The end-to-end DIY video cookbook
Videos help businesses get 66% more qualified leads according to Renderforest. According to HubSpot, you may be able to increase conversion rates by over 80% if you add a video on your landing page. If you’re looking for an easy-to-execute approach to producing videos as part of your digital marketing strategy in 2020 and 2021, here are practical ideas that fit your startup’s budget.
At Premonio, we can help you develop engaging and authentic video content to attract, engage, and delight your prospects and customers. To get started with your video marketing strategy, start by developing a video content plan:
There are many types of video content that can be leveraged to attract and retain customers in different stages of the customer lifecycle. Some of the types of video formats that you can leverage for your B2B technology startup include:
- Brand Videos: Showcase your products, services, your mission, and your vision in a brand video. You can use this video in the about section of your company’s LinkedIn page, as a pinned/introduction video on your YouTube channel, and on your website landing pages. We made this video recently for our website along similar lines.
- How-to Videos: You can create how-to videos or how-to series to help your audience with education about topics that they need help with. For example, we recently developed a video about automating lead generation for our LinkedIn.
- Product Explainers: These videos can be used to help your audience build a foundational knowledge of your business and solutions. Your sales and service teams may also use these videos as tools as they work with customers. You can develop a series for your YouTube channel where each video explains a different functionality or use case for your product.
- Interviews: If you know an expert whose ideas could be informative for your audience then it may be time to set up a chat and interview them. This type of video content will also help you establish credibility in areas that your customers are looking for advice on. 44% of businesses say that informative videos receive the most engagement online. For example, Lukas Haensch from Pathmonk recently invited us for an interview about thought leadership and demand generation on his LinkedIn podcast.
- Customer Testimonial Videos: If you have customers that are willing to speak about how they benefited from your product or service, developing a series of testimonial videos could help new customers make the purchase decision. Testimonial videos are great for not just establishing credibility but also demonstrating actual use cases for which your product or service has been used.
- Live Videos: This type of video content works really when you want to capture live events, start a live dialogue with your customers, interview an expert, or even host a Q&A session. Platforms like LinkedIn and YouTube will also send out a notification to your followers/subscribers when you go live to help attract eyeballs.
Now that we’ve learned about a few types of video content, let’s talk about the steps you can take to create your first video.
Scripting videos:
Irrespective of whether you’re shooting a quick video or an elaborate interview, writing a script will bring structure to your video content and save a lot of time at the editing table. Develop your script in the form of a word doc consisting of a table with two columns – one column for the shot by shot description of the audio portion of your video and one for the description of the visual portion. Below is an example of how we used this format to write a script for one of our videos:
Writing a script as opposed to recording extempore, will enable you to get feedback from your team members and also stick to the time limit. The ideal duration for your video content varies depending on the platform that you’re posting on and the topic of your video.
Remember to close your script with a strong call to action. A call to action ensures that your audience is directed to the next step you would like them to take – Do you want them to like, subscribe, and/or comment? Do you want them to check out the link to a new product?
Choosing the platform:
The right platform can elevate your video marketing strategy, but the wrong platform can destroy it. Think about your buyer personas and goals before deciding where to post your videos. Some of the options are LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram etc. Once you’ve selected the platform you will be sharing on, you can always cross-promote the link from that platform on the accounts of your other platforms. For example, you can easily share the link to your YouTube video on LinkedIn.
Shooting the video:
On the day of the shoot, get ready for the camera. You can wear whatever dress code is acceptable in your industry and your customer’s industry but remember to look professional. Clean up and wear something that won’t blend into the background (no white shirts against a white wall :). Choose a spot that is well-lit. Look into the camera and maintain a personable tone.
There are a lot of different cameras and peripheral equipment that you can use to shoot videos. However, we recommend getting started with a basic setup like the front camera of your mobile phone or mounting your phone on top of a make-shift tripod i.e. anything that will hold your phone and keep it stable while you record. You can also use the webcam of your laptop for the shoot.
Another great way to shoot a video is using the record feature on a video conferencing app like Zoom or Google Meet. This setup is especially useful for product demos or instructional videos where you may need to share your screen.
Remember to look into the camera and keep it conversational. Make sure that all your footage is shot in the same orientation i.e. horizontal v/s vertical. Most platforms including LinkedIn and YouTube favor the horizontal or landscape orientation.
Editing the video:
Most marketers will agree that shorter content, while tougher to create, is more effective and engaging as compared to longer videos. To edit your footage, use free video editing platforms like iMovie (iOS users) or others mentioned in this Shopify blog post. Next, remember to caption your videos. 85% of social media videos are now watched with no sound. If possible, include images and infographics that will aid visual interpretation for your audience even when their audio is switched off. We have used YouTube studio to trim, blur, and subtitle our videos before and it worked great! Learn how to use YouTube studio here.
Now that we have your process in place, what should you be adding (if at all) to your Shopping list to succeed at video marketing?
To create great video content, you don’t need a great set up you just need a set up. However, here are some of the easy to use resources that we recommend:
Recording yourself: Your phone can record good quality audio and video and even help you edit it. We often use iMovie on the iPhone to edit and subtitle our videos. Android users can download one of these free video editing software apps for the same.
Recording your screen for a demo video: Windows users can use the instructions in this video or use the Xbox Game Bar in Windows 10 to start capturing your screen and your voice for a product demo or an instructional video. Mac users can use the QuickTime player which is already installed on your mac to record your screen and voice.
Editing: You can edit your videos using iMovie on a mac or any of these free video editing software products. Like we mentioned earlier, YouTube studio is a pretty good platform for editing your video even if you intend to share the video via another platform. Just download the edited version of your video from YouTube studio and publish the file via your platform of choice.
A study by Heinz Marketing found that 68 percent of organizations plan to increase their investment in video marketing in 2020. If you’re looking to engage new and existing customers with exciting video content, feel free to please reach out to us on LinkedIn, Twitter, at info@marqetu.com, or call (001) (650) 727-0983.