Posted on

8 Powerful Ways Video Improves Your Marketing Strategy in 2025

Business Video Marketing Strategy. Important to add people blog post thumbnail.

Business Success = Business Video in 2025

A business video is no longer optional—it’s a cornerstone of any successful marketing strategy.  We covered that in our last post about how video has become the new business card for business. As we move into 2025, video content continues to dominate, accounting for 82% of all internet traffic (Cisco). Customers now expect this as a primary way to interact with brands, whether to learn about a product, understand a service, or get a behind-the-scenes look. Here are seven reasons why video is a must for your business this year.

1. Marketing Strategy: Build Trust with a Human Touch with a Business Video

Trust is the foundation of any successful business relationship, and video is one of the most effective ways to establish it. Customers are looking for authenticity—they want to see the people behind the brand, not just a faceless logo or a cartoon. Video can be one of the best tools in your marketing strategy.

A heartfelt message from your CEO, a behind-the-scenes tour of your operations, or even a quick introduction to your team can make your business feel more relatable. According to research, 70% of consumers feel more confident about a purchase after watching a video (Wyzowl). When you put a face to your brand, you create a sense of connection that text or static images just do not achieve.

For example: A tutoring school might create a series of content introducing their tutors, showcasing their personalities and expertise. What parent wouldn’t want to see and hear what their child’s tutor is like before connecting them? This makes potential customers feel comfortable before even stepping through the door.

2. Communicate Quickly and Effectively via your Marketing Strategy

Attention spans are shrinking, and competition for your audience’s time is fierce. Video allows you to communicate complex ideas faster and more effectively than text or images alone. In fact, viewers retain 95% of a message compared to just 10% through text (InVideo).

A short, well-produced video can condense pages of information into an engaging, easy-to-understand visual story. Whether you’re marketing strategy explains a product feature, introduces a new service, or shares customer success stories, video helps your message land quickly and stick.

Tip: Use video to simplify technical concepts. For example, a software company might create explainers to walk users through their product’s functionality step-by-step.

3. Education = Influence

When you educate your customer, they begin to trust you. When you add value to their lives by teaching them something they didn’t know you are in a position of authority and integrity. Teaching them something new in an exciting way like video, you can help them make future decisions. When you position yourself in a position of educating and teaching, it’s obvious who they’ll remember when they need more information or when it comes time to make a purchase. It’s another powerful form of creating trust. Here’s an example:

 

4. Demonstrate Products with Clarity

Customers are increasingly reliant on video to understand how products or services work before they buy. According to Google, 55% of shoppers use online video while shopping in-store to learn more about a product (Google Shopping Trends).

Videos allow you to highlight features, demonstrate functionality, and answer common questions visually. This is particularly useful for products that require some assembly, comparison, or a bit of explanation…and likely reduces the amount of returns the retailer or manufacturer might incur.

For example: Think about the power of an unboxing video. An e-commerce brand selling tech gadgets can create professional unboxing videos to show customers exactly what they’re getting, how to set it up, and what makes it special.

5. Strong Sales Tool: Let Your Customers Do the Talking

Customer testimonials. are the best way to build credibility, and video takes them to the next level. Seeing and hearing real customers share their experiences with your product or service adds an emotional layer that text testimonials lack. The tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language make the story more relatable and memorable.

Testimonials work well in industries where trust is critical, such as healthcare, finance, or professional services. They can also provide social proof that others like your potential customers have succeeded by choosing you. In the nonprofit world, we’ve seen huge donations as a result of a very thankful recipient of a nonprofit’s service helped them in a difficult time.

Tip: Capture a happy customer in a 30-second clip describing the problem they faced, how your business helped, and the results they achieved because of your help. Keep it authentic—scripted testimonials can feel less trustworthy.

6. Boost Your Online Visibility: Video Marketing

Search engines love video, and so do social media platforms. Including it on your website can improve your search rankings significantly, making it easier for potential customers to find you. According to HubSpot, including a video on a landing page can increase conversion rates by 80% HubSpot.

In addition to improving SEO, videos are highly shareable. Social media platforms prioritize this type of content in their algorithms, giving your posts a better chance of being seen. If you are looking to expand your reach, this is a powerful tool for visibility.

Quick tip: Optimize by adding relevant keywords to titles, descriptions, and tags. For example, if it is about how to use video marketing to grow your business, include that phrase in the title and meta description.

7. Marketing Strategy: Drive Conversions and Sales

Videos don’t just grab attention—they drive action. Whether your goal is to get a visitor to sign up for a newsletter, schedule a consultation, or make a purchase, this type of content can guide them toward that decision. A well-crafted one can move viewers through the sales funnel, from awareness to decision-making, more effectively than any other medium.

