How a Professional Services Company Can Use a Promotional Video to Grow Their Business
Video is king, we know that. Promotional Video is even better for business. What are businesses doing to grow their professional services business? Since more people are consuming information and making purchasing decisions based on the videos they watch, promotional video is a great place start to your marketing plan. We believe this is especially true for professional services companies.
A well-made promotional video can help a professional services company to:
Introduce their company and services
Showcase their expertise
Build trust with potential clients
Generate leads and sales
If you’re a professional services company owner, you may be wondering where to start when creating a promotional video. Here are a few tips:
1. Start with a clear goal
What do you want your promotional video to achieve? Do you want to introduce your company to new potential clients? Are you looking to showcase your expertise in a particular area or generate leads for a specific service? Reviewing profitable lines of service might be a good starting point when trying to decide on what to talk about in the video. Once you know your goal, you can start to develop a script and storyboard that will help you achieve it.
2. Focus on your target audience
Next, who are you trying to reach with your promotional video? Once you know your target audience, tailor your message and visuals to appeal to them. Be specific when talking to them. For example, if you’re targeting business owners, focus on how your services can help them to grow their businesses. Think about how you fit into their daily world and how you can minimize their problems.
3. Highlight your unique value proposition
What makes your professional services company different from the competition… your unique value proposition that you offer your clients. The promotional video should highlight what makes your company special and why potential clients should choose you.
4. Use high-quality visuals
Your promotional video should be visually appealing and engaging. If you run a professional services business, you must portray a level of expertise. You cannot cut corners by using stock video. Make sure the video production company you hire shoots your b-roll in your offices, etc. Using high-quality b-roll video makes your video stand out from others. We highly recommend working with a professional video production company to create your video.
5. Call to action
Most important is telling your viewers what you want them to do after watching your promotional video. Visit your website? Contact you for a consultation? Sign up for your newsletter? Make sure to include a clear call to action at the end of your video. And, make the call to action measurable. We’ve had clients request the call to action remain generic, but how can you measure your success unless you can see if viewers did what you asked them to do.
6. Frequency
If you’re going to run advertisements using your video or videos, you need to think frequency. You can’t run the ad 10 times and think that will provide you with leads. You need to run it a lot to get people to recognize who you are and what you do.
Use a Professional Video Production Company to Create a Promotional Video
Creating a high-quality promotional video can be time-consuming and expensive. If you don’t have the in-house resources to create a video yourself, it’s worth working with a professional video production company.
A professional video production company, like Plum Productions can help you to:
Develop a creative and engaging concept for your video
Write the script and storyboard
Capture and edit your video
Use the right music (and sometimes sound effects)
Create a video that is optimized for search engines
If you’re serious about using video to grow your professional services business, then investing in a professionally produced video is a wise decision.
How to choose a professional video production company
When choosing a professional video production company, there are a few things you should keep in mind:
Experience: Make sure the company has the experience needed to achieve your goals.
Portfolio: Review the company’s portfolio to see examples of their work.
Testimonials: Ask the company for testimonials from previous clients.
Pricing: Get quotes from multiple companies before making a decision.
What Type of Video Content is Right for a Professional Services Company?
When creating a promotional video, we recommend the following types of content:
About Us: Your company’s mission and values
What We Offer: The services you offer
Videos Your target audience and how you can help them
Case Studies or Client Testimonial Videos
You can also use your promotional video to highlight any special offers or promotions that you’re running.
A promotional video is a great way for professional services companies to introduce their company and services, showcase their expertise, and build trust with potential clients.
Staying ahead of the competition is critical to your business’ success. One powerful tool that can give your company the edge it needs is professional corporate video production. It will elevate your place in the market.
The Power of Corporate Video
Video has become the king of content because it’s engaging, memorable, and highly shareable. This makes it the ideal medium for communicating your brand’s message. Whether you’re targeting potential clients, investors, or employees, a beautiful video can convey your story and values like nothing else.
Plum Productions
First, at Plum Productions, we specialize in corporate video production for companies of all sizes. With years of experience under our belts, our team of creative minds and technical wizards is here to transform your ideas into compelling visual narratives.
Second, what truly sets us apart is our ability to seamlessly integrate into your company’s operations. Sometimes, we even take over your existing video production employees, ensuring you get the highest quality service without the stress of managing your employees.
