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7 Types of Videos That Are Effective For Marketing
Sending out a paper ad promoting your business is a thing of the past. But what if you heard that simply posting written content on a blog isn’t enough to cut it either?
In a perfect world, posting blog posts sprinkled with keywords would be enough to grant you endless number one spots and have you drowning in leads.
Unfortunately, in our modern-day world of marketing, that’s not the case.
Today marketing your business must go beyond putting words on a page. According to Forbes, 65 percent of us are visual learners. Though well written, insightful blog posts do have the power to bring in leads, incorporating videos in your marketing efforts can expedite the process.
According to Brain Shark, video is 50 times more likely to get organic page ranks in Google than plain text. But that doesn’t mean posting a video with unhelpful, fluffy content will earn you that number one spot. So what types of videos are beneficial for marketing?
Listed below are seven of the best videos to incorporate into your marketing plan for every step of the buyer’s journey.
Top of the Funnel
During the first step in a buyer’s journey, a potential customer begins to familiarize themselves with your company. They know little about your brand, so this is your chance to make a positive first impression. Help them with a problem they’re having, tell them about your values—anything that might attract them to your company and leave them optimistic about future encounters.
1. Brand Videos
The purpose of these videos should be to, in a sense, introduce yourself to your viewers. Tell your audience the story of your brand, rave about your core values, and convince them your company is unique and worth their time.
A great way to differentiate your brand video from others like it is through animation. Animation offers numerous possibility to show your brand off in a creative way. It provides visual and emotional stimulation and leaves the viewer in a good mood.
Animation also allows you to incorporate a brand character. Between ads, product packaging, and storefronts, every day your viewer comes face-to-face with more brand names than they can remember. While it’s easy for a company name to slip someone’s mind, they’ll have a much easier time recalling the face of a memorable character.
When you’re putting together these videos, think short, fun, and unique.
You also may be interested in: Should I Invest In Video Marketing for My Small Business?
2. Explainer Videos
The purpose of explainer videos is to do just that—explain something. These can include anything from sharing helpful tips, walking the viewer through an activity, or teaching them how to solve a difficult problem.
Explainer videos are great for home service companies. If someone who is unfamiliar with plumbing or HVAC is looking for a quick fix to a problem in their home, a video is a great, easy way to show them a solution. They’ll have a much easier time following a step-by-step instructional video than a written list of steps to take.
These videos are great not only for establishing expertness and authority but for capturing the all-important “how to”- and “hack”-themed queries in the search results.
Information-oriented queries are more common than queries with the intent to buy or other queries that come later in the funnel. For this reason, from a search perspective, these videos are most likely to see the most viewers.
Another benefit of explainer videos is that they don’t outwardly promote your product or service. Instead, they provide useful important to help your audience, while introducing them to your brand at the same time.
Your audience will begin to see your company as a trusted resource and hopefully, down the road, as a trusted provider of products and/or services.
Tip: Adding a clear call to action at the end of each explainer video reminds the viewer who provided them with the information and assures that your company name is the last thing they hear and something they remember.
Middle of the Funnel
The middle of funnels is the part of the buyer’s journey where you should build on your existing relationship with users. The key is to slowly push them toward buying a product or scheduling a service, but without being too sales-y.
3. Product Review Videos
Product review videos are your company’s chance to put your money where your mouth is. Nothing promotes a product or service better than showing it in action to highlight its benefits.
According to a study from MediaPost, 57 percent of consumers are more confident in making a purchase online after watching a product video.
Reviewing and proving the superiority of your own product is one way to spin these videos, but another is to review products that aren’t from your line, but could still be useful to your customers.
This is great for building viewers’ trust. They’re used to companies preaching at them, begging for their business, and will appreciate knowing you care enough about them to recommend products that you won’t profit from.
You also may be interested in: 50+ Must-See Video Marketing Statistics For 2017
4. Company Culture Videos
Customers love good products, but even more than that, they love good products that come from good places.
According to Social Media Today, brands that inspire a higher emotional intensity receive 3 times as much word-of-mouth marketing as less emotionally connected brands. Using video to show the world the faces behind your business is a great way for customers to relate and form a personal connection to your brand.
