It’s time for your 5th installment on ‘Video Marketing Revealed’ series. So now that you are aware of the 4 steps to create online video let’s get into the details of distribution & promotion.
What To Tackle First?
Just like any other form of marketing, you need a strategy that will carry through your video marketing campaign. The strategy will be a step-by-step guide that covers what exactly you want to accomplish and how you plan to accomplish it.
This strategy may include an itemized list of actions you need to cover in an assigned period of time; for instance content, optimization, etc. Learn more about this as you begin to implement the specifics of the campaign.
But how do you create the strategy? Online video is usually one element of a broader marketing plan and there are several factors to be considered here as you work out a plan to grow your business. Start with these three factors as they will help you realize what you want to accomplish and how you need to do that.
1. The Purpose Of The Video
This is obviously the most important factor when trying to create effective video in your marketing strategy. Write down what you want to happen after your prospects watch the video. Perhaps you're trying to sell products, gain more followers or get subscribers: whatever the goal, knowing what the objective is will help you carve out a plan that revolves around it. If you have multiple objectives, write them all down and align the video concept so that it targets specific goals.
Start by determining the following: Specific emotions you're trying to invoke, and why. You could start with greed, fear and excitement; those work pretty well.
Target buyer personas: ensure the video is crafted to appeal to them the action you want the prospects to take after they watch the video
You need a focused, actionable video and these considerations will help get you one.
2. Creating The Videos
It's also an important functional question. Do you plan to make the videos yourself or are you more comfortable hiring an experienced marketer to do it for you? In some instances informal, personal videos tend to yield a better effect when compared to the typical over-produced formal ads that float around companies. This could be a decent option for a small business owner but whatever you decide, make sure the video is useful to the viewers.
3. Measuring The Results
You need to know how your audience responds to the video because that's how you'll find out if you're getting any closer to your goals. For instance if your plan was to increase your subscription list, you might need to follow closely the number of new subscribers and find out if you're getting any traction with the video.
One useful metric to focus on is your average prospect's attention span. You might find that most of your leads drop off only a few seconds into the video, and that would suggest that your intros are too long. Find a way to trim shorten the introduction and if possible, get right into the meat of the content.
When you start with these three factors you will have covered the basics and you will effectively utilize the marketing power of video, for the benefit of your brand. But before you close the book on this topic, lets find out how you can properly optimize the videos for a stronger effect.
Optimizing the video
There's a common misconception about video, where new entrepreneurs assume they can get customers by the thousands by simply uploading a bunch of amature promotional videos on YouTube and sitting back to count the money. Well indeed the notion of getting global exposure for your brand does sound exciting, but remember there is some work to be done so before you sit glued to your computer screen hands clasped in glee, find out what else affects the performance of your videos.
The same way you optimize a landing page and build large campaigns around a written piece to ensure it works, you need a similar approach with video. Basically, you can't bank on every single video going viral, but with a little inspiration you can find a way to add some edge, customize it so it drives business.
Step #1. Build CTA (Call To Action)
Have you ever watched a product video to the end and find it fades to black? It's a missed opportunity, which is surprising because most marketers know how important a good call to action is: try not to make the same mistake.
When you create your next video, include CTAs as a way to direct the viewer to your specific goal. Here's how to do this:
The video host could prompt the viewer directly.
Use a bunch of cleverly designed YouTube annotations to point to specific resources.
Include a link at the very end and use it to direct the viewers to your landing page.
In addition to making the CTAs direct, ensure they also provide several options for your audience to reach you. A single demo might not hit your conversion target -not all customers are ready to make a decision - so include at least a couple of CTAs, one targeting viewers who are prepared to take action, and another CTA leading the indecisive prospects to more of your persuasive content.
Step #2. Your Lead-Capture Method
It's a feature that's moved up from the world of written content straight into video. After creating the video, consider adding an email gate and have these go wherever the content is shared, starting with all major social networks, in order to ensure leads have a way to contact you, just in case they are ready to give out their personal information.
Several online video platforms will let you build a contact form to be included in the video; so basically you gather more information from the viewers.
Some best practices to consider for your video lead-capture:
Email gates work best on video targeting specific viewers: as is the case with long, highly detailed product demos. Email gates require some buy-in from the viewers so you have to provide enough quality, un-gated content for the viewer before you ask them for personal details
Try to minimize the field as you set up a contact form in your videos. You don't want your prospects fatigued by the time they complete the sign up process.
The next time you create a marketing video, start by implementing these steps. They are the foundation of great, effective online video and they will help you streamline the process, making sure the video performs well in every part of the purchasing cycle.
That’s it for today’s installment of knowledge in ‘Video Marketing Revealed Series’. In the next blog I will share how to use video to drive inbound marketing efforts.
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Until then If you have any questions, just let me know. I help Small Business with Big Dreams to achieve their true potential & much awaited growth. If this is useful for you and you’d like some help to leverage the unmatched benefits of video marketing, or just need to put in place predictive client generating strategy using videos - just send me a message with the subject ‘VIDEO’ at mithun@mithunnarkar.com, and perhaps we can help you put together a strategy to achieve your dreams & targets as well.
Hope this has been helpful.
Talk to you soon.
Mithun Narkar
P.S. Don’t forget, I’m here to help, so if you have questions just ask!
The fastest way to reach me is here: "www.mithunnarkar.com"
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