As a marketer, there are a lot of areas you can improve on, including video marketing. Video marketing refers to a form of advertising using explainer videos, whiteboard videos or live-recorded videos etc.
But what can you do as a marketer to use your video to its full potential? Here are some guides that can help you even if you are just starting up. Let’s try and cover most of the things that can be easily overlooked.
Hence, I want to call them valuable video marketing guidelines. But take note that we can’t cover all of them of course.
22 Valuable Video Marketing Guidelines
1 – Know how long your video should take.
If you know how long your video will take, you will know what information can be best placed on the video. Plus it will give you an idea about the costs. And that’s important as a marketer.
2 – Make sure you have rich content.
To start off, make a video that makes sense with regard to your brand. Also, this part means you have to make sure that there are minimal to no errors like grammatical errors or speech errors. It reflects your reputation as a professional.
3 – Put yourself in your buyer’s shoes.
This technique will allow you to see through your viewer’s perspective. Is your video interesting enough when you watch it? Is it something that will capture the attention of your viewers? Or will they just pass by your video because you have other useful means to give out information?
4 – Check if the cost of how to make the video is worth it.
As a marketer, this is definitely one of the most valuable video marketing guidelines. So, you have to make sure that the costs of making whatever videos you plan to create are worth it.
Do you remember that there are lots of types of videos? Well, I can most certainly say that explainer videos are a lot cost-efficient compared to live-recorded videos.
5 – Put a call-to-action in the end.
This will help you a lot as a marketer. Because there is a high conversion rate for videos with a call-to-action in the end. Keep in mind that this call-to-action can come in different forms in your video.
A call-to-action can be a button that can be clicked or it can be the voice artist saying something like “visit our website for more” or “get started right now”. So, this is you encouraging the customer to take the next step and that’s a very good way to sell.
6 – Make sure you put your correct contact information.
Imagine if people see an incorrect phone number on the video and they call it. Consequently, the worst-case scenario is you will lose that potential customer indefinitely.
On a positive note, contact information like phone numbers and your physical address adds a level of authenticity to your brand. Also, it encourages your viewers to discuss matters over the phone. And you will have a higher chance of converting them if you can talk to them over the phone.
7 – Know how to reach the right people.
Although having a video will have a high chance to convert them into the “right” people. It is also good to know how to reach the right people. It will save you time a lot rather than have random viewers for your video.
Use tools like inbound sales tools or customer relations management tools so you will attract the right people. Remember the right people equal to a higher chance of a conversion.
8 – Strategically place your videos on sweet spots.
Sweet spots are like the landing page of your website. It can also be the top part of the page where you showcase your products. Customers will surely watch your videos if you place them where they can see them conveniently.
This will also make sure you use the video to its full potential. Of course, you don’t want a video that will only be watched once or twice a week.
9 – Set the mood of the video depending on who will watch it.
Your audience might be different depending on the situation. Some might prefer for the mood to be upbeat. Corporate people might prefer a much more professional mood for the video.
Some might prefer a combination of both upbeat and professional. But there are a lot of moods you can set for one video. Just remember to always ask the question that will help you a lot.
What mood should I set for this video? Although, it will be up to you if this video is your own website. Because then, sometimes this question will become less relevant. Since it’s your own website and your viewers will be universal. Just base it on your brand in this case.
10 – There is such a thing as information overload.
Don’t cram information into just one video. There are a lot of consequences for doing this. Like the voice artist will talk fast because he/she needs to make use of the time given.
Or the video will become longer because you need to put a lot of information. And just simply because that amount of information will bore people. Leave something for them to discover in the end. Putting a call-to-action, in the end, can help you with this too.
You can also put a link to different parts of your website or guide people there.
11 – Showcase your brand to the people diligently.
This has to do a lot with time. In my experience, people will lose interest fast. Although, it depends on the way you showcase your brand to the people. Some might take only 10 seconds and they will judge or decide if they want to watch more.
Meaning, it is up to you to make use of that short amount of time efficiently to capture their attention. Make them stay longer with that time. Give out all the important information and try to make it go “boom!” at first glance.
12 – Remember that you can create lots of videos.