It also seems that most customers prefer to learn about a product or service through video, and those who watch product videos tend to be much more likely to purchase. The reason? It helps them feel confident they’re making the right choice. They can make an intelligent decision.

Example: For an online retailer, adding product videos to your e-commerce site can reduce returns by helping customers understand what they’re buying upfront.

8. Personalize Experiences and Reach the Right Audience

In 2024, consumers expect personalized interactions with brands, and video is one of the most effective ways to deliver them. With advancements in data-driven marketing and AI, you can create content tailored to specific segments of your audience—whether it’s addressing their unique needs, interests, or pain points. You can do this by driving target audiences to different content that speak to each of their needs.

For instance, personalized video emails have been shown to increase click-through rates by up to 300% (VidYard). Similarly, targeting niche audiences with custom content on platforms like YouTube or LinkedIn allows you to speak directly to the decision-makers who matter most.

Live streams, interactive videos, and dynamic ads can engage users with content that feels relevant to them, fostering deeper connections and better results.

Pro Tip: For example, if you run a fitness brand, you might create separate content for beginners, advanced athletes, or those interested in yoga versus strength training.

Start Creating Video Content Today Video is no longer just an option for businesses—it’s a necessity. Whether you want to build trust, explain your services, or drive sales, video is the tool that delivers results. Ready to get started? We can help you create professional, impactful content tailored to your audience.

 

Related Articles: 

How to Measure Video Marketing Success? 13 Useful Metrics

How Promotional Video Can Grow A Professional Services Business

3 Mistakes that Business Make Related to Video

Posted on

7 Video Marketing Strategies That Work: Empower Your Brand

Video Marketing Strategies Essentials

How to Integrate Video Content into Your Marketing Strategies Effectively

Video content has become a cornerstone of many successful marketing strategies, particularly for large organizations looking to capture and engage audiences. Executives and marketing leaders now recognize the impact that video can have on their brand’s visibility and consumer engagement.

For companies with annual revenues exceeding $25 million, the strategic integration of video content into marketing efforts isn’t just an option; it’s imperative for staying competitive and relevant.

Understand Your Video Objectives to Enhance Related Strategies

Before diving into the production of any video content, it’s critical to define what you want to achieve. Are you looking to increase brand awareness, or is your goal more about conversion and lead generation? Perhaps you aim to educate your audience about your products or services, or you need to enhance your customer support with explainers.

Each objective will dictate a different approach in style, messaging, and distribution channels. For executives deciding on a strategic level, aligning video objectives with business goals ensures that investments in your content yield measurable returns.

Analyze Your Audience

Understanding who you are targeting is key. Large organizations often serve diverse markets, and video content should be tailored to the specific demographics, preferences, and behaviors of different audience segments. Analyze your current customer base and use data-driven insights to create buyer personas.

For each persona, consider what type of content would be most engaging, whether it’s a high-energy promotional video, a detailed product demonstration, or a behind-the-scenes look at your company culture. Remember, a one-size-fits-all approach rarely works in personalized marketing.

Develop a Content Calendar Within All Strategies

Third, consistency is key in maintaining the attention of your audience and maximizing the impact of your video marketing efforts. Develop a content calendar that schedules content releases throughout the year. This should align with key business events, product launches, or seasonal peaks in your industry.

For social media experts at large companies, this calendar will help coordinate video content with social media campaigns, ensuring consistent messaging across all platforms.

Choose the Right Production Partner

For those considering hiring a video production company, choosing the right partner is critical. The ideal company should not only have technical expertise but also a profound understanding of corporate marketing dynamics. They should be able to offer innovative ideas that perhaps challenge traditional norms but still resonate with your target markets.

A good partner will help you navigate the complexities of video production, from concept development through to execution, ensuring that the final product is polished, professional, and on-brand.

Leverage Multi-Channel Distribution

Having a multi-channel distribution strategy is essential. This involves more than just uploading to YouTube; it means strategically placing your content across multiple platforms where your audience is most active, including social media, your company website, email newsletters, and even paid advertising channels. Each platform may require different formats or messaging tweaks to optimize engagement and effectiveness.

Measure and Optimize

Next, to maximize the impact of your video marketing strategy, it’s important to establish standardized metrics for measurement and engage in continual optimization.

Start by defining clear key performance indicators (KPIs) that align with your original objectives—whether those are increasing brand awareness, improving engagement, or driving conversions. Common KPIs include views, engagement rates (likes, comments, shares), watch time, and click-through rates.

Utilize advanced analytics tools to track these metrics across all platforms where your content is distributed. This includes not only social media and YouTube but also embedded on your corporate website and within email marketing campaigns. By integrating analytics with your broader marketing data, you gain a comprehensive view of how video influences your marketing funnel.

