Video is an incredibly powerful content marketing strategy that has helped countless businesses achieve total domination over the market, such as GoPro, or just their 15 minutes of fame.
Video offers up to a 49% boost in growth compared to images or blogs.
And that is not the only reason why you should be going video-heavy on your marketing efforts.
It’s no secret that user engagement rates are vastly decreasing. According to Digital Information World, only 0.06% of your Facebook fans will interact with the post, down from 0.09% in 2019.
Influencer marketing follows a similar pattern. Instagram does vastly better this, with a 3.6% engagement rate, and surprisingly enough, YouTube falls behind with 1.63%.
Tiktok, however, is on a whole different level.
Perhaps it’s the fact that it allows users to constantly receive new content without breaks, or it’s the well-structured and highly personalised video selection, but it rocks a whooping 18% engagement rate with users below 15 thousand followers.
This is a clear sign that video works spectacularly well as a means of delivering content.
Why video content is so effective
Video works so well because it’s a visual stimulant.
Video online can only be compared to watching TV for hours and hours: there is no shame in watching a movie for two, three or even four hours (I am looking at you, Zack Snyder), but nobody could handle watching a static image for the same amount of time.
In the same way, when people watch videos, they are much more open to total immersion, and they will be much more likely to take in whatever information you have for them.
I could rant about human psychology, and why video works so well, but let me sum up why we love watching videos so much: it’s because as humans, we have a predisposition to watch things.
Seeing things makes us feel safe and gives us a sense of freedom.
We rely on our sight much more than any other sense, and, as businesses do, video content marketing aims to exploit that.
The art of captivation
Video doesn’t just “work well”. It evolved.
Animation, visual effects and crisper image quality have enhanced this form of marketing to give us liberty that no other medium can really give us.
Even small but significant techniques deployed in post-production allow the user to explore your products or services in a way that is detailed and beautiful.
With video content, you can see the water droplet dripping down an ice-cold glass of beer.
You can see the particles traversing through the air as they gently land on a model’s skin. You can see the teeth sinking into a delicious burger.
Stimulating, captivating and highly effective.
The truth is, that none of these effects exist in real life.
The mouth-watering food you see in commercials is not even edible – nor is it actual food, most of the time -, and a plethora of effects are used by food stylists to achieve that look.
Food is a great example of this, but really, video content marketing is full of examples where the video is made to captivate an audience.
Types of Video Content Marketing
Company Culture Videos
Company culture videos are those where you explain who you are as a company. Perhaps, it’s an opportunity to showcase your office, your employee or what you are aiming to do for the world.
Boring.
Seriously, no one cares about company culture videos unless they are done really well.
The rule of thumb here is don’t take yourself too seriously. For example, you can hire extravagant actors to pose as your employees or, like Basecamp, have your actual employees talk about coffee rather than what “work for you is like”.
Let me be clear: there are no rules in video content marketing, and creativity is often rewarded.
Here are a few suggestions, however:
– Show why they love you: “Why you love working for us” is done to death. As much as we pretend it does, nobody really loves to work for a specific company. It is what that company does for them that makes them love it.
Do your employees feel freedom, while working for you? Then have them record themselves doing their activities outside work hours. Reward your rock climbers, your karaoke singers, your MMA fighters and your birdwatchers just as you’d reward them for their work.
– Tell a story: It doesn’t need to be a real story. Just imagine your business as an eccentric force of nature. Mcdonald’s had McDonaldLand, and if they profited off videos of this weird clown for decades until his untimely disappearance in 2016, we have all seen Red Bull giving people wings…
So whatever it is you have in mind about your company’s history, go for it. As long as the story is enjoyable, there’s no shame in publishing it.
Q&A
Questions & Answers are an incredibly popular way to cultivate a following and engage with your audience. It’s fairly simple actually, people ask questions and you answer them.
These can be interesting facts about your company or your products, trivia questions or just fun questions you may not have thought of!
For a good example of a Q&A video, take this by ThoughtCast Media, which is the epitome of simplicity and effectiveness.
Q&A videos provide bite-sized chunks of information that keep your viewers engaged, meaning that you can pull off a 3-4 minute long video without them even noticing.
Furthermore, having their questions asked will allow your users to brand you as much more transparent, leading to a better knowledge of your product and your industry. These can also be written down in a video transcript to incentivise your SEO efforts.
Music Videos
Here’s something you may not have thought of. Combine the audio and the visual medium to create something unexpected.
KFC did it and turned Colonel Sanders into a buff stripper (one of my favourite videos of all times, and not for the reason you may think), and Bomb Pop made whatever this is supposed to be, and it surely perforated my eardrums when I played it.
Ok, we are edging towards the advertisement part of video content, really. But here’s the thing: things aren’t always supposed to be taken seriously.
Sometimes, creating a lighthearted music video works spectacularly well. It doesn’t even need to be long, only about 30 seconds, but it works so well that you shouldn’t miss out on this opportunity.
If you can get an artist to create you a unique song too, then that is even more of a bonus.
User-targeting video
Videos can be a great way to showcase what you are doing for your audience.
For example, if your brand is environmentally conscious, a documentary of how you are removing garbage from the ocean will be highly resonant with your audience.
Every little bit helps. For instance, Patagonia shared a video showcasing the problem that is plastic in clothing. This 27-minute long documentary is presented right on top of their website, and it helps the audience understand who they are buying from and if the company’s values reflect theirs.
Environmentally conscious videos are just an example of how you can interact with your audience. Giving back to the community is a great way to show your support, and this is especially true if you are a local business that relies on local SEO services to gain traction.
Explainer videos
Did you know that the vast majority of people would rather watch a video about a product than reading about it?
Videos are a very good source of information. And if you have a complex product with many functionalities or something that works visually, like a painting or a video game console, then videos should be your go-to weapon.
“Explainer” video doesn’t necessarily mean you have to sit down and explain parts of your products. The writer’s rule, “show don’t tell”, works exceptionally well with this.
For example, it’s hard to convey the idea of fun if you are selling a toy, but you can show a group of people absolutely having a blast and then using every functionality it has.
The secret to explainer videos is “explain and entertain”. Nobody wants to sit around and watch a guy talk and talk and talk for hours.
Conclusion
Be your own movie studio.
Nowadays, producing video content is not too difficult, and there is a ton of software out there that simplifies the editing process.
Videos are an incredibly effective marketing tool you should be relying on. To discover more about how we can help you reach your goals through content marketing, contact us today.
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