Video strategy essentials: The why, how and what VIDEO MARKETING Video is the current darling of online marketing and Using video is not a new branding. Brands are concept, as marketers are already familiar with TV adverts. However, the growth in online following in the wake of video presents more possibilities and different challenges for the likes of UNILAD and marketers. For example, by February this year, BuzzFeed Video’s YouTube channel Buzzfeed to produce exciting had racked up more than 9.1 billion views and 11.8 million videos. It makes sense, as subscribers. Success like this can be incredibly video is 70% more likely to intimidating to newcomers. If you are planning to integrate video into your marketing arsenal, it’s convert than other types important to have a strategy in place or it could all end up a of content. costly waste of time. We’ll go through the major areas you need to cover in your video marketing strategy to ensure that your content is a hit with your audiences. Video marketing strategy essentials 2 Why you need a video marketing strategy A picture is worth a thousand words, but how much is video worth? Video arouses much more powerful emotions than words or static imagery, shown by the popularity 80% 65% and profitability of the film industry. Video brings your Having a product video of viewers watch more customers closer to your business by telling them a story on your landing page can than ¾ of a video that they will remember. increase conversions by a [Invodo] Videos also increase the time spent on your website and staggering 80%. will improve your ranking in the Google search results page (SERPs). Any company can benefit from a good video marketing strategy, but whether you should allocate some of your limited budget to video is up to the individual company. First, determine what you’re trying to accomplish. Always 70% 82% have a goal in mind when undertaking any new enterprise for of marketers say video of B2B marketers your business. Don’t jump on the bandwagon just because is the best converting reported success with everyone else is doing it. content medium video marketing [Vidyard] [Vidyard] Ask yourself if your business will actually benefit from using video marketing. Do you have the type of business with complex products that can be much more easily explained in video? Is your CEO or founder particularly charismatic and suited for video? Will your team be motivated to produce video on a regular basis? 46% 96% of video is consumed Email campaigns that If your marketing strategy has plateaued and you want to on mobile include video improve boost results, or you simply want to go digital, then video [Tubular Insights] click-through rates by 96% marketing is for you. [GetResponse] Video marketing strategy essentials 3 How to get started Come up with a one-line video marketing videos might be slightly different. Knowing This can consist of design elements like manifesto to guide your efforts. With any your target audience will help to guide colours and fonts, but also include the content strategy, you need to know why the type of topics you will include in your values and propositions that lie behind your you’re creating your content in order to strategy and make them more effective. company’s brand. maximise your chances of success. Following on from defining your target It’s always good practice to benchmark your This manifesto could be along the lines of: audience, make an outline plan of the types efforts against other companies you admire. Our videos will engage, inform and inspire of topics you’re likely to cover, which you can This can give you inspiration, show you our audiences about the charity work of our refer back to at a later date. This gives your what’s out there, and help you decide how organisation. video content some potential shape and you’re going to be different. informs you of the resources you will most Establish who’s responsible for producing Our videos will make it much simpler for our likely need. customers to clean their homes and they will your video content. If you don’t have promote our company brand. For example, if you plan to make thought internal expertise, or you’re feeling nervous leadership videos featuring members of your about undertaking the work in-house, you’ll Our company’s videos are aimed at teaching staff, you’ll need their buy-in. probably want to opt for an external video our audiences the ethos of our company marketing company. and how to use our products. Decide how your video content fits in with your overall company branding. You should But, if you’re feeling particularly brave, you Identify your target audience in order to ideally have company brand guidelines or could always do it alone and produce the focus your video marketing efforts. This will another resource that explicitly explains the videos yourself. Depending on the resources be related to your audience or customer key elements to be used in your marketing. at your disposal. personas, although the audience for your Video marketing strategy essentials 4 Is it better to outsource to Defining an editorial process a specialist company? for your video content Empowering your staff to create their own videos is a great There needs to be a clear editing process for all your video way to produce regular content for your video marketing content. Without it, your content will not be as effective and strategy. But there are some videos that must always be mistakes will slip through the cracks. shot by a professional. On the other hand, death by committee is one of the Before you take the plunge and invest in hiring an most common causes of failure in a project. While more independent videographer to work on a part-time basis, you stakeholders can be involved in the creation of the video at an could consider outsourcing your video production to an earlier stage, your nominated staff member for video should agency. In the long-term, if your videos prove a hit and you be able to make the final call. think you’d benefit from in-house resources, you can start The video editor or project manager can come up with a recruiting for a full-time videographer. constructive format for feedback. This person should be the A video marketing agency will be able to lend their expertise funnel through which all feedback can be collated, so your and guide you through this new marketing process so you sensitive, creative videographer is not overwhelmed with feel confident going it alone. Get your team used to the well-meaning comments. process of creating videos before you bring in a new hire. If you’re producing a lot of video, you can set up a monthly Determine if you have the time, resources and space to feedback session where selected team members can gather produce videos in-house, or whether you need to outsource. to give ideas and approve your videos. Hiring a new staff member is more of an investment than outsourcing to an agency, so there should be a more compelling business case. Video marketing strategy essentials 5 What equipment Equipment list: • Coloured paper • Video camera is needed and how • Tripod • Light kit much experience • Sound dampener • Light blocker will I need? • Microphone Anyone can get involved with making a video and you should empower your staff to do so. But there will still be some videos that require the highest standards of professionalism, such as any corporate videos or product demos. As we mentioned before, you may need to invest in a professional videographer (either freelancer or internal hire) or hire an external video marketing agency. If you decide to produce your videos in-house, be sure to establish suitable areas for shooting, that will be quiet enough and also afford a plain background. This will ideally be a conference room that you can leave set up to shoot your videos when inspiration strikes. If you’re shooting your videos yourself, you’ll also need to invest a few hundred pounds in the right equipment. Video marketing strategy essentials 6 When you’ve selected your room, use a roll of coloured paper to cover the background wall instead of just off-white. You’ll need that all-important video camera, although some phone cameras are certainly good enough, such as the iPhone 7. You’ll definitely need a tripod to steady your shot, whether you use a camera or a phone. Block out all natural light coming in from windows by drawing the blinds if you can, or using black paper. The light kit is for maintaining a consistent light for your subjects instead of relying on natural light, which changes, or the harsh overhead glare of the office lights. You just need three lights to achieve the optimum brightness levels and coverage. There’s nothing worse when getting to your final video than finding out the sound isn’t quite good enough, because you can’t fix this up during Who’s going to present the editing process. Buy a professional microphone to capture the voices of your subjects. your videos? Sound dampeners will ensure that no background echo invades your Videos involving people get far more video, but hanging up blankets to cover the walls will achieve the same engagement than ones without. Your videos effect. Remember to turn off the AC in the room when you shoot.