If you've talked yourself out of using video because you thought it was too complicated or too expensive, these talking points from business.com just might change your mind.
First, consider this amazing factoid: According to a survey by socialmediatoday.com, next year, some 80% of internet traffic will take the form of video. Translation? It's time to set those reservations aside and hop aboard the video express.
Many marketers struggling to produce video content are forgetting something important: You probably already have content you can adapt to video marketing! For example, turn existing blog posts into videos. You can do it yourself. Or get a tool (Lumen5 is popular) that will help you transform blogs into videos in a few easy steps.
- Place a video where your customers land.
One of the best ways to engage a landing page visitor is to have a video waiting for them. While some still like text content, most people prefer video and recall more information viewing a video than by reading a written message. business.com suggests that a thoughtfully-crafted video encourages visitors to stick around and spend more time on a website.
The next best thing to a one-on-one conversation is to address your audience in a real-time video. Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter all support live video. While you're at it, why not turn it into a true conversation by presenting information in a Q&A format. Promote your Q&A in advance. Then, when you go live, ask viewers to comment (and read their comments on air).
When you haven't reached out to your customers lately, or are about to introduce a new product or service, produce a brief teaser video. How brief?
Some brands create micro videos as short as three seconds. You could even ask viewers to guess what the product or service is - and reward everyone who guesses it right.
- Build authority with video tutorials.
Remember, you can go way beyond basic talking head videos. Maybe your customers would appreciate a series of tutorial videos that show them how it's done. For instance, if you offer software, demonstrate how the software works. It could even become a complete online course!
Making tutorials is easier than you may think. Software tools like Open Broadcaster and Snagit enable recording, editing and supplementing with text or audio.
It's time to play with video.Once you overcome the initial resistance, shooting and editing video will become as natural as posting static text and images. (To get more comfortable in front of a camera, read about how even introverts can shine on video.)
Make a habit of recording content that entices your audience to press "play." One final tip: Put your videos on more than one platform to increase exposure and get prospects interested and engaged.