Analyzing performance data allows you to identify which ones resonate most with your audience and why. Look at the correlation between video content and user behavior—do certain topics, formats, or lengths drive more engagement or conversions? Use A/B testing to experiment with different aspects of your content, such as headlines, calls to action, and even thumbnails, to see what maximizes viewer interaction.

Furthermore, it is also crucial to assess the qualitative feedback from your audience. Monitor direct feedback to gauge sentiment and gather insights into viewer preferences and expectations. This qualitative data can be invaluable in refining your content strategy to better meet the needs and interests of your audience.

Lastly, ensure that your optimization efforts are repeatable. Video marketing is not a set-and-forget strategy but a dynamic component of your broader marketing ecosystem. Regular reviews of your content’s performance should inform ongoing strategic adjustments, helping you adapt to changing consumer trends and technological advancements.

A proactive approach to measurement and optimization will help solidify video as a cornerstone of your marketing strategy, driving sustained engagement and business growth.

Educate Your Team About Your Strategies

For organizations looking to replace an internal team or contemplating between hiring an in-house expert versus an external agency, it’s important to educate your existing marketing team about the benefits and processes of video marketing. Training sessions, workshops, or even collaborating with experienced video marketers can elevate your team’s capabilities and ensure everyone understands how this content fits into the broader marketing strategy.

Final Thought

For businesses, particularly those with significant revenues, integrating video content strategically into marketing efforts is not just about keeping up with trends. It’s about taking a proactive approach to engage customers, enhance brand perception, and drive business growth.

By understanding your objectives, knowing your audience, planning content strategically, choosing the right production partner, leveraging multi-channel distribution, continuously measuring impact, and educating your team, you can ensure that your content serves as a powerful tool in your marketing arsenal.

 

Related Articles

Four Strategies for Video Marketing on LinkedIn

Improving Your Marketing Strategy

SEM Rush: Video Marketing Tips

5 Reasons To Include Video in Your Marketing Plan & Strategy

Posted on

3 Mistakes that Business Make Related to Video

3 Mistakes Businesses Make in Video

3 Mistakes That Business Make Related to Video

Why Is This Important?

Video is an indispensable tool in the corporate arsenal, serving to engage audiences, showcase brand strength, and simplify the delivery of complex business messages. Yet, the journey from concept to execution is fraught with potential pitfalls that can undermine a project’s success. This guide identifies three common mistakes made in video production, explores why these errors occur, and outlines multiple strategies for each, ensuring your video content achieves its intended impact.

Undefined Video Objectives

Overview

A frequent oversight is entering into a video project without clearly defined objectives. This lack of direction can lead to content that fails to address any specific audience needs or business goals, resulting in poor engagement and wasted resources. Videos created without specific goals tend to lack focus, resulting in content that neither resonates with the target audience nor meets business needs effectively. This can lead to viewer disengagement and diminished returns on investment.

Why It Happens

Businesses often rush the pre-production phase due to tight deadlines or underestimation of the planning required. This haste leads to vague, unfocused video content that may lead to failure before it even begins.

Solutions

Strategic Planning Session: Before any filming begins, conduct a preproduction meeting to map out the video’s purpose, determine what must be included, what can be excluded, etc. The reason we mention what can be excluded is that sometimes saying everything is like saying nothing. No information will be retained by the viewer if there’s too much information.

In the meeting, the focus should be on deciding whether it’s for brand awareness, lead generation, or customer education.  Doing this early in the process guides the remaining production choices.

Consult with Stakeholders: Engage various stakeholders within the company, including marketing teams, sales departments, and executive leadership, to align the video’s goals with broader business objectives.

Set Measurable Targets: Define what success looks like for the project. Whether it’s views, shares, or direct leads, having measurable targets helps focus the video’s content and allows for success evaluation post-release.

Ignoring the Target Audience

Overview

Videos that fail to consider the specific preferences and challenges of their intended audience often miss the mark, leading to disengagement and ineffective communication. Videos that are not audience-specific can come across as generic or irrelevant, failing to engage viewers or inspire action.

Why It Happens

There can be a disconnect between the video creators and the actual market needs, often due to insufficient research or a one-size-fits-all approach to content creation. Sometimes an unclear target audience description or needs analysis is causing this.

Solutions

Successful video content speaks directly to its audience’s interests, needs, and challenges.

Audience Research: Invest significant time in understanding your audience’s demographics, preferences, and pain points. Tools like surveys, social media analytics, and customer feedback provide valuable insights. The more you can speak to these during the preproduction meeting, the better.

Persona Development: Create detailed buyer personas that represent your typical audience needs. Tailoring your messaging and presentation styles to these personas can greatly enhance the video’s relevance and appeal. Speak to your audience’s preference, pain points, and typical online behavior. Use this data to craft videos that address these aspects using their tone and some visuals that resonate with their demographic.