Company culture videos humanize your brand and if viewers enjoy it, you’ll be more likely to gain brand advocates who willingly share your message.
These videos can include anything, from a tour of the office to a slice-of-life employee interview, a company outing, or anything else that showcases your company’s unique dynamic.
Tip: Your employees know your brand best and happy workers love to rave about their workplace. Take advantage of that and include short interview pieces from a few employees in your video.
5. Event Videos
Posting videos of your events are a great way to bring the fun of the occasion you’re celebrating to those who couldn’t make it.
Social media platforms allow you to showcase your event with a variety of different formats. Facebook Live allows you to broadcast the entirety of your event in real time to anyone looking at your Facebook page. Opting for Instagram and Snapchat stories let you share small snippets snip-bits of it, with the opportunity to add location-marketing geotags, stickers, and filters.
These live videos hook people for the same reason we continuously check social media for family, friends, and news updates—we like to be in the know. If we stop watching a Facebook Live video halfway through, we know we might miss out on something exciting happening later on. This is why, according to Facebook, their live streams get 10 times more engagement than regular videos.
Event videos can also take the viewer behind the scenes to the set-up or tear-down process, in an employees-only room, backstage, or anything else that attendees don’t see. Even those attending the event can tune in and get the inside scoop.
You also may be interested in: Social Video: The Marketing Trend That’s Worth Investing In
6. Testimonials
It’s one thing for you to rant and rave about your product, but it’s a far different thing for someone else to rant and rave about it.
According to Vendasta, 68% say positive reviews make them trust a local business more.
A potential buyer is expecting you to talk up your company as the best. But when they hear someone who isn’t connected to your brand talk highly of it, they’re more likely to trust its superiority.
A great way to acquire these testimonials is during an in-store event, tradeshow, or after the release of your latest project. Seek out excited attendees who are eager to share their satisfaction about your products with others.
If you’ve been acquiring testimonials already from past clients, reaching out to those happy customers works as well.
Tip: The key for these videos to be successful is that they need to look absolutely genuine. A viewer will be completely turned off if they suspect you’re using paid actors and scripted lines.
Bottom of the Funnel and Beyond
Congratulations! Your buyer has reached the end of the funnel and you’ve turned a lead into a customer. Now, though, is not the time to abandon the customer you’ve worked so hard to convert. Keep them engaging with your business and eager to learn more.
8. Vlog/Webinar
As was said at the beginning, it takes more than just written words on a blog page to catch someone’s attention. Vlogs and webinars, on the other hand, are enough to do it.
Vlogs and webinars give you the chance to go in depth about topics without worrying that your reader’s eyes will wander away from your page’s sea of giant paragraphs.
Creating weekly or monthly vlogs on various topics could get you a loyal audience and following, eager to tune in for the next installment.
Webinars give you the opportunity to host Q&A sessions with clients, product demos with customers, or even interviews with other thought leaders in your industry. Think of them as free live events that offer valuable insight to those watching.
Best Practices for Video Marketing
It’s recommended to create captivating video content on a regular basis as part of your marketing strategy. Creating a series of videos each week or month builds brand authority and keeps your customers waiting for your next release. They’ll start to expect to see content from you on a scheduled basis, almost like a TV show.
Making one video has its benefits, but creating multiple with consistent themes and elements is the best practice.
Ready to get started on your first company video? Check out Blue Corona’s video portfolio. If you like what you see, send us a message online to learn more about our all-inclusive video marketing packages for small businesses.
About The Author: Blue Corona's Editorial Staff is determined to help you increase your leads and sales, optimize your marketing costs, and differentiate your brand by passing on our tribal knowledge. The team vigilantly stays on top of the latest in digital marketing, bringing you the top insights with expert commentary. Want to see something on our blog you haven't seen yet? Shoot us an email and our marketing team will get to work.
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The information on this website is for informational purposes only; it is deemed accurate but not guaranteed. It does not constitute professional advice. All information is subject to change at any time without notice. Contact us for complete details.
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