Get More Sales From
Your Videos
Are videos a waste of money?
Investing in video production can be a scary prospect. This decision requires a minimal amount of knowledge in marketing and advertising. Unfortunately, most small business owners do not have a minimal amount of marketing and advertising knowledge. This can make investing in video a difficult decision. Some business owners see the video expense that must have a direct ROI. Others believe that it will influence their market to buy their product or buy it faster. Finally, some of them just want to be on camera. The obstacle for almost all small business owners is getting passed the sticker shock of what a professional video costs. Learn more about the cost of a video here.
Videos as a sales tool - expansive school of thought
If you see video production through the lens of having greater influence in the marketplace, a few things will probably happen easily for you. You will have a great experience during the production process, you will spend a bit more money on the production, you will receive an incalculable return, and it will become part of your marketing arsenal. Measuring the impact of a video is like anything else. How you use it will determine the quality of the data. If you simply post it on Facebook and watch the activity, you will get one level of data. If you place that video on a landing page, pipe it into Google Analytics with a CTA on the page, you will get an entirely different data set. However, what we really want to know is what emotions does the video elicit from you buyers. We will get into this later in the article.
Videos as a liability - retractive school of thought
Conversely, if you see video production as simply some outrageous expense that you can do without, you are probably not a good candidate for video production. It really comes down to understanding why people buy. Business owners who do not have the ability to bridge the abstract into the literal are often chained to the dogmatic view, a dollar spent must return a dollar + X. Not a winning a strategy if you want to accelerate your growth.
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I tell my account people who try to push resistant prospects into buying our services, “You cannot invent value in someone’s head.” That means, any price for these services will feel too high for these people. These types of clients are reluctant to pay, they can be extremely uncooperative, and they often attempt to devalue the work as a negotiation tactic. We have found this group of people are toxic, and if this is you…feel free to disengage.
How to use video to generate sales leads
Using video to generate sales leads is not much different than using any other promotional tool. Most forms of advertising have phone numbers and web addresses contained within the ad. Print, billboards, busses, radio, TV, direct mail etc. Not much to learn here. However, what has changed with the internet is, people are likely to investigate your company before contacting you. Here are some steps you can take to make your video
Decide on what type of video is appropriate to make
THE EXPERT VIDEO - this video shows your buyers that you are an expert in your field and that you can be trusted to solve the problem that your product or service promises. These videos usually take the form of an interview, or shot documentary film.
THE PRODUCT & SERVICE VIDEO – Product and service videos come in all shapes and sizes. The most common is you typical promotional ad. These can be very powerful in the context of television or when streaming other content. However, a new type of product video has emerged. It is a product video that tells a story of how people benefit of from your product. This can be a simple as a testimonial reel, or a scripted short film.
THE SOCIAL MEDIA VIDEO - Customarily social media videos are shorter video of the previous two. They are cut short, hit hard, and are designed to invoke curiosity. However, we believe that creating a completely different idea for social media may be a better approach. Penetrating through that noise could be difficult. I mean, how many beaches, pretty pictures of food, and blabbing talking heads do you see a day? Believe it or not, social media marketing is one of the most complicated and difficult platforms to find success in. Click here for more info
THE CORPORATE BRAND AWARENESS VIDEO – This type of video really conveys the essence of how the product or service solves the problem it promises to solve. It is not asking you to buy, there isn’t any call to action, it is designed to simply introduce you to the company.It may include some excerpts of some key team members interviews. It will display examples of their process and it takes a soft approach to gaining your interest. One of the most important factors in this type of production is, it must have the highest production value possible, otherwise it could have the opposite effect. Displaying a crap video describing your company will simply make you look like crap. Just saying.
THE EXPLAINER VIDEO – This video is designed to educate people about the different ways your product or service can benefit the buyer. These videos are usually upbeat, fun, packed with stats, and fun facts. It should leave the viewer feeling uplifted and empowered. Including some behind the scenes footage is a great idea for getting the audience engaged. The big take-away from this type of video is the viewer should feel like they know more about the topic after watching.
Decide on where to publish your video
Once you have decided on what type of video production you plan to execute, it is time to decide where to place it. Where to publish your video will depend upon the goal of the video. (learn more) Are you thinking television, social media, your website, YouTube or all of it. When making these decisions knowing who you are targeting is critical, so answer the following questions and you will have a clear picture as to where to publish your video.
1) What is the goal of the video?
2) Who am I targeting?
3) What is my budget for production and placement?
Create a direct line of contact
Another very important component of using video to generate sales, is to have a clear path for the viewer to reach out. It could be a phone number, a link to a landing page or your full-fledged website. This may seem obvious, however preparing for the traffic is often overlooked.
Have you ever seen an offer on TV, called the number and the person who answered the phone had no idea what you are talking about? How about clicking on a link, and the page you end up at looks nothing like the ad you just viewed? These mismatches can be devastating to a campaign. So, be sure to make all the moving parts of the video campaign to have a consistent, clear look and feel that matches the video ad.
Increasing your credibility
The ultimate currency consumers trade in is trust. Gaining the trust of the populous could take years, sometimes even decades to achieve. When you use high-end video production properly, you can create more trust faster. The trick is that the video looks expensive. I know this might sound rich coming from a video production company that produces videos, however it doesn’t change the fact. If your video looks like crap, you and your company will look like crap. It is so important to invest in video production that puts you in the best possible light.
In conclusion
Using video production as a tool to increase sales is a great idea if executed well. It takes belief in what you have to offer, it takes some knowledge, and most of all it takes a great video production company! Good luck with all of your marketing endeavors! I wish all of you great success. If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments below.
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Salvatore Marotta
Creative and Film Director
SM Media Group