Video marketing has become a mainstream strategy for businesses in almost every industry. Consumers often prefer videos, as they retain more information (95% retention) from a video as opposed to reading something in text format (10% retention). Marketers have also reported that using videos in their marketing strategy has generated more leads and helped customers better understand the offered products and services.

These are only a few examples of the benefits of developing a great video marketing strategy. Creating video content can also humanize your brand, help with visibility, allow you to break into a different market, and more. Keep reading to get a deeper look into the modern-day video marketing strategy and learn how to get the most out of it.

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Tell Stories Instead of Focusing on Sales

Video content focused solely on making sales will likely be disregarded as an advertisement and ignored by many consumers. If you want your video to create engagement, you need to give your viewers value. 

Many of the most successful brands tell a story in their marketing videos. Think of Nike, for example. Their video marketing strategy often relies on sharing the stories of particular athletes and how their journey ties in with company values; they also lean heavily into inspirational and aspirational themes. 

This strategy works so well because the videos elicit emotions from the audience and help them feel connected with Nike’s message and brand identity. Next time you create a video promoting your brand or explaining one of your products or services, consider adding a relatable, entertaining, or inspirational narrative.

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SEO Is for Video Content Too

With more than 3.5 billion Google searches per day and over 1 billion hours of video watched per day on YouTube, there’s a lot of competition out there when it comes to visibility. This is where SEO comes in. 

Similar to blog posts, social media posts, websites, etc., you can optimize your video content for search engines.

Here are a few ways to increase your position on search engine results pages: 

• Use SEO keywords in your title. Video titles are similar to the H1 of an article, which means using keywords is vital to rank well on YouTube and Google.
• Write a description for your video and include semantically related keywords.
• Make an exciting thumbnail that entices people to click on your video.
• Consider adding a transcript. Transcripts make your video more accessible to a broader range of people, and it also means there is more text on the webpage for search engines to utilize.

Along with using SEO to increase a video’s rankings, you shouldn’t forget to link them in emails, landing pages, and blog posts. The more places people can find your video, the more likely they are to watch it.

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Add a Call to Action

A call to action (CTA) doesn’t always have to lead directly to a sale. It can encourage the viewer to do any number of things, including:

• Follow your social media page
• Subscribe to your email newsletter
• Share with friends or followers
• Comment on the video
• Check out other videos or pieces of content
  

There are several different ways to add a CTA to a video, including saying what you want the customer to do, adding text cues to “follow”, “share”, or “buy” at regular intervals, and utilizing the buttons and text boxes surrounding your video.

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Make the First Few Seconds Count

There’s no point in creating an Oscar-worthy marketing video if you can’t get people to stick around long enough to watch it. First impressions matter and that goes for videos as well. 

The start of your video should have a hook that grabs attention and encourages viewers to watch the whole thing through. For example, some brands use humor; some share compelling stories; some ask a question or bring up a relevant problem to the target audience.

Your video should offer value beyond trying to make a sale or promote your brand. A video can be entertaining, inspirational, educational, relatable, etc., while also being a great representation of your brand or a sales pitch for a product. Pillow Cube’s recent video explaining their product is an excellent example of how to grab (and keep) attention in the first 10 seconds.

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The Bottom Line...

Video marketing is a must for any business that wishes to grow its reach and keep up with the evolving modern-day marketing landscape. Videos are a fantastic medium for promoting your brand and your products, and they also allow you to provide value and create a connection with potential customers.

Follow the tips above to get the most out of your video marketing strategy, and remember to post your videos in several different locations for optimal visibility.