A/B Testing: Experiment with different versions of your video with small segments of your audience to determine which resonates the most. This feedback is crucial for fine-tuning the final product.

Compromising on Production Quality

Overview

Skimping on production quality can tarnish your brand’s image and send a message of unprofessionalism, significantly affecting the video’s reception and effectiveness. Poor quality (audio or visual) can severely undermine the perceived value of your brand and message. It’s too competitive out there, don’t let your branding quality remove you from competing.

Why It Happens

Budget constraints or a lack of understanding about the importance of high-quality production standards can lead businesses to cut corners. Ultimately, the client is in control, but our job is to ensure quality is as high as possible.

Solutions

Hire Professionally: Even with limited budgets, using high-quality video production teams who have the proper equipment for the production phase can make a substantial difference.

Skilled Professionals: Hiring experienced videographers, directors, and editors can elevate the production value of your video, enhancing its professional appeal. This applies to the quality of items like clear audio, stable and high-definition visuals, good lighting, and professional editing. These items, together, elevate the viewer’s experience and enhancing the credibility and appeal of your content.

Post-Production Focus: Allocate sufficient resources to editing, which can significantly improve the quality of the final video, making even less-than-perfect footage look exceptional. This is where the magic happens and where we believe we stand out.

Conclusion: Easy Fixes to these Mistakes

Navigating the complexities of video production requires a keen understanding of what can go wrong and how to steer clear of these pitfalls. By defining clear objectives, deeply understanding your audience, and refusing to compromise on quality, your business can produce compelling, impactful video content. Reflect on these questions to further enhance your approach:

  • How can we better integrate video content into our overall marketing strategy?
  • What are the latest trends in video production that we should consider for future projects?
  • How do we measure the success of our videos more effectively to ensure continuous improvement?

By considering these questions, businesses can not only avoid common mistakes but also continuously elevate their video production efforts to better meet their strategic goals.

 

Related Content: 

Don’t Think You Need to Invest In Video? Time and Again We Help Businesses Avoid These Mistakes!

Improving Your Marketing Strategy

Mistakes Video Creators Should Avoid

Posted on

How Promotional Video Can Grow A Professional Services Business

Promotional Video for Professional Services

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.

Related Articles: 

How To Be A Disrupter in Your Industry – Killer Video

3 Surprising Elements of a Successful Business Video Project

Elevate Your Brand With Video

What is a Professional Services Business?

Posted on

Elevate Your Brand With Video

Elevate Your Business with Corporate Video Production

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.

Successful Corporate Video - Plum Productions

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!

 

Related Posts and Information:

What Should Be In A Business Video?

How to Make a Corporate Video Production Successful

4 Beneficial Videos To Promote a Professional Service

Video Production

Posted on

Best Restaurant Video Ideas

Best Restaurant Video Ideas - drinks

You’re here because you likely asked yourself how to create a restaurant video or should I create a restaurant video.

In the restaurant business, there are essentially four ways to increase your sales:

Restaurant Video Idea for New Trial

Marketing activities related to new trial are used to acquire new customers. One way to get new customers is through referrals or recommendations. Getting a recommendation from a friend is one of the top ways to increase new trials. So how does video fit into this? Consider this:

One way is to send an email campaign to your current customers asking them if they like the restaurant enough to share their experience with their friends. The location should craft a message (let us know if you need help) that informs the viewer what it is they should do to share their experience. Is it do a review on Google or Yelp or TripAdvisor? Is it forward this message to a friend? There are several more, but you get the point.

Ask your customers to create their own video or photo and post it to your social media page (you’ll be monitoring, of course). Ask them to tag their friend when they do. If the friend shows up at the restaurant, ask them to show you the video and their name…give them a special price, dish, or drink. You’ll get the whole town talking about you.

Restaurant Video Idea for Building Frequency

Now it’s time to get them back in the door. Your image and reputation are critical. Before you can expect someone to return, it is important that the dining room, the kitchen, and the bar all performed to the expectation of your customer. Before they leave, you probably already asked them what they would have improved about their experience. This is important later, in your marketing materials, because you’ll want to focus your message on the things people were positive about while you work to improve items that detracted from their experience.

If you’re a large scale operation, it can be tough to get good feedback. It is critical to get email addresses from your customers to answer a survey. Keep it simple. Add a layer to this tactic by creating a video with a message of, “We want to know what you thought of us… and please be honest” can significantly increase the likelihood of getting the survey filled out. Make sure you ask about their food and beverage experience individually and collectively. Try to keep the survey to less than 2 minutes to fill out.

