The Demand for Watchable/Consumable Media
It’s no secret videos are perhaps THE most influential and compelling medium — today’s most popular choice for content consumption. Nothing seems to capture people’s attention and hold their interest as much as good quality video content.
Video is the easiest and most popular type of content to consume because: a) it’s so much easier to watch a video about a technique than to read about it, and b) it’s the most powerful and versatile medium to communicate a message and engage an audience — second only to live communication.
In 2020, 96% of consumers increased their online video consumption, and 9 out of 10 viewers reported they wanted to see more videos from brands and businesses. In fact, as of 2021, an average person is predicted to spend 100 minutes per day watching online videos. Furthermore, by 2022, video viewing will account for 82% of all internet traffic.
What Are People Watching?
Sixty-eight percent of consumers prefer watching videos to learn about new products or services, compared to articles, infographics, ebooks, and presentations, and 82% would rather watch live videos than read social media posts.
This makes video content an unparalleled part of any businesses’ marketing strategy. Hence, we’ve put together this video marketing guide to pave the way for you to use videos as a part of your marketing toolkit this year.
Defining Your Video’s Purpose
Who’s your target audience? What buyer persona are you targeting?
What’s the goal? Is it to increase brand awareness? Sell more? Launch a new product or service? Ultimately, what do you want your audience to do after watching the video?
If you want to attract customers to your brand, you’ll want to create an awareness stage video. If your goal is to engage your audience, you’ll want a consideration stage video. If you want to nurture your prospects getting ready to make a purchase, you’ll want to produce a decision stage video. You can also create a video to delight customers who have already purchased from you.
Is your video content effectively convincing your audience to move towards the goal you want?
Video Styles to Reach Your Target Audience
Different types of videos meet different audience needs. You need specific kinds of videos to cover your brand’s specific needs. Some videos are aimed to promote. Some are looking to increase brand awareness or establish trust.
The key is to know your audience and create videos that are specifically tailored for them. You want your videos to speak directly to your target audience. Now let’s take a look at some of the most popular kinds, so you can choose those that will meet your needs.
Informational — Educate Your Audience
Educational videos are an excellent way to make your audience aware of any problems your product or service can help solve. There’s so much more to educational videos than just selling: people love educational content!
Audiences love to learn new things. This makes educational videos highly shareable. It is why having video as a part of your marketing strategy works wonders in generating and building brand awareness.
How-to videos are similar to educational videos because they both aim to teach something or educate your audience about a particular topic. With how-to videos, you can teach your target audience how to use your product, and more specifically, how using your product can help solve their problems.
Entertainment — Amuse Your Audience
Videos that entertain are often funny and highly shareable. They can quickly transform a “company” into a “group of people just like me” and can be imperative in building trust and separating the true fans from the random visitors.
Videos that simply aim to amuse and entertain your audience might not be directly related to your products or services, however, to do their job, they do need to appeal to your target audience. They might include topics on current trends or particular niches related to your industry. They aim to keep people engaged, watching your video.
Promotional — Entice Your Audience
A promotional video or promo video is used for the express purpose of promoting a specific marketing initiative or product/service to customers and prospects. Promo videos are often similar in style and tone to a teaser video, where you grab your audience’s attention and draw them in to learn more.
A good promotional video seeks to bring the conversation to a more personal level without making the sales aspect so obvious. Any video you create is, in some sense, attempting to sell your brand to your target audience. However, that doesn’t mean it’s an overt sales pitch.
Examples of promo videos you can create include.
- Product videos
- Product launch videos
- Event videos
- Video ads
- FAQ videos
- Testimonial videos
Popular Platforms and How to Choose the Best for Your Videos
Where should you publish your videos?
- YouTube
- Twitch
- Snapchat
- TikTok
Live Stream Events
Unlike traditional videos, live videos enable direct communication with your audience. Live streaming effectively builds trust and demonstrates authenticity.
Common uses of live streaming include:
- Brand news and announcements
- Live interviews
- Webinars
- Live Q&A
- Product promotions and new releases
If you’re looking for a live streaming platform to promote your brand and connect with your audience, the golden rule is to choose a platform where you think most of your current and potential customers are hanging out. YouTube Live, Facebook Live, Instagram Live, and Twitch are excellent options, depending on your intended audience. However, with services like Restream.io, you can simultaneously multi-stream your live content to as many platforms as you’d like, thus maximizing your audience reach.
Edited Video Pieces
- An intuitive, easy-to-use interface
- Compatibility with all browser types and players (e.g., Flash and HTML5)
- Mobile device compatibility
- Analytics tools to measure the impact of your videos
- SEO tools to ensure videos are search-engine friendly
- The ability to embed your videos on external websites
Social Media Shorts
If you want to leverage the power of social media to grow your business, there are many social platforms out there to choose from. The best platforms are those that enable you to reach the most people spending little or no money. Platforms that provide the most organic reach include:
Mastering Video Editing Software
Video editing software isn’t just for full-time professional video editors. It’s also essential for anyone creating video for YouTube, Vimeo, or social media, to make their clips look polished and professional.
Many free and low-cost video editors come with straightforward features to create, but it may be a challenge to filter through the ones that bring the best benefits when trying to get the job done.
If you’re new to video editing, Adobe Premiere Elements is a low-cost, simple tool that works with both Macs and PCs, and comes with a 30-day free trial.
CyberLink PowerDirector 365’s intuitive interface and square, 1:1 aspect ratio are great for social media. Keep in mind, however, not all features are available for Mac users.
Apple Final Cut Pro X is one of the best video editors for professional Mac users. It’s comparable to Adobe Premiere Pro when it comes to feature-rich, professional-level video editing.
HitFilm Express is a free video editor to start but offers the option to add additional features at reasonable prices. Its customizable interface is compatible with Mac and Windows.
Branding and Promoting
Because video is so engaging, video marketing is one of the most effective ways to reach out to today’s consumers. However, many more people are taking advantage of video, making it difficult to compete and stand out from the crowd. But there are things you can practice to help you get the most visual bang for your buck — most viewership and engagement.
Share and Cross-Promote Your Video Content
- Optimize your video thumbnail with a smile
- Add share buttons to your video player
- Ask people to share your video
- Create an email campaign to promote your video
- Promote your video on social media
- Pin your video to the top of your Twitter feed
- Share your video in online communities
Now that you know what it takes to create a video, you’re ready to dive into your first video project. However, not everyone has the in-house expertise, resources, or time to produce video content. Our Jungle Communications video production specialists can take your objectives through conceptualization, storyboarding, the phases of production, implementation, and performance tracking.
Contact us to help you fuel your business with videos that captivate audiences, inspire action, and drive results.