The Plum Productions Corporate Video Difference
Fresh Perspective – When you hire Plum Productions, you’re not just getting a the visuals; you’re getting a fresh, outsider’s perspective. We approach your project with a creative eye, offering innovative ideas that may not have been explored within your internal team. This outside perspective can breathe new life into your brand’s story.
Exceptional Quality – Quality is non-negotiable. Our team is dedicated to delivering high quality videos that align perfectly with your brand’s image and goals. From scripting to post-production, we maintain the highest standards throughout the entire process.
Enhanced Experience – We pride ourselves on clear communication, collaboration, and a commitment to exceeding your expectations. Our goal is to make the process seamless, enjoyable, and stress-free for you.
Efficiency – Time is money, especially in the business world. With Plum Productions on your side, you’ll benefit from our streamlined processes and industry expertise. We understand the importance of deadlines, ensuring that your projects are completed efficiently and on time, every time.
The Urgency of Excellence
Finally, staying ahead is crucial. Corporate production isn’t just about staying relevant; it’s about setting the pace. Plum Productions is your key to unlocking the full potential of your brand through the power of video.
Don’t wait for your competitors to seize the opportunity. Contact us today and let us transform your corporate production into a force to be reckoned with. Elevate your brand, engage your audience, and make your mark in the corporate world.
The time for excellence is now. Let’s embark on a journey of creativity, efficiency, and exceptional corporate video production. Your brand deserves nothing less!
How To Create a Successful Corporate Video Production
Creating a successful corporate video production requires careful planning, scripting, filming, and editing. Here are some tips from Plum Productions that will help you plan and execute a successful corporate video production:
Define Your Goals & Objective. Before beginning, have a clear understanding of what your goals are for your video. In order for it to be a success, you need to know what is the benchmark for success. Do you want the viewer to take action, like call you or make a purchase? Do you want them to learn about what you do and move on? Your goals and objectives should include specific, measurable actions that you want them to take before ever trying to create a successful corporate video production.
Identify and Define Target Audience. This is one of the most underrated activities most companies do. By defining who your target audience is, you can speak to them in the terms they need. If you do not have a clear idea of who your target audience is, we can help with that, but most people have an idea of who they want to talk to. One thing to keep in mind, if it includes the phrase, “anyone,” or ‘anybody,” you are not being specific enough. By clarifying and fine-tuning this, you’ll be able to create impactful content that will resonate with them.
Select The Video Production Company. You have many to pick from. Choose wisely. They should be someone who understands your target audience and how to present the information you want to present so they understand and know what to do. You can spend a lot or a little on video, but if you don’t have the right company who can do it correctly, you won’t have a successful video to show. It’s not always about having the prettiest reels either. They should be able to show you a video they did for a client that matches the objectives you want to achieve. It doesn’t have to match visually what you’re thinking, rather, it needs to match the objective. Also, know that reels only show their best work…not their normal work.
Scripting. You likely are not sure how to craft the perfect script and you shouldn’t need to either. That’s the production company’s job. Your job is to approve the script they provide. Let them craft the message and the visuals so you know what you’re getting. A well-written script or carefully planned list of questions are essential to making a successful corporate video production. Make sure the messaging and branding match your needs. The script and video should be concise, easy to understand, and engaging.
Preproduction. This phase is the most important phase of the entire process. Most people like to skip it and move right into the production, but that’s a surefire way to not create a successful video production. This is where the details are worked out, the plans are made, and the schedule is confirmed. All the moving parts need to be mapped out at this point and finalized before the shoot. Anything short of that and you should move the shoot date back. Keep in mind, whatever is recorded during the shoot is what you have to work with in the edit. Make it count.
Production. This is the easy part. It’s very important to have the right equipment, the right team, and all the supporting people; however, this part is simply working the plan created during the preproduction. The best video producers are simply executing what was planned at this point. It makes the shoot day go by quickly and efficiently, and everyone can have fun.
Post-Production. In this phase, the video is simply being put together; however, we also like to think this is where the magic happens. The video is cut together, color-corrected, white-balanced, sound mixing, and any other items that need to be added to the video are completed here. Many times we add some 2D graphics to make the video even more interesting. Once this phase is done, you should have a video that closely resembles the preproduction plan.
Successful AND Fun
Remember, you’ll want to pay attention to any details along the way. The more you plan, the better the outcome. Sometimes we get a job that needs to be rushed. We always work to make things as perfect as possible, but when anyone is rushing, small details can be missed. It’s always smart to allow a little breathing time to get things perfect.
