't know what to expect.

For Valentine's Day, 1-800-Flowers is trying to get its customers to create a "Video Valentine," which lets you upload photos, write messages and choose musical themes and graphics to send to loved ones. Videos can also be posted to several online video sites, which company CEO Jim McCann says he hopes will drive traffic back to 1-800-Flowers.

Taking a tip from the Super Bowl, McCann said the campaign's best videos would be turned into TV spots. Blendtec, meanwhile, created video of the company's CEO blending everything from wood to his own iPod. It posted the videos to the campaign microsite WilItBlend.com, as well as YouTube.

The idea for these e-commerce companies is to move beyond direct marketing. Like many brand marketers these days, these companies are soliciting consumer involvement on the Web to further establish their brands. McCann says these "personal" connections recall the relationships people had with local brick-and-mortar shops 30 years ago.

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