Video is the perfect medium for attracting the attention of busy audiences. It enables storytelling in a short but unforgettable way that viewers can enjoy. It is the perfect tool for quickly getting your point across to your audience and expressing yourself in ways that you can’t do with text.
According to Cisco video will account for 69% of all consumer internet traffic by 2017. Video-on-demand traffic alone will have almost trebled. For SMEs and startups, video can be cost effective and when it comes to potential reach, video is incomparable.
YouTube receives more than one billion unique visitors every month. That is more than any other channel except Facebook. Online live video will continue to grow in the years to come, especially as popular apps like Periscope and Meerkat add new features. Only Periscope grew to 1,85 million daily active viewers in 2015. In December of the same year, Facebook made its live-streaming feature available to all users.
Here are 6 key recommendations you really need to take into consideration:
1. Clarify the objective of your communication
Before starting video production, you should find out what is the best message you want to bring over. Stakeholder testimonials, success stories or product and service presentations are always excellent ways to promote your professional activities.
2. Use short and professional video
Keep your videos as short and professional as possible. On your landing page, you should have a video between 30 and 120 seconds that sums up the what, why and who of your company.
3. Make sure your video is found
Consider uploading your video to as many video sharing websites as possible, including YouTube, Vimeo and Dailymotion. Do not forget to upload it also on your corporate website and share it regularly on your social media.
4. Use clear titles and encourage sharing
Make sure that your video has interesting titles and clear descriptions. Encourage viewers to share and embed your video so they spread it for you.
5. Listen to your stakeholders
Ask customers what they would find useful. Think about branding values and don't put your boss on screen if he or she is not the best presenter.
6. Use targeted and real testimonials
Nothing is more captivating than seeing and hearing your stakeholders and clients recommend your services or products, or explaining how your organisation helped them to achieve their business goals. What you need are real testimonials. General terms as “best”, “easy” or “innovative” don't tell people a lot about your products or services. Show results instead.
Video is easy to measure. YouTube engagement metrics, like views, shares, likes, comments and watch time, provide a basic barometer showing how an audience responds to videos. These metrics are important because they help to adjust strategies as well as the content of the video.
However, those metrics only are not enough for analysing how well a video performed online. A number of companies like Wistia and Brightcove provide in-depth analytics into video performance. This information makes it possible for organisations to determine what can be edited, modified or maintained for videos playing in platforms like YouTube, Vimeo or Dailymotion, and social media channels, in order to generate more leads for their business.
Video can be used for disseminating corporate and public information as advertising as well. One great example of a viral marketing campaign on YouTube is the so-called Push to Add Drama stunt of TNT in Belgium in 2012. The video has over 53 million views and was so successful that a sequel was made to launch TNT in the Netherlands.
One of the biggest advantages of video marketing is that it helps you in reaching out thousands of people in a short time, without spending too much of your communication budget. Making a corporate or an explainer video is not so expensive, but if you would like a cheaper solution you should try animated video. It is even attractive and effective as classic video. Research has shown that people connect emotionally with animated illustrations because they bring us back to our childhood.
A key driving force behind the growth of the popularity of animated video is the long-term sustainability of this form of media. Typically animated videos are as brief as possible, ranging from 30 seconds to two minutes. The aim is to bring the key message to the viewers without losing their interest. In addition, animated video has an unlimited potential. Changes can be easily made as your professional activities develop or expand. Unlike traditional videos, animated videos do not require rehiring a camera crew or traveling to a filming location.
Video is a long term investment for an organisation’s brand image. If you want people to emotionally connect with your content, video or animated video is an investment worth making.
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