That’s how you have a successful video production… from start to finish. A successful video production is not only about creating visually attractive content but also about delivering the right message. It’s important to communicate with your video production team what you need to get out of the video and target the right audience.
If we can help you in any way, we’re here to help make your next corporate video production a success!
If You Want To Be a Disrupter, You Have To Be Different – Use Video
One of the most powerful tools your marketing department can use is video. It can be a disrupter, if used properly. Video does everything you want in a short amount of time. Video quickly shows the viewer they can trust you and create a bond (hey I think they’re nice people) and communicate your value proposition and authority, all at the same time. This typically can be done in 90 seconds or less. It’s actually quite remarkable.
Conversion rates, number of views, length of watch time, and several other statistics can be measured and tracked over time. Keep in mind that some videos perform better than other and that can happen because of the content and where it is placed.
Creating Killer Video
When creating killer video, it’s important to consider where you’ll be placing it and how you’ll be using it. Essentially, what is your goal in creating a or several videos? If you’re are creating the video so you can sell more product, you’ll likely be creating a promotional video or advertisement. These can come in many forms, but typically are viewed as ads. It’s not often people want to watch ads.
You can’t create killer video if you don’t understand who is viewing it and why they need or want to view it. We highly recommend working with your video production company to create a sense of understand who the target market is before you start recording video.
Here are some basic starting points in creating killer video:
What is the purpose of the video (increase sales? increase awareness? something else?)
Clarity on what you’re trying to promote (is it clear to the viewer?)
Clearly defining your target audience and knowing where to find them.
Identifying when, in the buying process, they are in. Are they in the just looking phase? Actively browsing/looking? or Ready to purchase, call, or take action?
Clearly define what problem your customer has and answering that call. What is their problem and can you solve it? Do they understand that you can?
Where is the video going to be placed? This must be where the customer is looking or would normally look. Place the video/ad where they are. Don’t make them come find you.
Budget – Do you have a clearly defined budget for your project? If not, things can get out of control if you allow it. At Plum, we price things so you know exactly how much things will be with no surprises.
Creativity – Sometimes making a video that is highly creative can be priced higher than you think. OR, it can be created without as much cost as you think. It’s important to talk about that early.
How will you measure success? When creating video, getting views can be a number to gauge success. For others, this means nothing, rather, they need to see increased traffic on the site or an increase in product sold.
When we know how to measure success, you’ll know what action the viewer should take. It’s important to say that in the video…What do you want them to do?
Knowing all this is helpful, but how does this help you be a disrupter? It helps you determine which type of video you need to create. Here are several types of video you can create to disrupt your industry:
Testimonial Videos (also known as Client Referral Videos) – These are your clients who can say what you can’t say. In reality, you can say it, but will they believe you or your clients? If they’re willing to say it or if they’re raving fans, you need to get that on video. We feel like this is one of the big drivers to get people to trust you.
Explainers – Videos that show you know what you’re doing by illustrating how you help others or explaining what you do. It might even be a mock up of what you do. Either way, this is a highly effective video to use to clearly define what you do.
Product Demonstrations – Sometimes it helps to show people exactly what the result of your service does. Less effective in some uses, highly effective in others. Ask us about these.
Educational Videos – These are typically found on YouTube and help people solve their problem or answer their questions. By educating them, they see you as an expert in the field. For example, you might subscribe to a YouTube channel to learn more about financial markets, accounting, or even cooking. Whichever channel you subscribe to, you’re doing it to be entertained, but also, to be educated. These can also come in the form of an expert interview. Using this can be disrupting to your competition.
Direct Messages – These might be a quick recorded message captured via VidYard or something similar. It’s a message that is custom crafted to speak directly to the receiver. You can also create custom messages for a type of client and send those. For example, if you have a service company like a plumbing company and want to send an introduction video of the person who will be coming to the house that afternoon, you could create a message that is generic but specific to the situation. That’s disrupting!
The video industry is growing. Business is using video. But how you use video and creating interesting video becomes more and more important.
Here at Plum Productions we think every business should have a YouTube channel because it provides a lot of benefit. Here are some of the benefits our clients are telling us they find…
Reasons Why Any Business Should Have a YouTube Channel
Increased Reach: YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world, behind Google, and don’t forget that the most searched word in Google is “YouTube”, meaning you are most likely to end up on YouTube! YouTube is a widely-used platform across the globe and available in over 90 countries and 80 languages and it’s estimated to have over 2 billion monthly active users, meaning YouTube can help businesses reach a wider audience and help increase brand awareness, even locally.
