Start reaching your target audience via video
Perhaps you are aware of all the statistics that show a rise in video marketing and you recognize your business needs a video marketing strategy. If you’re ready to take the next steps but are unsure about what they are, let this guide you.
Getting started on video marketing
It’s always important to start any marketing effort by defining your target audience. Be clear about the personas as well as where and when those people may be watching videos. Keep in mind, you want to make sure reaching them via video is the best tactic. Even though video is rapidly growing, other methods may be best for reaching your particular customers.
When making plans to create videos, you’ll want to move forward in these ways:
- Decide on relevant topics
- Create a compelling concept
- Budget for your videos
- Put together a script and/or storyboard
- Gather cast and/or other resources, shoot and edit
- Post and promote
- Monitor the response
Let’s examine this process in more detail.
Picking topics for video marketing
It’s true that 81% of businesses use video as a marketing tool, but any good business owner knows that doing something just because the competition is doing it really isn’t a reason to jump into the game. Even if your competitors are targeting the exact same audience, you need to differentiate your message to the same pool of people.
There are a number of different types of videos for business:
- Demo Videos
- Brand Videos
- Event Videos
- Expert Interviews
- Educational or How-To Videos
- Explainer Videos
- Animated Videos
- Case Study and Customer Testimonial Videos
- Live Videos
- 360° & Virtual Reality (VR) Videos
- Augmented Reality (AR) Videos
- Personalized Messages
As with any other marketing effort, defining the goals for a video marketing strategy will help you create a framework for the process. Statistics show that businesses that document strategies have a 538% greater chance of being successful in the effort.
To help narrow down ideas for possible topics, ask some of the following questions:
- Who is this video for?
- What will it help viewers accomplish?
- Where will it be posted or shared?
- How does video fit into the existing marketing plan?
- Will viewers want to share this with friends?
Determine what your business hopes to gain from having a video. For example, do you want:
- To share information?
- Promote specific products or services?
- Provide demonstrations to attract potential customers?
- Educate current consumers?
- Want additional engagement — sign up for newsletter, visit website, call customer service — after viewing the video?
It’s also good to think about your resources. How will you create momentum before you share the video? Is it possible to create video in-house or will you have to outsource? How long will the production process take?
Tell a story
Even if video marketing is new for you, it shouldn’t be a departure from other marketing efforts. Instead, use video as a way to enhance what you put out there already and make it a consistent reflection of your brand.
Once you have a topic or topics in mind, put together a script or storyboard that conveys the message. Keep in mind essential components: introduction, conflict, climax and resolution.
Be sure to grab the viewer’s attention within the first three seconds so they don’t abandon it for something else. Videos shouldn’t be crammed full of everything all at once. To get viewers to stay and watch, think of your video as a teaser that provides a peek inside your brand. Short videos of approximately two minutes work best.
It may take a considerable amount of pre-planning and writing to make sure your story is coherent. Also, don’t limit your thoughts to simply one video. If you plan to produce more than one, you’ll want to be sure there’s something that ties the whole series together and that something should be incorporated into the script.
Finally, as with other marketing pieces, have a call-to-action within the video. Don’t leave the viewer hanging. Provide an opportunity for them to become a customer.
Where and how to promote video
Once your video is complete, you’ve got to share it. Your target audience will dictate your distribution strategy depending on where they spend their time online. For example, if the bulk of your audience is on Instagram, that would be a better place to post videos than Facebook or your website.
Before you create video, don’t be afraid to do some research. Send out a questionnaire, post a survey, or inquire via newsletter. Get some feedback about the platforms your audience uses to watch video. You want to invest in the right places. That said, post on a variety of platforms in order to reach potential viewers.
Be sure to give your video a great title. This basic step will attract more viewers. And spend time creating a good description with keywords and hashtags. YouTube is the second-largest search engine in the world after Google. Make sure your target audience can find your videos.
Since videos are visual, don’t leave the thumbnail to chance. Take time to select the right image. A good one will help drive potential viewers. Making the thumbnail compelling encourages viewers to press “play.”
Launch and test different versions
As you create videos, keep in mind the KPIs in order to properly measure your campaign’s success. Once videos are posted, be sure to monitor metrics. When it comes to ROI, it’s all about the numbers. Track clicks, conversions and sales.
Consider A/B testing. It doesn’t mean you have to make two completely different videos, just consider altering one element of the video, the title or text caption and run it again. When you do this, it’s possible to see which video provides the best engagement and where to focus your attention for your next video production.
Get help when and where you need it
Many business stakeholders and marketers make an assumption that video has to cost a lot of money to be successful. This is not true. Producing simple and short videos for social media platforms can deliver great results.
Thanks to smartphones and digital cameras, many companies start with DIY options. If you choose this route, remember quality matters. Producing a low-quality video can be more harmful to your brand than not having video at all.
When your stakeholders begin the process of considering video, don’t abort the idea if you don’t believe you can create it in-house. Incorporating video into your overall marketing strategy is an important move for any brand. If you’ve read through these steps and need some help to accomplish the tasks, just give us a call.
At T.E. Digital, our team can help with everything from defining your target audience and assisting with video marketing topic ideas to the shoot and edit processes.
Connect with our team and let’s understand your goals to see how video can boost your marketing efforts.
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