Videos have long been part of marketing efforts in the form of advertisements or product videos. But video promotion is gaining a new kind of prominence and significance with the growth of social media (and especially mobile Internet use). Videos can now be used as part of content marketing; the more shareable a video is, the more it can raise brand awareness and even contribute to a company’s search engine optimization. So how do you make a video shareable? Unfortunately, there are no video marketing tips that can guarantee a viral video, and any digital video and media production company promising a secret-sauce formula probably isn’t completely aboveboard. Internet users are capricious, and there will always be surprise hits and surprise failures when it comes to putting out online videos. But that’s not to say you shouldn’t follow video marketing tips based on good evidence. Here are three things you can keep in mind to set your video up for success:
- Don’t Be Too Good for Planning
So many viral videos look haphazard that it can be tempting to slap together a script, ask your nephew to lend you his camera, and get started shooting a video in the company office. But the reality is that barring a few surprise sensations, most successful videos are well planned and executed. Sometimes, the appearance of a video being a spontaneous, low-budget production is even carefully crafted by people who have calculated the comparative costs and rewards of such a strategy. That’s why it’s so important to work with a video marketing consultant and go through the work of creating a marketing plan. You’ll want to define your target audience, set goals for this specific video and create benchmarks to evaluate your success.
- Tell Compelling Stories
Even if you’re trying to market a specific product or service, narrowly focused product videos aren’t shareable (they can still be effective, but more in the realm of e-commerce). Instead, you’ll want to tell a story that’s so compelling that people will want to share your video regardless of whether they’re interested in your business offerings. That story might be a poignant one or it might be a goofy one, but it must appeal to viewers on an emotional, rather than logical, level.
- Get the Tech Side in Order
The details of how videos are coded and placed online get far too little attention, probably because non-tech professionals are confused by the terms that get thrown around. Don’t let that feeling of intimidation get the best of you; it’s vital that your video have the right headings and tags and description keywords if you’re going to give it the best shot at being widely shared. If you have no background in coding or SEO at your business, it will probably be cheaper in the long run to hire this service out, rather than attempt to add it on top of your core competencies. Most video production companies that focus on web videos will offer these kinds of services.
What other video marketing tips can you offer? Do you agree with the ones we’ve prioritized here? Discuss in the comments.