Increased credibility: A strong presence on YouTube can help businesses establish credibility and authority in their industry. Think of it this way: You’re a professional in your field. You post videos on your YouTube channel that are topical and common questions your business receives about the area you are an expert, you’ll be positioned, in the minds of the viewers, as an expert. Furthermore, if you post false information on the channel, other individuals can report it, comment on it, etc. and make you less of an expert. By posting the right and correct information (something you as an expert would do), you are naturally positioned as an expert.
Better SEO: Since Google owns YouTube and you are posting your business videos on YouTube, it can help you boost your visibility on Google search as well. When you make the titles and description of your videos match what your possible customers are looking for, you will begin to be positioned in a better ranking with Google. No one really knows the algorithms that do this and no one can predict this, but one thing is clear…Google prioritizes quality information. When potential customers see this, they are more likely to buy your services or recommend your business to others because they value what you are posting and feel comfort in connecting with you and your business.
Engagement: YouTube allows businesses to create channels so they can connect with their audience. This allows them to leave comments and engage in conversation, which makes your business more personal and relatable.
Cost-effective: Having a YouTube channel is a cost-effective way to reach a large audience. Creating and posting videos on YouTube is free. Whether you wish to create quality looking content or raw content is up to you. We recommend thinking about how your Clients (potential clients) would see you if you post a more finished video or a raw video. Some clients would prefer the raw, and that’s ok!
Multi-channel compatibility: Videos can be shared across multiple platforms, and embedded on websites, maximizing their reach and engagement potential.
Longevity: It doesn’t matter how old your videos are on YouTube. By continually adding more videos to your channel, you will provide the most current information available. If you have old data/information on a video, you would simply remove it from the public view to prevent inaccurate information, but this is usually not the case when you post evergreen content.
Monetization: There are different ways you can make money on YouTube.
Google AdSense: This is the most common way to monetize a YouTube channel. By enabling ads on your videos, you can earn money from the views and clicks they generate. To use AdSense, you must first link your YouTube account to an AdSense account, and then enable monetization on your videos. There are also thresholds your channel must meet to monetize in this way. Learn more about AdSense here.
YouTube Sponsorships: You can also earn money by securing sponsorships from companies or brands. This can involve promoting a product or service in your videos, creating sponsored content, or including brand mentions in your video titles and descriptions. If you’re posting as a business, you might even consider doing sponsorships with partnering companies or companies you work with. They may be interested in paying to be in your video.
Affiliate marketing: You can also earn money by including affiliate links in your video descriptions. These links allow viewers to purchase a product or service through a unique link, and you will earn a commission on any sales made through that link. While this is usually reserved for content creators, businesses can do this as well.
YouTube Premium: YouTube offers a paid subscription service called YouTube Premium. As a YouTube partner, you can earn a share of the revenue from YouTube Premium members who watch your videos.
Selling products: You can also use your YouTube channel as a platform to sell your own products or merchandise related to your content. By embedding YouTube videos into you website, you’ll get very specific and related content on your web page related to the product/service you’re selling. This is a highly effective tool for product sales conversion.
Overall, having a YouTube channel can provide a number of benefits for businesses, including increased reach, improved customer understanding, increased credibility, greater engagement, better SEO, monetization, increased conversions, and a cost-effective way to reach a large audience. Imagine being a construction company showing off this video to sell their services.
At Plum Productions, we specialize at optimizing and creating content for your YouTube Channel. With greater than 160,000 subscribers, 450 videos, and over 5,500,000 views on the channels we manage, we’d be happy to help you with your YouTube channel. If we can help you, we’ll let you know. If we can’t, we’ll tell you that too.
What video format is the most suitable for a professional service? This type of question gets asked with production services for what a company is looking to accomplish with using video as a means to support their business.
So what types of videos should you look to create as a production company in order to accomplish the goals set out by businesses in need of content?
Every business is unique in what it offers to its customers and how they interact with the consumers they hope to attract to their products. Depending on the service or product they provide, the styles of videos created can vary greatly from one another. Choosing the right format to create with the clients you intend to work with can impact the video product you eventually end up with producing.
Let’s look at the different types of video formats you can create for professional services!
Product Videos
This video format is based around a company that needs to visually show off a product and the function it provides to its user. These videos typically show the product in use or staged around a backdrop to fully depict its form that the consumer will see used in action.
