5 Ways To Use Video In Your Marketing Strategy

Every forward-thinking digital marketing strategy combines the power of video with other important elements to create a marketing campaign that yields good return on investment, so as a business owner you need to learn how to implement video in your strategy. Most statistics from the world of digital marketing quote online video as one of the most important features on a website, and it’s projected to account for two thirds of the world’s mobile data by 2016.
With all these statistics floating around, the average entrepreneur wants to know how they can plan, create and promote videos; considering their small budget and minimal production experience. Whatever you’re budget is, you need to build the identity of your brand and speak the language of prospective buyers, and video facilitates all this.
Marketing and its’ strategies in use today are constantly growing and evolving. The continuous innovation characterizing digital marketing means you can’t be an expert at everything: but it also means novices can learn to adopt techniques they hadn’t thought of or tried before. If perhaps you’ve been thinking video is out of reach for your company because the concept is foreign to you, think again.
Let’s break down the simple ways in which you, who hasn’t built a career in cinematography, can learn to leverage video for the success of your marketing plan.

1. Product videos

Creating a video for a pair of shoes might not seem like the most revolutionary idea when you want to promote the product but stick with me for a moment. Traditionally, companies make product videos that tend to tout the item’s features, build up the brand and as always, focus on one goal: buy. This does very little to connect with the potential buyer and as a result, a lot of companies miss out on real opportunities.
Get more creative with your videos. Showing a 360 degree shot of the product might help the consumer see what it looks like but it doesn’t help connect with them. Animate the product by showing it being used by actual people, show customer experiences and testimonials; breathe life into the product, and aim to provide value to your viewers.

2. Make a series

One way to engage people with videos is to give them a reason to keep watching. Large brands like Target and Adidas all utilize a branded video series as a simple way of creating and sustaining a recurring tie to their buyers.
You don’t need to operate on a huge budget in order to make a high value series. Even with a limited budget you can still create an in-house series which demonstrates new ways to use a product, or a recurring how-to guide which helps solve simple problems, or a weekly tip series that offers relevant information to the viewers.
Whatever you choose to focus on, make sure you let the viewers know what to expect by communicating what the series will offer and let them know when they should tune in for the next installment.

3. Video contests

It’s pretty clever this plan: letting other people do the work for you. If you want to create engaging video content but have a problem brainstorming ideas, you can run a contest on your social media page, email or website, and prompt people to create video around a specific subject matter.
Let them know how the winner will be selected and reward the winner with something valuable: no one will put in 20 hours of solid work for a $5 gift card.
When you get that video use it accordingly. If it’s a promotional video for a product, use it as a tool to market that product. If you wanted an artistic video to add character to your brand, then share it where your target market will view it. This could be on social media and your website.
When people get actively involved in your brand it ensures they develop a stronger tie to your company.

4. Make every effort to be unique

You might have heard or read somewhere that in order to be successful every company must either be the first, the best, or different from the rest. It’s an interesting principle and it certainly applies in the case of video and content.
Just because your main competitor made a talking dog video and got 100,000 views it doesn’t mean you should. When you see Kmart get away with a racy play on words, that doesn’t mean you can. It’s very tempting to look at other success stories as a good source for ideas and sometimes that’s okay: just try not to emulate what has already been done.

5. Do a parody or remix a popular song

Have you noticed how cleverly remixed videos tend to go viral? It’s all about timing and creativity. If you can parody one popular video right as it’s taking off, you can generate thousands of hits and in the process gain a larger following. A more targeted approach is the best and if it fits well with your product or service, and doesn’t damage your brand image in any way, then use this as a way to get noticed.
If you want real effect, aim to create video that speaks to and offers real value to your audience, instead of chasing shiny objects. Look at how online videos are evolving and try to stay ahead. A couple of years ago, video- even for international markets- may have been created in one country and then dubbed in English. Nowadays, marketers produce and post videos in local languages. Both large and small companies record customer testimonials in the speaker’s native language, and use subtitles to translate for other markets.
The viewers connect with the person speaking and they also get the feeling that your company has a global focus. Translation doesn’t have to be a priority in the overall marketing strategy but try to go beyond what you’ve come to expect from the marketing department, and discover new ways to get your audience closer to your brand, and create longer lasting impressions. Online video gives you the power of sight and audio, which means more ways to keep the viewer engaged while you sell them on the value of your product, service, or brand: and why they should be using it.