Incredible customer service always brings them back. Consider a quick service restaurant where each meal is made to order. What if you noticed a person coming back after their first time. The staff should recognize this, thank them for returning and ask them if they’d like to try the same meal they did yesterday with the same toppings…and list them. You’d have to jot notes down the day or two before when they came in but if you rattled off their favorite toppings before they ordered, they’d be impressed! That’s full service for your customer!

Restaurant Video Idea for Increasing the Check Size

Create a secret menu only the staff knows about. This menu should contain a drink, side, or topping that matches the flavor profile (and costs a little extra). Every dollar counts in the restaurant business, and by suggesting a drink or side dish because they taste so good together, the average check size increases.

Enter video. Your advertising should match that concept. we’ve never seen a restaurant commercial with a single item focus…there’s always a matching side dish or drink. Need help creating the right flavor profile and video? We can help you there too!

Restaurant Video Idea for Increasing the Party Size

Technically, you’re in the entertainment industry. So you should be the place to bring friends. Encourage it often…with every couple or group of four: “Please bring your friends next time.” Perhaps it’s a coupon that is for parties of 6 or more or it’s an advertisement that suggests that parties of six or more “Have more fun and get a free appetizer to get you started!” The ideas are limitless when it comes to how to increase the party size and every one of them can be supported by a video.

When it is time to ramp up the sales after we’ve come out of quarantine, let us know which area you’d like to focus on and we’ll help you get it done with video.

Related Articles:

6 Qualities To Look For In A Great Video Production Company

Types of Video for Business

Image by bridgesward from Pixabay

Posted on

Hotel Video Production Marketing Strategy

hotel video production, woman at resort hotel pool with drink

Hotel Video Production

Are you worried about how to fill the rooms? Are you unhappy with your online reputation? Do you have a desire to improve the online engagement levels with your website? Have you been anguishing over trying to get the rooms to look exactly how a guest will find them when they arrive, but you haven’t been able to create a strong marketing campaign that shows a potential guest what they can expect. Should you use hotel video production strategies to fill the rooms?

Sometimes pictures are enough, sometimes they are not.

We’ve got you covered. In this post, we’re going to share with you how creating the right marketing plan and business strategy can incorporate solving several of the above issues. Hotel video production and marketing involves several facets of activity like social media marketing, online advertisements, print, billboard, and other levels of marketing that will drive traffic to your hotel.

We’re sure you’ve done focus groups and have learned about the needs of your guests and you’ve reviewed the Ps of Marketing, but we’d like to suggest that there are a few elements that may have been missed. Potential customers obviously want to know what the location looks like, but do pictures clearly show and/or explain your products or services. Do they do it adequately enough that one would not be surprised when traveling. When we travel, we’re often surprised by the difference in photos an the actual location.

Every aspect of the tourism industry should be maximizing video to their advantage. Here’s why. When someone plans a trip to places like Boca Raton, Palm Beach, Naples, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, or Key West, they do a lot of research.

Just like you do marketing research, their research includes things like what does the hotel look like? What do the amenities look like? What about the room, what should I expect to see and feel when I enter the room? Video shows people all the elements that are important to them.

What is the Marketing Process to Maximize Sales?

If you want to attract more guests to your hotel, you’ll want to show off the grounds, the rooms, the amenities and use social media platforms to increase the likelihood of being found by a potential guest during their search. When you define your marketing to incorporate what your guests want, they’re more likely to buy. While product price can impact a guests decision, if they see, hear, and feel the value, they are more likely to spend a little more to enjoy their vacation.

Reputation is critical in the hotel business. Hotels rarely survive a long-term negative leaning review score. No amount of advertising or video can offset poor scores. If the reputation is bad it’s time to make some operational improvements and hold off on any sales and marketing activities. You’ll only make more people mad by having them show up and be disappointed.

The process of maximizing sales is in a strong process. The process should include high quality video, appropriate placement with an appropriate spend and help potential guests understand what it is they’re looking at and why they should book your hotel for their next vacation.

Loyalty, Engagement, and Services – Fort Lauderdale Hotels

Marketing includes featuring a locations strength to their advantage. If you are a Fort Lauderdale hotel that has luxurious amenities, a relaxing and beautiful spa or an impeccable golf course, it’s critical to showcase that. If you have nearby attractions or nightlife that is important to the attractiveness of your hotel, show that too. Does your food stand head and shoulders above your competitors? You should feature Instagram-worthy video of your specialties.

Hotel Video Production: Increase Hotel Loyalty Using Video

Marketing can refer to reinforcing a positive visit. What if after a guest leaves, they receive a personalized standardized (yes…do both) video that thanks them for visiting. What if you had several videos that were at your disposal to email after their departure that mentioned an amenity or service they used?