Videos like this are able to effectively show how a company can properly showcase an object and convey its intended purpose to an audience. Also these videos are a great way to increase exposure to other clients as work made in this type of content is easily transferable to other projects.
Professional Service Tutorial Video
Many uses for video formats revolve around being able to show a process or action completed for its audience. A tutorial video is exactly what it means by showing a product or process throughout its steps to get to the finished result.
These videos can be both informational to employees and existing customers as this can help businesses alleviate an essential process they provide with direct input of the desired experience they wish to create. Either if the video is centered around a physical product or an online based task, the value of showing how something works is beneficial for both the company and the consumer.
YouTube / Online Advertisement For A Professional Service
An online advertisement is the most direct way to promote a business product to its intended audience. These videos are meant to have a call to action for its viewer to see a service offered to choose a certain company over the competition.
This type of advertisement can showcase the effectiveness of the product’s company and the production company’s strengths in grabbing the audience’s attention when choosing from alternative options. From a business standpoint companies always have a need to expand interest in what they offer to customers and advertisements are the most direct way to communicate the value they provide.
Live Stream Videos
A long-form way to highlight what a company offers is to create a video that shows a live event or seminar type presentation to an audience. Whether it is a recording of the event or the actual live production of the stream, the facilitation of how this is handled is usually up to a production company through the services they offer.
This means that whether you edit the final product or handle the logistics of the event, businesses will look to companies that are able to ensure their event goes smoothly and professionally captured. Also these types of videos can be an efficient way for companies to increase the amount of work they have with clients as these streams are not usually as demanding from an editing standpoint as most of the work has been already captured.
An instructional video is any video that shows the viewer how to do something or gain knowledge. It can be anything from showing a process in the physical world or using a software application to teach soft skills such as leadership, customer service, values, etc.
Instructional videos are the most engaging and cost effective way to implement systems within your organization!
Every business or organization has systems in place that allow their workforce to move the organization forward, and it doesn’t really matter which industry you serve. We all can agree that effective implementation of these systems are what make business or organizations successful. There are several ways systems and tasks can be taught within an organization. The most common way this happens is by learning from one member to another, by text or by Plums Production’s favorite: An instructional video.
Let’s dive into why instructional videos outperform verbal and text as a way of teaching systems within your organization:
Video versus Verbal
Each time a new member joins the team and you have one of your old members, most likely a higher paid employee, teach the new member the systems within your organization it requires the higher end pay employee to take time out of his/her productive day to go over all the systems and information with this new member, and what happens if the new member doesn’t get the message the first time. They have to go over everything one more time…which means more time and money spent not working in your business. Here is the worst case scenario: What happens if this experienced employee leaves? Do you have another team member that knows as much about your systems as they did? If not, will you be able to recover as quickly now without that experienced team member? To overcome this, Instructional videos can be played as many times as you like, they can show visually your work spaces, usage of tools, and most importantly they will live forever.
Video versus Text
There is really no competition when comparing text and video. In this digital landscape, video is shown to generate 1,200% more shares than images and text combined, and in terms of engagement, the chances of capturing your viewer’s attention is much higher when video is used, as opposed to plain text. This is because video can be more entertaining and engaging, plus it can visually represent the message you are trying to convey.
For example: If you own a restaurant and want to explain to a new server the systems inside your restaurant, an instructional video can show visually how the buttons on the POS system look, can show where everything is, what are the values of your organization and how things should operate. Video just uses the combination of visual aesthetics and audio to represent more clearly the whole picture.
Here are a few tips from your Plum Productions team on how to create a compelling instructional video:
Define the goal of your instructional video: Who is it for and what benefits will it bring for your organization or to the individuals watching it?
Write everything down: When creating an instructional video, time is critical and it’s important to narrow down the information to exactly what the user needs. Recent studies have shown that the majority of viewers want informational and instructional videos to be less than 20 minutes, with a preference toward the 3-6 minute ranges. (Source). This means that you should make your video as long as it should be to get the job done properly, but as short as possible.
Stabilize: Keep your camera on a tripod for stability,
Audio: Use an audio recorder to capture audio cleanly.
Focus: Check your focus. We don’t want blurry shots!
B-Roll: Support what you are saying with animations or B roll. B-roll is simply secondary shots that support what is being said. These can help simplify complicated concepts and show visually what is being said, because there is no better way to explain what you are saying than to show it!
Are you ready to create a compelling instructional video? Here at Plum Productions we do instructional videos often and we are ready to help you! Let us know if you have any questions or want to find out more information.
