You have probably noticed that there are a lot more videos online –  either on businesses’ websites or on social media. Wherever you go, you’re likely to see a marketing video. Video isn’t a new idea, however, the importance of it has changed. In 2017, 78% of marketers believed video was an important part of their marketing strategy. In 2020, this has now risen to 92%. Why do they believe it to be so important? According to 88% of marketers, video marketing has provided them with positive ROI.

If you are yet to begin video marketing, you are likely falling behind your competitors. Although it’s never too late to start, it’s important that you create an effective marketing video. Creating a poorly executed and unengaging video could do more bad than good for your business. As smartphones become more advanced, it has now become easier for marketers to create high-quality, 4K video. If you are looking to add more video to your marketing strategy, continue reading to find out how you can create an effective marketing video.

Planning

Tell a story and don’t sell

The internet is full of ads which are annoying and unengaging for customers. Just as you do when writing a blog, you should focus on the value you are offering. Video offers a great opportunity for marketers to tell a compelling story around the brand to make it easier for customers to understand your company’s offering and what you can do for them.

You’re not going to be able to tell a great story without planning. Are you going to tell the story in one video or spread it across a series of short videos? Before starting, ensure you know the goals and objectives that you are hoping to achieve with the video. Then, create a script and/or storyboard that will explain what the video will be about. This should be shared with everyone involved in the video so they understand what the video is about and can also offer any feedback. You can record the whole series as one video and then use a simple editing tool to cut the video down into shorter clips. If you are creating one video or a series of shorter videos, you should always add a CTA at the end of every video. If you leave your CTA until the last video of the series, you may have lost potential customers who watched some of the series but not the last. Make sure they have the opportunity to take action when you have their attention.

Get straight to the point

On average, videos lose 20% of their audience within the first 10 seconds. This means you need to grab your customers’ attention as soon as the video starts. Give them a reason to stay and watch the rest of the video. Will they learn something new? Will it make them laugh? Or will it inspire them to act?  You could offer teasers about what will be coming up or ask questions which they will then find the answers to, later in the video. The first 10 seconds are the most important, so you need to make sure that the customer is confident that it will be worth their time to watch the whole video.

Setting up

You know what your video is going to include, now you need to create it. You don’t have to be an expert and have a full production crew and equipment to create an effective marketing video. However, there are some basic best practices you should follow when setting up.

1. The video will represent your business so you want it to look professional. Make sure you film in a well-lit room with not much background noise or echo. If you work in an open plan office, try moving to a meeting room. If there is poor lighting, look at moving lamps around. If you are filming people in an office or outside as part of your video, look at buying a microphone so that they can be clearly heard.
2. You don’t need to buy the best, top-of-the range video camera for your marketing video. Videos shot on a lower priced camera still look great, however, you should look at getting one with a microphone port to improve the sound quality. If you are very tight on budget, newer smartphones can now shoot in 4K and can shoot a great video.
3. Make sure that your camera is steady when you are filming. The last thing you want is a great video to be ruined because the picture shakes throughout. You don’t have to splash the budget to get a tripod or you can use objects from your office to create your own as long as it keeps the camera steady.

Editing

Once you’ve created your marketing video, it needs to be edited and exported so it can be uploaded and shared with the world. There are a number of video editing tools out there and plenty of affordable options as well. If you own a Mac, iMovie is included for free and is a great and simple video editing tool. There are also a number of tutorials on YouTube on editing videos if you choose to use more expensive and complex tools, such as Adobe’s Suite.

When you are happy with your video, you should look at adding subtitles. Videos, especially on social media are more likely to be played with the sound off than with the sound on. LinkedIn found that 79% of videos watched on their platform were with the sound off. This is even higher on Facebook with 85% of videos watched on their platform were without sound. With that in mind, you need to ensure that customers are able to follow your video if they have their sound off. A way of doing this is by adding subtitles. Having subtitles allows your customers to read along with the video and understand what is happening even though there is no sound.

Publishing

When you are happy with your video, it’s time to export. Make sure to export your video in HD to ensure you have the best quality. The time it takes to export can vary depending on how long the video is and how powerful your computer is.

Optimise for SEO

So you’ve created an effective marketing video. Now you need customers to watch it. Like other pieces of content on your website, you need to optimise your videos for search engines. Choose your main keyword you want your video to rank for and include this in your video title. It’s important to keep the title under 66 characters so that it isn’t shortened in the search results. When uploading your video to YouTube, you have the  ability to add a  description of the video. Not only is this a great opportunity to entice people to watch your video by telling them what it is about but, adding your main keyword in there will also help you appear in the search results.

Entice customers to watch

When you publish your video on social media channels like YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn there is a chance to grab customers’ attention before the video even starts by posting a thumbnail. You should take time choosing your thumbnail. They are a great way to show customers what the video will be about and to encourage them to watch the video. Make sure you pick a high-quality frame from your video and you can even add the title of your video to give customers an idea of what the video is about.

Need support to create an effective marketing video?

By following the steps set out, you can create an effective marketing video yourself and be a part of the 88% of marketers seeing a positive ROI from video marketing. If you would like to discuss a video marketing strategy or would like support in creating an effective marketing video, get in touch with our experts today.