What if they used your spa and the video you send to them afterward mentions that you’re glad they were able to use the spa and that you hoped they enjoyed their experience. How powerful is that? Would they know it wasn’t made specifically for them but that it was made only for those who visited the spa? You have the data, use it!

If you’re wondering how to make these things happen and more (yes, we have a lot of ideas related to improving loyalty and reputation), we’d be happy to talk about it with you. Give us a call and we’d be happy to work through all of these areas with you. As a South Florida video production company, we’ve seen and been a part of a lot.

The hotel/hospitality business can be frustrating, but it can also be rewarding. If you’re struggling to figure out how you should be using video, let us help you by working through our marketing strategy session and let us craft a plan with you. You control the direction, we’ll provide the creative that works.

 

Image by Engin Akyurt from Pixabay

Posted on

How to Produce and Execute Creative Video Marketing

Creative video marketing

Creative Video Marketing

If you’re looking to add digital marketing to your campaign or advertising mix, one of the elements that will float to the top in terms of importance is creative video marketing. In this blog post we share our thoughts on creating the right marketing mix and the right creative marketing video to produce the results you’re after. First, let’s talk a little background. If you already know this, you can always skip ahead to our thoughts on the How To’s below.

What is Video Marketing?

Video Marketing is simply the creating and using video to promote a product or service via various marketing channels (such as social media and broadcast, etc.). Typically video marketing incorporates an educational component directed to a specific target audience and a call to action.

Why is Creative Video Marketing Important?

The year 2020 will become the year that video reaches a new level of importance for businesses of all sizes. Businesses will start to incorporate video into their overall advertising and marketing strategy. If your business has a marketing team, they should have incorporated a video marketing strategy into their overall strategy.

One of our predictions in 2020 is that video will become so important that several businesses will be adding a video editor to their team. Sometimes this is the right move. Sometimes it isn’t. We say this because we have worked with several businesses who simply tell their employees what to do without a long-term strategy or purpose. Any video marketing campaign must have a purpose or it will simply be a waste of money. We hate to see companies waste money.

We did a little research and found that “more than 50% of consumers want to see videos from brands … more than any other content.” (Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/video-marketing). And, our clients tell us that conversion rates increase dramatically when video is present on landing pages or product landing pages. If you want to improve click through rate and conversion, you simply have to incorporate video into the mix. Whether its an explainer video, social media or customer testimonial, video is valuable to the consumer or buyer. These build trust and convert.

What Are Some Types of Creative Video Marketing: 

Before you hire a video production company you’ll want to have a general idea of what type you want to create. There are several and not all are right for every occasion. Imagine arriving on a landing page and finding an educational video…how would that impact the potential sale? Probably very little, but if a testimonial video was there, you’d notice an impact. Here are a few examples:

    • About Us / Branding / Corporate Introduction Video. These videos typically help the viewer understand who you are as a corporation or how a product works. This is usually used once the prospect has arrived on your page (landing or otherwise). These videos are also important tools for a larger, over-arching branding or advertising campaign. The goal is usually to increase awareness of your company or product. A good example of Corporate Introduction or Branding Video is this one.
  • Blog, Educational, How-To, or Word Videos. These types are used to teach the viewer a new topic or idea. Why would you want to do that? The better they understand the topic, the more they want to learn. The more they want to learn, the more they might realize they don’t know and need to hire a professional. These videos are usually used to demonstrate knowledge or professionalism and build additional trust before a purchase or call. This is also referred to as content marketing, where the person on camera wishes to be viewed as an expert in his or her industry. By the way, search engines love this type of content because you’re helping people learn more about a topic. Here’s an old example of one we did many years ago. It stands the test of time!
  • Interviews. Sometimes interviewing the office expert can demonstrate a level of knowledge that your competitors can’t show. If you have someone that is called on industry-wide because they have been doing it for so long, this might be the right type of video to display.
  • Explainer videos. These are a step beyond the educational style because they go beyond helping people learn a tidbit of information, this video might include a longer storyline that helps the viewer understand how something will help them or where they can visualize themselves with the problem and how to get it solved.
  • These have become rather popular in the past couple of years. When we get calls about animation, we hear that people think these are much cheaper than live action video production, but that isn’t always the case. For example, you can use something like Toonly or Doodly to create reasonably inexpensive (even cheap!) animations, but they’re usually for very small budgets. (By the way, if you want to try them out, use the links above and we’ll get a small commission without costing you anything extra!) When someone wants to create something more realistic or true-to-form, an animation can be about the same as a small live action production; therefore, depending on what you’re looking to create, always consider both options when it makes sense. Sometimes it is more difficult to show something live action than to animate it…that’s when we recommend animation. It saves you time, money, and headaches later!
  • Client Testimonials / Case Studies. Sometimes prospects want to know proof of concept. Rather than having to show them what you’ll do for them, show them what you’ve done for others in a similar situation. We recommend using your actual clients who were happy with your results to provide you with an on camera testimonial or have them walk the viewer through a case study. Either way, the viewer needs to understand the problem they faced and how you helped solve the problem.
  • Behind the scenes. Do you do something that is cool to see or hard to imagine? Sometimes give people a peek behind the curtain can make them want to be involved. For example, manufacturing doors can be pretty boring, but what if you manufactured high-end doors? Wouldn’t it be cool to see the process and how the magic happens? This might be one of those times a behind the scenes video would work well.
  • Social media. Our recommendation is to produce one or more of the above and create shorter social videos to share on the various platforms. If you a create one of the above options, always have the production team edit a short version for social media. By doing so, you can give a tease to what you are doing/showing and make them want to watch more on your landing page or home page. Find out if there is interest by getting them to take steps closer to making a call, such as coming to visit your website.