A business video is a powerful marketing tool that can help a company to showcase its products or services, educate its audience, and build brand awareness. When creating a business video, we believe you must consider what elements should be included in order to make the video effective and engaging. Here are some of the items we believe are critical to your business video.
What Should Be In A Corporate Video?
Clear & Concise Messaging – First and foremost, a business video should have a clear and concise message. This means that the video should have a specific purpose and objective, and this should be conveyed to the audience in a clear and straightforward manner. The message should be tailored to the target audience and should address their needs and concerns.
Strong, Compelling Story – In addition to a clear message, a business video should also have a strong and compelling story. This means that the video should tell a compelling and engaging story that captures the attention of the audience and keeps them engaged throughout. The story should be relevant to the business and its products or services, and should be able to connect with the audience on an emotional level.
Visually Appealing – Another important element of a business video is visual appeal. This means that the video should be visually appealing and should use high-quality graphics and images to help convey the message. The visual elements should be used to complement the story and the message, and should help to engage the audience and keep them interested in the video.
Good Audio – A key element of business video is the use of audio. This means that the video should have clear and professional audio, with good sound quality and no background noise. The audio should be used to reinforce the message and the story, and should help to engage the audience and keep them interested in the video. In fact, we believe you shouldn’t even notice the audio. It should be good and not distracting.
Follows Branding Guidelines – A very important element of a business video is the use of branding. This means that the video should incorporate the company’s branding elements, such as its logo, colors, and fonts. This helps to build brand awareness and establish the company’s identity in the minds of the audience.
Call To Action – Most importantly, a business video should have a strong call-to-action (CTA). This means that the video should include a clear and specific call-to-action that encourages the audience to take some sort of action, whether it is to purchase a product or service, sign up for a newsletter, or visit the company’s website. The CTA should be clear and concise, and should be placed at the end of the video in order to maximize its effectiveness. You should also consider tracking your call to action to determine if and what works best for your viewers. You might even think about using an A/B test to determine how to best craft your messaging.
In summary, a business video should have a clear and concise message, a strong and compelling story, visual appeal, good audio quality, branding elements, and a strong call-to-action. These elements, when combined effectively, can help to create a powerful and engaging business video that helps to showcase the company’s products or services, educate its audience, and build brand awareness.
It is amazing how so many people are using video for business. Whether your business is small or very large, using video to improve digital marketing efforts is the trend, and is likely not going to go away. Whether companies are creating promotional tools or educational segments it’s important to keep in mind that it must be engaging and worth watching.
In this post, we’ll cover some tips for making great marketing videos to how to harness the power of video marketing to get results in your business. We’ll cover which videos are must haves and which videos are nice to have, but not as critical so that you can focus your time on getting results quickly.
Tips To Creating Awesome Marketing Videos For Business
There are several elements that must be present in a quality business video. Besides shooting with a quality camera, using quality audio, and inserting supporting shots, there are some important aspects every video needs to have. First, it must have a message or a story.
Story/Message
The real message may not be what you think. What are you trying to convey? What is the point of creating this message? These questions seem obvious, but we’ve had clients ask us to create a video for the purpose of having a video, but when it came time to using it, it wouldn’t drive results. We knew it wouldn’t create results because the video just spoke AT the viewer, not TO the viewer. We helped them craft a message that spoke to the problem people face and how their product was the solution by telling the right story. Here’s an example of a video that does exactly that.
Video Mission vs. Product Mission
What we mean is you want people to relate, not watch. Viewers only relate when they put themselves into the story. We created a nonprofit video a while back that was shown at a breakfast. The crowd was engaged because it supported the mission of the organization and everyone could put themselves into the situation that was being described. When the video was done, people were wiping their tears because they could imagine themselves facing the same problem…that it could happen to them. They realized they needed to give to the cause because they could just as easily be in need and that others in the future may too. We were told this was a highly successful event. Here’s the video:
Where To Use Video For Your Business
Once you have the video, where you put it and how you use it can make a difference. If you simply place it on your website, how will you drive traffic to your site? If you’re placing it on YouTube, how are you doing the proper research to make sure the video will be found? Are you using all the tools at your disposal? If you’re using the video in your email program, are you measuring click-through and other data points to ensure you know what’s working, what’s not working, and what is producing the results you desire?
