In previous decades it would have been very difficult to imagine advertising without thinking about video. TV commercials, right up until the outbreak of the social media revolution, were very much one of the most potent forms of marketing expression. So there is no denying that video has been, and continues to be, a very valuable creative platform for brands and businesses to promote their products, services, and values. The difference in recent times is that with the advent of social media – coupled with the brilliance of portable handheld devices – even a layman can potentially create video content that can propel them and their brands to success, and even stardom.
But what is the key to this success we hear you ask, well, there isn’t one key, but to help you on your journey there are a number of fundamentals you should know. Seven in fact. And in the spirit of generosity, the content gurus at Patch Agency have kindly listed them here for your delight and delectation.
1. Focus on content, not sales
The first truth to mull over, and one that many creative advertisers probably wouldn’t like to hear, is that most people don’t really like ads. They don’t care about them. And if you are creating content, even dynamic video content that is specifically designed to drive sales results rather than to entertain and inform your audience, then you are likely not going to really engage many prospective customers at all. So it is worth drumming in early, that you should make video content that you yourself would like to watch. Not surprisingly, you’ll likely find that this kind of content-first conceptual approach will wield better sales results, particularly in the long run.
2. Use the first few seconds well
In the current ‘Age of Bombardment’, anyone with a smartphone is probably accustomed to seeing upwards of 5000 ads a day! And a large proportion of those ads are likely video content. Therefore it has become increasingly difficult to capture any consumer’s attention before they move on to something else. So the first few seconds of your video needs to be attention-grabbing and even carry the bulk of the messaging. If you don’t believe, take a quick scroll through your favourite social feed and test your own average dwell time.
3. Use target audiences
A fundamental dichotomous flaw of traditional broadcast media is that the targeting of specific demographics is practically non-existent in comparison to the hyper-targeting social media video receives. This means you can be much more tailored in your messaging in the video to appeal to a very specific subset of the community. With minimal wastage in ad spend also. So we would recommend spending a lot of time finalising in your mind the primary and even secondary demographics for your business before you consider building the creative assets, then ensure the video is targeted to those demographics is actually the easy part.
4. Tell your story with and without audio
Understandably, most of the videos consumers will see on their phones throughout the day are muted. Flicking through a few cheeky TikTok videos at work is fun, but it enters a very different level of faux-pas if you do it with the sound up. So it makes sense to build your video with two audiences in mind. Also, utilise the power of subtitles.
5. Weave in CTA’s
Contrary to my earlier points about storytelling vs sales motives, there is no problem (in fact it is highly recommended) to ensure that your video content has clear call-to-actions weaved into the narrative. This doesn’t need to be done tackily, the rule to follow here is to start with the mindset that the CTA sits neatly amongst the story being told around it, as opposed to the story being the CTA.
6. Optimise for search
You are probably thinking, how can optimise a video for search? Get out of town! Well, think about where a video online is likely sitting on your feed. Amongst a cloud of text: the title of the video, the description, comments etc. Optimising every text-based element of the video as it is published with researched and effective keywords could give your video that extra boost it needs to reach a customer that converts.
7. Collaborate with other brands and influencers
Finally, creating videos is hard. So why not involve partner business to share in the content creation, or even better, have an influential influencer (category relevant) create content for you. You’ll be surprised how effective a well-placed piece of influencer content can go, and all for the cost of a little contra deal.
Now, in summary, we hope you have a newfound respect for everything that goes into the creation of video marketing content, and maybe are considering giving it a go yourself. Just remember, if it gets too hard you can always call on the creative young minds at Patch Agency to step in and create tailored and effective video content for you and your business.
