In Part 1 of our series, we discussed the benefit of incorporating videos into your marketing strategy. People enjoy consuming video media online. It's easier than reading, more engaging than audio-only content, and is a great way to mix entertainment and education. Finding the right balance between entertainment and promotion is critical when it comes to using video marketing to bring in new customers and to strengthen your customer base. Your videos shouldn’t be aggressively promotional because that's not the content most people desire and watch.
What kind of videos are best for video marketing?
Many potential customers online are not specifically looking to add your products or services into their lives. Instead, whether they're typing a query into Google, browsing web pages, or looking at YouTube videos, those customers are likely looking for a solution to their problem. Your goal as a small business should be to answer their questions and solve their problems first, before trying to sell your product or service.
- Entertainment videos: Some people are purely looking for entertainment and they already have interest in your industry. If you run a site for camping equipment, show interesting, supplemental ways a product can be used or have someone use it on an exciting trail. Potential customers might not buy your product immediately, but, if you’ve successfully sparked their interest, they're more likely to return to your channel and keep watching until you show something they do want.
- Educational videos: A lot of queries, whether on Google or YouTube, start with "How to..." or are related to a problem your potential customer is in the middle of right now. Have specific videos that address most of the common problems in your market quickly and clearly. If you sell water heaters, have videos that can show someone in a panic how to turn off their water immediately. If you sell a service, give a couple tips in your industry without any promotional gimmicks or lead-ins to how you'll give them even more tips so long as they hire you. The purpose of educational videos is to solve a potential customer's immediate problem now and to gain their trust by establishing your credibility as an expert.
Advertising continues to evolve. Not only are traditional commercials themselves becoming less-and-less effective, the Internet is full of videos to watch. The best way to hook potential customers is to stop them for a second. You can do that by entertaining them or by proving direct value without getting in their way. You can then slowly offer more and more value leading to a sale.
In two weeks, we’ll focus our video marketing series on utilizing videos on social media platforms. Have questions on the best type of video for your small business? Contact us to learn more about video marketing strategies and our video production services.