Are you using video to create a blog post? Answer questions for potential customers/clients? Or are you just posting video to post video? If you don’t have a measurement component toward a goal, we would not recommend investing money or time into video. It’s important to keep measuring results versus goals as often as possible when posting video.
If we can help you create video for your business at any time, we’d be happy to help! Post any question you may have and we’ll see if we can answer them for you.
Whether you’re a large, multi-national company or a small business, video is increasingly more important in marketing the business. How to use video is becoming an increasingly important area to explore and in 2020, we saw a huge increase in the use of video and that appears to be continuing in 2021.
Trends show that video is increasingly more important to share a corporate message than ever before. The question remains how has 2020 changed the way video is used? How will video be used in the coming years? In this post, we share some of the interesting trends we’re seeing in the corporate video production and corporate livestream video world and address the question:
How to use video and video marketing for your business in 2021?
The primary way video has been used in the years leading up to 2020 was to create a branded message with the purpose of converting a viewer into a fan and eventually into a customer. The road to conversion has shifted slightly. How it is being used and the methods that video has been incorporated shifted greatly during 2020. Many organizations shifted to creating videos that showed the viewer a behind the scenes, more intimate look at their operation. The goal was to show who was behind the scenes and how their people make up the business. The feel was directed to a “Our people are our business” mentality.
How To Use Video and What is Video Marketing and How Does It Work?
Video marketing is simply the process of creating a corporate video for the purpose of highlighting what a business does, how they help their customers, or telling their story in a compelling way. The ultimate goal of any video marketing strategy is to convert viewers to customers or clients. This conversion should be measured and converted to a Return On Investment (ROI).
If the video is compelling, more viewers convert; if a video is less compelling, less will convert. This means it is extremely important to enter the video production process with a purpose and goal. The purpose might be to share the story or show the human side of a corporation (think Publix Commercials) and the ROI might be 1 customer created for every 1,000 views (where we might assume part of the ROI is to retain or reinforce a message to existing customers).
Video Marketing usually works in the form of a commercial placed in front of the viewer (via television, online media consumption, or mobile media consumption). For example, a short video ad might be placed in front of another video that the viewer wishes to watch but must first watch the advertisement to view the video they want to see. This can be effective for forced marketing.
Another form of Video Marketing is the creation of a consistent stream of informational videos sent out to YouTube. For example, our Creative Director, Jenn Jager, created a YouTube channel several years ago to demonstrate her knowledge about video production. Since its creation, several clients have found Plum Productions because of her videos about various video production related topics. This is a form of Video Marketing that is more passive and less forced.
People search a question about a topic, find her video on Google or YouTube, watch her video, and then later reach out because they have questions and want to know if she can help. This is a much better method of gaining clients over time than forced advertisements; although, there is certainly a place for paid advertisements. For example, in her videos, she may have a paid advertiser run their ad prior to her video or she may promote a product for a company based on a paid agreement (usually noted in the video).
How Effective is Video Marketing For Business?
Let’s start with the assumption that one is placing the video in the right place at the right time to be in front of the right audience. That is the critical first step and why it is particularly important to have a purpose and goal prior to creating any video.
Now think about when you shop online for a product or service. Do you read any reviews? Most likely you do. Do you do any other research like Google the product name? You probably do. Do you watch videos related to the product or service? Most likely you do. That seems to align with the research.
According to Smart Insights, more and more marketers (those who place ads) are finding that video are a critical component of their marketing strategy. They find that the ROI on video has been steadily increasing over the years and it continues to do so this year.
One shift that Smart Insights and the marketers they’ve surveyed found that there has been a shift in where videos are placed and get a return on their investment. They are not only seeing a greater watch time (increasing by approximately 19%), but also seeing a shift from television advertising to online video marketing. The spend has grown faster in the online video segment than the television segment, which is significant and worthwhile to know.
What Types of Video Should Be Used When Marketing?
At Plum Productions, we’ve seen a shift in the past year to more online events and a growth in creating video for websites to improve search engine optimization. Here are the types of videos being used to market business right now:
About Us Videos
Testimonial Videos
Video Reviews
Corporate Messaging Videos (internal and external)
Demonstration/Product Videos
Real Estate / Construction Videos
Sales Tool Videos
Live / Livestream Videos
Virtual Event Videos
Here is a little more information about each one:
About Us Video
In this type of video, the company is simply trying to share with the viewer who they are, what they do and why a viewer should do business with them. Think about the traditional, “We’re ABC Company and we do X” style. This is something Plum Productions does a lot of and can help you create a script or branded message to better capture potential customers.
