Video marketing has become one of the most popular and effective ways to reach the online target market. In fact, 87% of video marketers say it has increased traffic to their site and helped make more sales.
However, video marketing is more than simply filming and publishing content. Businesses must make sure to include the right practices to reach the expected outcome. This includes planning and writing a script, ensuring the content is shareable and producing engaging videos.
Another vital element is making sure your website can handle the traffic spike. If not, you risk losing traffic and sales due to poor website performance.
To help with that, choose a suitable web hosting for videos. Look for features such as unlimited bandwidth and 24/7 support to ensure your site runs smoothly.
This article will help you learn more about different ways you can optimize video marketing to reach success.
Let’s get started.
1. Create Helpful Video Content
The first step to increasing traffic and sales by using videos is to create helpful content that addresses the audience’s pain points.
First, listen and understand your audience. Before rushing into filming a video, take a step back to gain insight into what your audience wants to know.
This doesn’t necessarily need to be about your brand. Instead, it can also be helpful content surrounding your niche.
For example, if you sell phone cases, consider making a valuable best tool for video collaboration about the most resistant materials phone cases can be made of.
Not only will this provide value to those watching, but it will also boost your credibility and authority in the industry.
Next, make clear what your video is about. Include a relevant and skimmable title so the audience can quickly decide whether it’s the right video to watch.
Additionally, you must show and tell. Videos are audiovisual content, so make sure to provide helpful images and graphics to support your information. This is especially beneficial if you’re making a how-to video.
Another important aspect is the camera quality. Make sure your videos are enjoyable to watch. If not, you risk losing viewers due to low-quality graphics.
To achieve this, you should learn about the gear you need, the most suitable editing software, and which resolution to use in different situations.
2. Add Strong Call-to-Actions to Your Video Content
A call-to-action in video content should encourage viewers to take action and help businesses reach their goals – whether it’s selling more products, growing a subscribers list, or creating a bigger community base.
Depending on the video hosting service you choose, the call-to-action configurations may differ. That said, there are some essential calls-to-action options you can include in your video content, the first one being end cards.
Most video hosts allow linking to web pages, other videos, or playlists to remind viewers to take action at the end of the video.
To further encourage viewers to make a move, use actionable words such as “buy now,” “click here,” “visit us,” and others.
Another option is adding annotations, which are subtle reminders that pop up once in a while on the upper right corner of a video.
Annotations are a great option to add multiple calls-to-action throughout a video.
Last but not least, verbalize the call-to-action by communicating what you want from viewers, how they can do it, and where they should click.
For example, you can say “leave a comment down below” or “click the red button below the video to try a free sample.”
3. Make the Video Content Shareable
If your video is shareable, you’re bound to get more traffic, which can potentially increase sales.
First of all, make it easy for people to share your content by adding social network share buttons to some of the most popular social networks, such as Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram.
Additionally, there are several elements that encourage people to share a video. First, it must evoke an emotion.
Study shows that people are twice more likely to share videos that evoke strong emotions, be it positive or negative. However, it’s best to focus on creating videos that bring joy, surprise, and admiration to maintain a positive brand image.
Viewers also prefer shorter videos. People have a short attention span when scrolling through social media, therefore, keep videos concise and to the point to increase the chances of sharing.
Also, try to avoid selling too hard on a video. People see too many ads throughout the day, so they expect to see entertaining content.
However, you can still promote your brand without making the video feel like a commercial. Make sure the video includes your brand values and provides information people care about.
For example, if you sell organic vegetables, consider making short how-to healthy recipes.
To further encourage people to share, consider posting the video on other platforms. Try submitting your video to relevant Facebook groups. This is an excellent strategy to get more views and shares, potentially driving more traffic to your website.
Last but not least, optimize the video for mobiles as more than two billion video viewers come from mobile devices.
4. Keep Viewers Engaged
With countless content uploaded to the internet every day, marketers are fighting to keep customers engaged.
The first approach to retaining viewers’ attention is knowing who they are. This way, you’ll understand how to present yourself as you would with a real-life audience – are they looking for formality, colloquial language, or jokes?
Next, be clear in the way you speak and the audio quality. If businesses fail to deliver clear audio, you risk losing viewers due to poor experience.
Another important aspect is the hook people in, which means the promise of benefit viewers will get after watching the video. This gives the audience a reason to stay and wait for the promised benefit.
Additionally, have energy in your voice and demeanor by smiling, laughing, and talking with your hands. These gestures will positively affect the viewers and keep them interested.
It’s also critical to plan ahead so you can present the information not only in a fun way, but also concisely and to the point.
Consider writing a script to help your ideas and thoughts flow, reducing the amount of “uh”s and “um”s in your video.
Last but not least, take into account video editing.
One of the most popular editing techniques to retain viewers’ attention is using jump cuts, which means removing unnecessary bits to avoid repetition or long pauses in the clip.
5. Optimize Video Thumbnail and Headlines
The video thumbnail is a still image that acts as a preview for your video. Headlines, on the other hand, are the title of your video informing the audience what your content is about.
Both elements are the first thing people see when they come across your video. It helps users decide whether the video is what they are looking for.
Factors that make a good thumbnail include:
- Clear video subject
- Image of the narrator that evokes emotion
- Optimized for different devices and screen sizes
Let’s take a look at this thumbnail example by Think Media.
Source: Think Media video thumbnail
This thumbnail is used with the headline “How to Make YouTube Videos on Your Phone START to FINISH!”.
Instead of repeating the same copy on their thumbnail, Think Media utilizes the space to inform the audience of all the necessary steps to making a video – filming, editing, and uploading.
This way, the audience can gain more insight into what the video will cover just by looking at the thumbnail and headline.
Think Media also makes sure the thumbnail copy is easy to read with large fonts and contrasting colors. It also includes images of real people posing to convey an emotion.
Conclusion
More and more businesses are leveraging video marketing to increase traffic and sales. However, it’s essential to understand the elements that help make a video successful.
Here is a list of the mentioned aspects:
- Create helpful video content. Find topics relevant to your niche and start providing the audience with valuable information.
- Add strong calls-to-action to your video. Encourage viewers to take action and reach your goals, such as growing a subscriber list or selling more products.
- Make the video easy to share. Include social network sharing buttons to popular platforms, such as WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook.
- Keep viewers engaged. Understand who you’re talking to, be clear in your speech, and provide excellent audio quality.
- Optimize video thumbnail and headline. Entice visitors with an exciting image preview and a clear title regarding your content.
Hopefully, these insights can help create better video content for your business. Good luck with implementing these tips.