So now the question is which one do you want to produce and why? If you work with us, we’ll help clarify which one to create and why. There are other variations of the above video too, so don’t think you’re limited to one of the above.

Once you’ve decided, you’ll need to decide on who will shoot it. We obviously would recommend hiring a professional for this (and maybe that’s why you’re reading this article) but you might also be able to shoot it yourself. If that’s the case, you might want to take a look at our creative director’s YouTube Channel for ideas on how and what to shoot. If you’re looking for a crew and don’t know where to start, you might consider using our checklist of things to know before you hire a professional video production crew. It contains tips and questions to ask before you hire them.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions or just want some ideas! We love coming up with awesome content ideas for our clients!

 

Related Posts: 

6 Qualities To Look For In A Great Video Production Company

Best Restaurant Video Ideas

Simple Video Blog Ideas

Posted on

How to Generate Sales Leads with Video

sales, handshake

Investing in video may or may not be a difficult decision. Some think of video as a tool in a larger process to help prospects work their way to a purchase. Others think of video as a line item expense that must have a return on the investment. Both are technically correct, but which one you are can determine if you view video as a good thing or simply an expense (therefore a waste of time and money). In this post, we’ll consider both and how to use video to generate sales leads.

Video as a Tool

If you view video as a tool, you’re probably one step ahead of your competition already. You know that it is necessary to make a solid connection with your prospect and may even know how to use video to guide them through the process. While you might still consider video production a line item on the P&L, you also recognize there isn’t always a direct correlation between watching a video and making a purchase, except in certain circumstances. For example, product videos on product pages have been tested and found to have a strong correlation to purchase intent and making a purchase (source: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/EJM-11-2016-0619/full/html). Those who believe video is a tool in a greater process of marketing also understand that it is more difficult to measure the impact of a video advertisement when use as a YouTube ad or on broadcast television. It’s difficult because the viewer can’t be directly tracked when they call (except by some savvy video marketers who do it right by using specific phone numbers in their videos, etc.). What video does is reinforces the several other tools being used to get a potential buyer to heed a call to action and make the call.

Video as an Expense

On the other hand, if you believe that video is simply an expense and must have an ROI, you feel like every dollar spent must retrieve a multiple in return. This is a great way to ensure success, but it can also be a difficult way to grow a business. When we grew as a company, we knew we had to invest in some high-quality equipment. We borrowed a little money and invested it into a high-quality 4K camera and other equipment. While this was difficult to do at the time and it showed no direct return on investment; however, it has provided us with high-quality footage that helps us stand apart from our competitor…thus nudging the prospect one step closer to giving us a call. Is there a direct correlation? No, but that camera has made Plum successful and allowed us to grow. This is something that is difficult to measure. The same goes with video content.

How to Use Video to Generate Sales Leads

The ultimate goal of generating sales leads is obtaining contact information (such as an email address), bringing a buyer to a landing page, and bringing the prospect to the sales team. While you can achieve this via text-based pages, the conversion rate may not be as high as a highly interactive or engaging lead generation process. By creating video, you will begin the prospect on a journey to discovering their needs and ultimately giving you (or someone else) a call. The next question might be, “What video do I need to create?” Whether it’s a YouTube video, a video for your website, or a video series, it must be interactive. Let’s explore the types of video you should consider for your business. Below are the types of issues you might be trying to resolve along with the type of video that will help you illustrate that you can solve it.

Trust and Confidence. Typically, people or businesses trying to build trust and confidence are the professional services field. These individuals are trying to illustrate how they can achieve goals for their clients and want to do so with a high level of authenticity. Videos that can capture the individual’s genuine personality are videos like Testimonial, About Us, and Meet Me videos. These videos usually include the person or people involved in the process achieving the client’s goals. They introduce the viewer to the people involved, explain what they bring to the job that’s special, highlight experience and credentials, and include personal details to help the viewer feel comfortable and connected.

