I Know I Should Use Video, But Where Do I Start?
It always seems to be the first sticking point with most things, doesn’t it? “Where to start?”. If nobody ever got over this hurdle where would we be today? Not in front of any electrical device I can assure you. Video is no different, but admittedly, during this digital disruption we are all experiencing, the lines have become blurred and we are being bombarded with information on a daily basis. So, if you are you a business owner who thinks “I Know I Should Use Video, But Where Do I Start?”, then read on.
Where do we begin?
Allow me to explain why, first.
The humble computer has changed everything and infiltrated almost every aspect of our lives and still you wonder why! It has changed the way we communicate. Email and text messages consume our daily work lives and there’s more when we get home! It has changed the way brands communicate with their market. We have too much information on hand and are too savvy to be blinded by marketing jargon now As consumers we want an open and frank discussion with businesses and not to be constantly sold to. Now, we can sort of see some sort of blueprint forming just in front of us. As individuals we are so connected so often now, that brands can find a way to find us any time, any where, so we don’t always want to hear the sales pitch. So what else do we say?
Now we have a handle on why we need to communicate digitally, it is a matter of what videos to use and how. I believe video can be divided into three actions. We either want to:
Attract
Engage
Convert
Any video that you want to make for your business should fall into any one or more of these categories.
ATTRACT
A video that is designed to attract attention should always be directing traffic to a particular destination, ie. a website or landing page. Seeing as this is not TV and there are no real format rules to stick to, the video can be whatever you want, within reason of course. Your imagination is your limit. For example, an Explainer Video would fit the bill nicely. A short, animated story that gets its point across, is a great way to grab attention and introduce your business in a fun way. These videos generally fall into one of these four categories:
- Introduction
- Celebrating Success
- PR Driven
- Speculative / Comedic / Viral
Any video can be used to generate attention, but only are some are equipped to deal with it, not all videos are created equal. (Why do I feel like I’m in Star Wars all of a sudden?)
ENGAGE
The second part of this plan is to engage with the viewer, you have their attention, now don’t let it go! A video that keeps a visitor on your page longer is working and guiding the viewer further along your customer journey. Boost your SEO and viewer experience by demonstrating your product or service, if they are going to watch a video, it may as well sell for you. Here is where you tell your business story, give value and build a community around your offering. These videos usually fall into one or more of these categories:
- Your Story
- Product / Service Related
- Amusing
CONVERT
This is the pointy end of the process and where all the money is, so not making the most of the hard work would be a giant loss. Step one and two are worthless unless you have a solid conversion strategy. By asking for the business or using your call to action to prompt a decision are the most successful ways of converting and video is no different. With someone addressing the viewer directly, the viewer can connect with the person in the video, this instils confidence to buy for a number of reasons. Conversion Videos usually fall into one or more of these three categories:
- Landing Page
- Product / Service Related
- Explainer Video
- Cart Abandonment
- Piece to Camera
Just to cover the “how” briefly, video on the web used to be all about YouTube, but now each social media platform has their own video platform. For general video hosting you have umpteen choices, but unless you are going for some niche market your choice is simple. YouTube or Vimeo. Let me make it even simpler, if you would like to get found by search, then YouTube is the choice for you. Vimeo definitely has it’s merit, but that asks for a full article, not a foot note in this one. So, by hosting on YouTube and embedding on webpages would be the sensible choice for a business owner.
Hopefully that has shed some light on, not only why you should be using video, but some idea on what video to produce and how to use it.
Interested in Learning More about Explainer Videos, Client Testimonial Video or a Corporate Video, please visit our website.
If you have any questions or comments, or even a suggestion or two on what video topic I should cover, please feel free to leave them in the comments section below.
Reg Sorrell
After working in TV both in Australia and in the UK, Reg decided to use his production and story telling skills for good. Helping all business owners get to grips with how video can boost business in all areas has become and exciting part of his life. Outside of work Reg is a keen basketball player and coach and enjoys riding his bike along the river.
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With having so much content do you ever run into any problems of plagorism or copyright infringement? My blog has a lot of exclusive content, I've either authored myself or outsourced, but it looks like a lot of it is popping it up all over the internet without my permission. Do you know any methods to help prevent content from being stolen? I'd definitely appreciate it.
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Reg Sorrell
Hi Renate, Unfortunately, I have no knowledge in this area whatsoever, so I would definitely consider chatting to a IP Lawyer. I believe there is software out there that helps, but I don't know enough to comment. Sorry I couldn't be any more help, good luck.
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