3 Steps to Incorporating Video Into Your Marketing Strategy
Video marketing may not be at the top of retailers’ lists of strategies to increase sales, but you may be surprised to learn that consumers actually want more video from your brand to learn about its products and/or services. In a recent survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults, Animoto learned that 84 percent of respondents want more videos on Amazon.com and 64 percent want more on eBay to help them make more informed purchases. This growing demand for video is only just beginning, and it isn't isolated to top e-commerce sites. You too can capitalize on the benefits of video, and getting started has never been easier.
Without a real-life salesperson guiding consumers to make a purchase, videos are a powerful way to engage them from pre- to post-sale. However, it's important to understand that videos play different roles throughout each phase of a customer lifecycle. The best approach is to create videos that are useful for each situation. As you build video into your marketing strategy, here are three steps to keep in mind:
1. Cover the basics. Whether your business is e-commerce only or primarily brick-and-mortar, introductory videos are a powerful way to draw customers in and engage them in a way that evokes emotion, reminds them of a need or desire, or teaches them something new. Consider what a shopper may search for or want to learn about from your products or services, and ensure that you have videos that address those points.
The survey revealed that 64 percent of consumers find it helpful to watch videos to learn more about the company they'll purchase from. Whether it be a funny video that is low on branding but likely to be shared, or an informative video introducing your business, products or services, make sure the video is easy to find and not too long. Eighty-three percent of consumers say the ideal length of a video to inform a purchase decision is five minutes or less. You should also be strategic with where you post your videos. The best place to start is on your homepage, but don't forget to cross-publish on Facebook, YouTube and Vimeo. Include a call to action at the end such as your company URL so viewers know where to go to learn more.
2. Convert sales with video. Once you've engaged your prospect, he or she will be looking to understand your product in depth. At this stage, videos can play a major role in converting sales. Ninety-five percent of consumers find video helpful in researching a product before they buy, and 93 percent find videos useful in comparison shopping.
A good place to start is with simple informational videos or a 360-degree view of a product. Zappos, for instance, records thousands of video demos each year with "real-life" models (its employees) and has seen conversions increase.
If you're selling a service or tangible product, short customer testimonials explaining the problem your product or service solves can also give your prospect the affirmation they need to make a purchase. If you're selling professional services, consider giving people a behind-the-scenes look at the people running your business so prospects see who they'll be working with and feel a personal connection.
3. Build loyalty. There's no reason to stop video marketing with the purchase. Videos can be a great way to earn loyal brand advocates who will spread the word about your business to their own networks after they buy a product. Ninety-three percent of consumers find instructional videos related to products they've already purchased useful. They're also likely to seek more video from a brand after an initial purchase. In fact, 87 percent of consumers find video helpful to research additional items from the same company.
With increased loyalty and brand affinity comes the powerful strength of word-of-mouth. Since online videos are so easy to share, they're a great way to raise brand visibility and bring the retail customer lifecycle full circle. Eighty-nine percent of consumers are likely to share a video if they consider it educational, 86 percent will share if there's an incentive (e.g., a promotion or discount), and 80 percent are more likely to share if there's simply a "share" button included. Make sure your video can be shared easily and is accessible via desktop or mobile device.
Get Started
As your customers increasingly go online to research and purchase products, videos present an incredible opportunity to enrich the shopping experience for a vast digital audience. Thanks to a proliferation of video marketing services, video is more accessible than ever for retailers, and there's a growing demand waiting to be met. If you haven't discovered video for yourself, there's no better time than now to get started!
Brad Jefferson is the CEO and co-founder of Animoto, a cloud-based video creation service.
- Companies:
- Amazon.com
- Places:
- U.S.