Establishing Credibility. If you’re trying to accomplish this, you’ll want to explain why you’re covering the topic, talk to the viewer, and leave them wanting more. This type of video is typically a case study video, explainer video, product demo video, or advice video blog.

Product Explanation. A product or service that is a little more complex and requires some more detail typically needs a product demonstration video. These videos typically explain why the product exists, highlight specific components of the product, and show the end result or effectiveness of the product. These videos can be highly effective the more complex the product or service.

Recruitment. If you’re trying to recruit more and better talent to the organization, you might try a Culture video or a Position Profile video. A culture video will provide the viewer with a strong sense of what it’s like to work at the company. The position profile video is like combining a job description and job posting while showing some of the important elements of the job. Be very explicit that you are hiring and be sure to include specific details about benefits. Most of all, make it fun! Lastly, these get the best results when shared via social networks and social media. You might even be able to create this using some existing video you already have!

If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to us! We’d be happy to answer any questions!

Posted on

What To Do To Maximize Your Investment In Video Production

return on investment in video

Regardless of your financial goals, there are several steps you’ll want to take to maximize your investment in video production. You’ll need to consider time, money, and resources before and after you start. We know its common to hear that your company should be using video to leverage your business growth. If you aren’t using it by now, you might be leaving some money on the table. The key is knowing where you want to use your video and how you do it. In this post, we’ll share some common issues and problems that people face when maximizing ROI.

Common Issues that Affect Your Investment in Video

Too Many Options

Too Many Production Companies. If you’ve never created video before, you’ll find you have hundreds of options to choose from in terms of video production companies.

Content Ideas. The next issue will be what you want to create. Do you want to create a marketing video? Social media video? Product video? There are several ways to slice up marketing content that it can quickly become overwhelming.

Where to Place It. The next issue will be where to place the video (or videos). Very quickly, you’ll learn there are thousands of places to publish your video…and each one will have their own reason for doing so. All of this shouldn’t stop you from deciding to move forward. It’ll be worth it.

Getting More From Your Investment in Professional Video

Who is Your Audience?

Think about something you’ve watched in the past that really resonated with you. Why did it? It might have been because it was about something you wanted to learn or know more about, the person speaking was personable and they may have described the world you see in a similar way. Maybe they spoke in terms or jargon you’re comfortable with. Or maybe they had the same or similar personality as you. When creating your video, you’ll want to know who your audience is, what they like or dislike, what they need to know, why they need to know it and how they like to be spoken to. Use that information to compile the viewer’s demographics, location, where they consume information, and what social media outlets they view most. The more you know about them, the better you can speak to them.

Your Viewers

  • There are several types of personas that you might be speaking to, for example, you might be dealing with a “Give me the information, get out of my way, and let me decide” type of person. This might be someone who is at the top of the corporate structure, like a CEO or similar level.
  • You might also be speaking to someone who is more interested in learning about how your customers feel about you. They might want to read or see more reviews about the business. These are the ones who need to obtain verification that they are making the right decision. They like to include others in their decision making and reviews are a good way to get this information.
  • Another common viewer might be a detailed, technical type. They want facts, figures, and as much data as possible to make the decision to pick up the phone to call. This type of person needs to have support data incorporated into the video so they can make an appropriate decision.

Regardless of the type of viewer you’re reaching out to, you’ll want to craft a message that taps every type of personality possible. Perhaps there is a way to show and describe important information to a couple of personality types at the same time. Use all of this information to craft a solid script. We typically take care of script writing for you, but, we work with all types of clients; some who like to do it themselves and some who want to have someone take care of it for them. The next step will be to craft a solid shot list that must be captured to illustrate what is being said and targets each persona.

The Video Production Process

The video production process contains several components: pre production, the shoot, post production, and delivery. During the pre production stage, you’ll deal with the persona, the long term goals of the video, and what video content that should be created. Investment goals are important before we start so we know what needs to be set aside for the production and what needs to be set aside for the placement of the video(s). During the shoot, we’ll deal with the shot list, the camera operator, the equipment, the location, and any talent that is important (whether it be from the team or hired talent). Finally, during the editing process, we’ll deal with the video editor and any post production items required to complete the project.

So what is the key to maximizing your ROI? We find that clients who work with us to understand why they’re creating the video, where they plan to use, and how they plan to place, we can help streamline that process to improve their ROI. When clients can’t answer these questions or don’t want to share this information, there can be a little hiccups and changes along the way that can increase costs…not because we want to, but because we didn’t know something and had to backtrack or make significant changes. We write this to share with you so we can prevent this from happening to you.

 

Related Articles

How to Generate Sales Leads with Video

Does Video Provide an ROI?

4 Ways to Boost Your Video Marketing Return on Investment