As I said, don’t cram everything you want to say in one video. Depending on how big your company is, you can definitely create a series of videos for people to watch. Create one video to showcase one product.
People will appreciate that. Plus, it will allow you to put a lot of information in the video without overloading people with information.
13 – Create your video to help your customers decide for themselves.
Don’t force them to buy. There is a point where you will annoy them if you keep bombarding them on the video to buy your product or avail your service. You need to think that you are there to guide your customers into buying.
Make them want to watch the video and make them want to avail the service. They will feel good about themselves knowing that they made this decision on their own. Also, they will be comfortable and confident that this is what they really need and like at the same time.
And as a marketer, it will save you a lot of time and trouble. Plus, it will remove the possibility of annoyed or mad customers.
14 – Know the different file formats of a video.
This is technical stuff but as a marketer, you should at least know the different file formats. Because this knowledge will help you a lot regarding the uploading of your video. Youtube has a different file format than Vimeo.
Actually, all other video platforms almost differ when it comes to filing formats. It’s about their own exclusivity (Although almost everyone hates that). Imagine if you don’t know the different formats and you are about to upload a video to a platform that won’t accommodate it. You will waste time and a lot of money.
15 – Choose your voice artist wisely.
Your voice artist is the representative of your brand. He/She will be the speaker to the public and of course, you have to match the quality of the voice with the theme of your website.
For example, Morgan Freeman has a good voice but you don’t want him to narrate a comedy. You have to decide what voice will best suit your video and the message you want to portray to the people.
16 – Hire a professional to create or check the quality of your video.
In my opinion, it’s still best to hire professionals who have trained and studied to create videos for you. This way, you are sure that it is well refined. From the script to the story and the production itself.
Videos can reflect the quality of your brand. You don’t want to have a video with a lot of mistakes. That’s why professional animators and directors are there for you.
If you are still willing to create a video, it’s okay, but I would still recommend you to get a 2nd opinion from someone who has experience.
17 – Create metrics for your videos to meet.
Metrics are a driving factor for any aspect of your business. For videos, you can set a metric like the number of views for the video. This way, you can have a measurable way to know if people are really interested and if they really watch your video.
You can also set to measure the number of clicks you get for each video. These stats will allow you to make professional analyses and gain insight. You can change something on the video based on the metrics you get over time. This will save you time and effort.
18 – Know the different kinds of videos you can create for marketing.
There are animated explainer videos, animated whiteboard videos, and live-recorded videos. They are totally different in every way. It will be up to you to research the different features of a live-recorded video.
But for explainer videos, it is a cost-efficient way to create a call-to-action and encourage your customers for conversions. Also, all of these videos have their own pros and cons. But as a marketer, it is valuable information to have knowledge for all of them.
19 – Choose a colour that suits the theme of your brand.
I know it’s kind of unorthodox for me to put this in this article. But as a marketer, this is important too because the colour is part of your trademark. And I would recommend you apply this if you are going to market your own video.
So that it is neat, organized and in sync with your brand or company as a whole. This shows your customer that you are sensitive to every detail of how you work. Also, it will reflect your personality as a business-minded person.
20 – Don’t focus ONLY on advertising.
Although advertising is important, there are a lot of aspects to consider in an explainer video. You have to think of solutions to the problem of your customers. Help them with challenges and convince them that you are the right company to go to.
As a marketer, it’s very important to take note of this. Because some people hate to be advertised a lot. Some actually want to see some relevant content first before they get interested in a certain product.
21 – Upload your video to your social media accounts.
This goes for your Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and other accounts. Actually, you must always interlink your accounts. As a marketer, this will allow you to promote all of them at the same time.
And it will show your customers that you are active in all aspects of the internet and the modern world as it is. Plus, you may get additional customers on those different social channels. And that is always good.
22 – Prove that you can solve your customers’ challenges.
There are a lot of ways you can show this. But what’s good about showing it on a video is that you are explaining your brand conveniently already.
It doesn’t really exactly mean that you have proven to your customers that you can solve their challenges, but it will convince them that you are serious about getting the job done.
Give them a situational example where you can help them with regard to a certain problem. This can be perfectly shown on a video.