Content marketing is, without a doubt, a great way to expose your brand to the world and grow your business. You could think of it as a virtual open house for your business. But what is content marketing? The answer is a long list of products, including social media, email marketing, and blogging. But hands down the most effective form of content marketing is video marketing.
We can all become budding video producers, and you can use the platform of your choice – social media or specialist software – the choice is yours.
Why Include Video in Your Marketing Strategy
Video for business is by far the most effective form of content out there. It offers everyone something: people who like great visuals to people who want to consume content whilst running on a treadmill.
It’s predicted that video will, in the coming years, make up 80% of all consumer traffic on the Internet. On Facebook alone, 500 million people watch videos on a daily basis and videos on social media are shared over ten times more than texts or images – combined. The clear data points toward the fact that people love watching videos online.
Source: Wyzowl
So, if your brand is not putting the videos out there that people like, then you’re likely to suffer and not get the digital marketing results you want or need.
Keep your business healthy and put your video content on it. One of the reasons why video is so much better is that it promotes engagement with the audience. This, in turn, means that you can direct all those people engaging with you toward your website. Searching for the right domain for your business is key – many businesses are choosing to buy .io domain names, touted to be the top domain choice of the tech industry.
And what is the result of more people visiting your website? Higher customer conversion rates and increased traffic data.
Video content is unique. Creating colorful, interesting video content will better reflect your brand’s personality, and it will be more likely to be viewed, enjoyed, and shared.
Here we have a few top tips on how to leverage video marketing for brand visibility in the digital era. Let’s get down to it.
To Educate and Inform
We can use video to exchange information with our customers. Today, time is an extremely valuable commodity, so video helps in this hectic life. Turning your best video conference for small businesses, for example, into a video will allow them to consume it at their convenience.
Also, making straightforward educational videos for customers will help them understand what your business is about.
For Highlighting a Client’s Story in a Testimonial Video
Your customers are by far your best advocates. Video testimonials – using video calling software if made virtually – are a powerful sales tool because one customer can influence another, creating a knock-on effect. They may recommend you to their friends, colleagues, and potential customers.
Inquiring about a client’s experience working with your company is a great approach to reassure prospects about your capabilities and services while also moving them around the sales flywheel.
Share News About Your Brand
It can appear inauthentic and cold if you choose to pre-record your corporate updates. Announcements and other news-related messages are a great way to stay in touch with your customers, and live streaming, sales kickoff live stream, for example, is a great way to accomplish it.
By live broadcasting brand news, you’re demonstrating to your audience that you care about them enough to address them personally. You can also accomplish the same effect by live streaming these types of announcements to your employees.
Influencer Live Streams
Influencer marketing allows you to reach a broader and more diversified audience; therefore, using influencers in live streaming is becoming increasingly common. Plus, because influencers are likely to be comfortable speaking to an audience on video, it spares you or your team potential stage fright.
You might even be able to save money by hiring an influencer to host the live stream using his or her own equipment.
Launch a Vlog Series
Vlogging is a cost-effective, innovative method to present your content marketing program in a more visual and engaging manner.
A vlog is a brief, micro-production video in which a subject matter expert speaks directly to the camera while talking about a certain topic. Tutorials or “how-to” videos, behind-the-scenes peeks at a project or process, product demos, explainer videos, tips and tricks, and interviews are just some of the possibilities for vlogs.
The videos can be shared on social media and then rehashed and reused in one of your company’s blogs.
Use Video as an Introduction to Weightier Content
A brief video can help activate your social media platforms and generate traffic to topics that would otherwise go unnoticed. You can use video as a way to make reports, studies, and even blogs more accessible.
Think about this as an upside-down funnel, with social media’s broad reach attracting the intended audience to more substantial material while raising general awareness at the same time.
Distribute Your Videos Creatively
Pinterest, for example, didn’t use to be a “standard” video-sharing site, but for some brands, it’s a great place to upload videos due to the demographic-specific niche of the content. Not many marketers think of Pinterest as a place to upload video content, but it’s gaining traction as a solid video-hosting platform.
Show Your Expertise in a Webinar
Live webinars allow your customers to engage and participate with your content in a more extended format. You can show off your knowledge on a certain issue, take questions from a live audience, and share your thoughts on industry trends.
Even if a potential user is unable to attend the live webinar, by learning how to set up a video conference, you can record the session and make it accessible for consumers to view at their leisure following the broadcast.
This is a fantastic addition to your content marketing plan and a key component in establishing yourself as an industry thought leader.
Host Live Q&A Sessions
Live Q&A sessions, like webinars, allow for ongoing communication with your audience. This allows your audience to understand exactly what they want from your company while also giving them the impression that you care about making them feel heard. Use the best screen-sharing software for the best viewer experience.
Furthermore, live Q&As appear to be the simplest and fastest approach to inform on what your brand is all about. Consider asking a specific member of your team, such as the Product Developer to answer questions if you believe the queries will be product-specific. Alternatively, you can always enlist the help of a public relations, marketing, or social media manager for the Q&A.
The ability to provide a face to the brand will be appreciated by your audience.
Promote Product Releases
A few prominent firms, such as Nike and Samsung, make use of releases to promote new products. This can give your product releases a sense of authenticity and make people trust it because it’s happening in real-time. Additionally, viewing a live release of a product is exciting and generates anticipation for the release. Just make sure you organize your release well in advance – using workflow software can help.
You can even record your streams and then repurpose them on product landing pages.
Incorporate Visual Branded Imagery
Instant brand recognition. You know what it is. Just think about what goes through your head the moment you see that apple with a bite taken out of it.
Using your unique brand imagery, you can utilize video marketing to boost both visual awareness of your brand and to let people know when a terrific video is coming from a trusted brand.
Ways to do this are either starting your marketing video by saying either “Apple presents” or by inserting the recognized logo in the corner of the content throughout. You should always include a call to action (CTA) at the end of the video to encourage people to visit your website. Make sure you do this subtly – get it noticed but don’t detract from the film.
Animate an Infographic
Making an infographic come to life through animation is one innovative approach to using video material. Infographics make how-tos and instructional pieces simple to understand. And the content resonates even more when presented in a video.
Keep It Simple and Brief
Because most people’s attention spans are limited, start your video with the most important information. Make it genuine. Give a tour of your offices or place of work to give your customers an insight into your company. Or you might want to introduce your employees or a new product.
You can either narrate your video personally or use a professional voiceover to guide viewers through it.
Make It Worth Watching
This is a crucial point that’s frequently missed. You’re creating promotional content for your brand, but that doesn’t mean it has to be boring, such as content that plays in the corner of a dentist’s surgery.
Truly branded videos will be both entertaining and instructive – your mission is to provide the viewers with value.
Your goal is for the viewer to finish the video and love your brand – even if they’ve never heard of the product before.
Make it memorable, and make a connection.
Conclusion
Video will be great for your business, whatever your business goals. But the most important piece of advice is to have fun with your videos. If you’re having fun, your customers and potential customers will be too.
And why not invite them along. Your customers are your biggest asset. They know how great your business is. So let them tell everyone about it – in a video!
| About the Author:Grace Lau – Director of Growth Content, DialpadGrace Lau is the Director of Growth Content at Dialpad, an AI-powered cloud communication platform with CTI or computer telephony integration for better and easier team collaboration. She has over 10 years of experience in content writing and strategy. Currently, she is responsible for leading branded and editorial content strategies and partnering with SEO and Ops teams to build and nurture content. Here is her LinkedIn. |