Video marketing is quickly becoming one of the most effective and powerful forms of communication. Today the average consumer’s attention span is one second less than that of a goldfish, at a whopping 8 seconds. With such a short window of opportunity to attract potential customers, visuals help tell them why to choose you over your competitor.
Take a look at the following who, what, where, when, why, and how of taking your marketing to the next level by incorporating video into your strategy.
Who watches video? Americans watch 8,000+ years of video content on YouTube every day. That’s 11.3x bigger than Facebook. Plus, YouTube’s worldwide reach is huge, with 80% of its views coming from outside the U.S. The research shows that everyone, people of all demographics and walks of life, are consuming vast amounts of video footage every day.
Who uses video? Billions of companies and individuals both create and watch video. Businesses across an extensive range of industries, from agricultural and mechanical to fashion and pet care, utilize video in their marketing strategies to educate, display products, and entertain, while individuals use video for everything from self-promotion to a fun afternoon activity. No matter what your line of work, if video marketing isn’t currently a part of your overall strategy, you’re missing opportunities to reach potential customers.
For some, video is a fairly new concept for what should be included in a marketing strategy, and coming up with topics can prove daunting. The best action you can take is to start somewhere.
Operate an automobile service department? Come up with simple how-to videos you could produce. Provide landscaping services to customers? Create testimonial videos from previous customers or a time-lapse before and after project.
Brainstorms can be a productive way to help generate ideas like these and also help turn a good idea into a great one. You never know what thought may trigger the light bulb in the brain of the person next to you, so as long as it’s appropriate, let everyone’s imagination flag fly.
Another way you can explore topics is to ask the end user; after all, they are the people you are trying to provide with great content in the first place, so actively seek feedback and use it to your advantage. Creating a public persona for your ideal client target customers can be a great way to help guide the direction and goal of your content and how to best present it to customers. In other words, how would you be most receptive to a product or service if you were in the customer’s shoes? Explore some different avenues here to help craft result-oriented approaches.
Did you know that videos on social platforms generate 1,200% more shares than text and image posts combined? How about “companies using video enjoy 41% more web traffic from search than non-users”?
When asking yourself where your videos should be featured, survey says on all inbound marketing pieces in your strategy. This includes your website’s homepage and educational interior pages and on any social media platforms, especially YouTube and Facebook, which autoplays videos on newsfeeds for a high-impact, eye-catching delivery, and on video blogs, etc. Get the most out of each placement by driving traffic to and from each piece to help with your social engine optimization (SEO), too.
Another important factor to consider with “the where” is that mobile-friendly compatibility is a must. Mobile accounts for more than 50% of global watch time on YouTube, and we know that with mobile devices being the primary screens users interact with, having a mobile-responsive website is paramount in order to keep viewers’ attention.
An obstacle we often see in the marketing world is the question of when is something worthy of producing into a video. The best rule of thumb here is to commit to continually collecting video or hiring a professional on a regular basis in order to build a great media library to work from. Features could be anything from product tutorials and how-to’s to company events or customer testimonials and everything in between. This way you always have some material to pull from, regardless of whether or not you have something going on at any given time.
Another point to note is that something may seem like old news to you, such as a project you’ve been working on for months or a normal part of your daily routine, but not many others see it that way. There is always much more to an industry or a particular job than meets the eye. Getting a glimpse into the everyday life of a workplace is not only interesting to others, but can also help to show a personal side of your business customers otherwise would never see.
Whatever the video topic, the important thing to remember is that you’re aiming to provide people with helpful and entertaining content that answers their questions and meets their needs. This helps to position you as a valuable resource and show your expertise in a professional manner to gain the trust of the viewer before trying to convert them into a lead.
A video is worth millions of words, so when it comes to providing value, not much can beat the benefits of video. The majority of consumers prefer to watch a product video rather than read about it. When comparison-shopping, 74% of millennials find product videos helpful. This data shows the power behind videos, how they can be used to drive traffic to your website, and ultimately how you can help turn prospects into loyal customers.
How do you take all of this and make videos with result-oriented goals to work into your marketing plan? Now more than ever, there are plenty of wonderful technological resources at your fingertips, from affordable high-definition cameras and drones to lighting equipment and video editing software.
However, it is vital to the integrity of your brand to ensure that the video content you’re putting out is professional and up to the standards that you hold your business to, not to mention up to code when it comes to recording aerial footage. Unless you’re a video production and editing guru, there is a good chance you will want to call on a trusted, certified professional to help you get the most out of your video marketing efforts.
To learn more about how our team at Stray Media Group can bring our award-winning video production and FAA commercially licensed UAS operation services to help grow your business, contact us today.