Testimonial Videos
If your company has a client base that can be asked to give a positive statement on camera, this is a great tool to help any company convert a viewer to a sale. Most people want to know they’re not the only ones who are buying from you…they want to know that others have tried you and you are legit. This should be used on any sales page that asks for the sale (asks for a payment). It will help conversion over time and help close the deal.
Video Reviews
This type of video is typically used with products. Most times this is a video that is created by someone who purchased a product and wishes to unbox and review the product for their viewers. This can be a source of income for product companies if they request a YouTube Influencer to review their product on their channel. Be prepared to offer an affiliate link or payment for their efforts and time. If their channel is the right channel for your audience, it should be worth the investment.
Corporate Messaging Videos (Internal & External)
Recently we did a video for a national company to review how they did in the first quarter of 2021. This video was shared internally with their team around the county to give everyone a sense of how they did and give the team a goal/direction to strive toward. This is a great way to communicate outward to the team to motivate them to continue to improve. This type of video can also be used to communicate outwardly to vendors and even customers. This video might include information to help viewers understand how well the company is doing and how they are grateful for their customers. By doing this, it reinforces brand loyalty with both vendors and/or customers.
How To Use Video: Demonstration / Product Videos
This type of video is for companies that sell products and want to show possible uses or the versatility of the product. For example, in this video from Epoca.
Or this video from the Tator Gator, both show how the product can or is used. This type of video helps the viewer understand what the product does but also puts the viewer into the situation to better clarify to the viewer if they should buy or not. If it’s not for them, they should be able to see that in the video to prevent product returns.
How To Use Video: Real Estate / Construction Videos
This area has grown dramatically in the past few years. Realtors are starting to create short videos to show a home they have listed to improve the possibility of a sale. The other area video is being used is in the construction market. Here, Origin Construction shows what type of work they do, how they work, and who is their client.
How To Use Vide: Sales Tool Videos
Videos that are used as sales tools are videos that walk the viewer through steps to get to a purchase. It might be a short social media that leads the viewer to a slightly longer video on a landing page followed by an even longer video that makes the purchase easier for the potential customer. These videos can also be frequently asked questions (FAQs) before calling in to speak to someone in the business before making a purchase. The other way a sales tool video is used is during a sales meeting, the salesperson uses a video to explain or show their services. It becomes a tool in the process of making a sale. If the focus is to lead the viewer down the path to a purchase, it most likely is a sales tool video.
How To Use Video: Live / Livestream Videos
One of the more complicated but highly effective videos is the livestream video. This has been on trend in the last half of 2020 and into 2021. This type of video allows large groups of people to gather without the risk of spreading disease…but more importantly, it widens the geographic area an organization can communicate. We had one nonprofit talk about how they did their livestream and learned that people were watching in all four time zones of the U.S., and they were able to increase their donations because of it. Larger audience for them meant more dollars coming in.
How To Use Video: Virtual Event Videos
Like Livestreams, this type of video is one where we produce a full event (emcee, participants, etc.) provide the video to the client and they stream it as if it is a live event. This can be helpful if you don’t want to leave anything to chance and just want the event to happen. During the “event” everything runs smoothly, and all viewers feel like they’re watching a live event…even though it is pre-recorded and highly produced. Imagine a television show captured as an event.
Why Is Video Marketing Important?
Video and how you use it to market the business does several things. First, it creates an awareness for viewers. They begin to recognize the brand, the style, etc. and begin to feel more comfortable with the company. If a viewer feels more comfortable, they’re more likely to buy because they form a sense of trust. If a viewer can go online and learn how your product works or troubleshoot by watching a video, they’ll appreciate that more than waiting on the phone for answers.
Video and Connectedness
When done correctly, viewers will feel emotionally connected to the organization if they see people. Sometimes it’s tempting to simply create an animation/cartoon video to explain what your business does, but we find this to be less effective. When you research a company to trust with your money, do you want to see who they are or have characters explain your business? Most people tend to prefer people because they want to know who they’re dealing with. Obviously, the lower the financial risk, the less important that is, but it becomes increasingly important when the financial investment rises.
With all that said, it’s important to know who your audience is, what they are looking for and where they do their research. By knowing this, you will have a much higher probability of capturing them where they are while they are going about their daily business.
If you need any help creating a video that captures attention and converts to sales, please feel free to reach out to us and we’d be happy to answer any questions.
561.800.2105
