Video communication: the essential marketing tool for conquering the web
Over the years, video communication has become one of the most powerful marketing levers.
Indeed, the figures for video on the Internet constantly demonstrate the extent to which this tool needs to be integrated into an attractive digital communications strategy. As an attractive, accessible medium that promotes viral content, video is a powerful conversion tool.
Would you like to understand the ins and outs of video communication? Thinking of getting started, but don't know where to begin?
In this article, appvizer looks at the effectiveness of video, the steps you need to take to develop your strategy, and the most accessible software for making your first videos.
3, 2, 1... action!
Why adopt video communication?
Video is the most attractive content
If a picture is worth a thousand words, a well-crafted video is more likely to engage Internet users.
This success is based, first and foremost, on saving effort: Internet users prefer to watch a video quickly, rather than read a more time-consuming article.
80% of visitors watch a video, while only 20% read the site's content.
ilestunefois.com
On the other hand, audiovisual production encourages creativity and storytelling: entertaining, educational, promotional content... convey emotions, enhance your brand image, and generate more engagement.
Video raises your profile on social networks
Video is the most widely shared content format on social networks. On average, it generates 1,200% more shares than text and images combined1. What's more, the average engagement rate for a video on Facebook is 6%, compared to 4.8% for a post with a photo, and 3.3% for a post including a link2.
Communicating via video on social media therefore means boosting the virality of your content, and thereby your public awareness and visibility on the web.
Video generates more conversions
Once again, the figures speak for themselves: an e-mail containing the word "video" in its subject line increases its open rate by 19%, and its click rate by 65%3.
By making the message more readable and attractive, the use of video as a means of communication generates a very positive impact on consumers and their purchasing intentions. What's more, this format enhances your credibility with prospects, customers and users: a testimonial from a satisfied customer or a video demonstration are formats that more easily convince web surfers.
Video enhances your site's natural referencing
Google favors results from its YouTube video platform. As a result, a web page featuring a video is 53 times more likely to land on the first page of results4.
What's more, because their content is more attractive, web users spend more time on pages containing video. This increases their popularity in Google's eyes.
💡 To optimize the natural referencing of your YouTube videos, we recommend :
- specify the name of your video file,
- choose a title that includes your keyword,
- take care with the description,
- fill in the category,
- add tags,
- insert transcripts and subtitles,
- include calls to action to encourage interaction,
- create a playlist with several videos.
Video is mobile-friendly
The smartphone is the most consulted screen, far ahead of the computer. Every day, the average number of video views climbs to... 1,000,000, 0005!
Over time, video has become the most popular format on cell phones, because it's the easiest to consume. Internet users need only turn their smartphone to enjoy full-screen viewing. The assimilation of information is much more pleasant than reading on a cell phone.
Video encourages innovation in communication
Augmented reality, artificial intelligence, 360° video... Thanks to the technical advances of recent years, video has become the playground on which to express creativity and produce innovative content that Internet users will enjoy sharing.
Example of a 360° video advertisement for a hotel.
How do you develop a video communication strategy?
The advantages listed above have convinced you of the relevance of digital video communication, but you don't know where to start?
To guide you, we've outlined the key stages of a successful video marketing strategy:
Define your objectives
Video can serve several purposes, depending on your company's structure and development strategy:
- communicate a new image,
- increase brand awareness,
- respond to a crisis,
- generate more visitors to your website,
- popularize the use of a software or service, etc.
In all cases, aim for the right message and keep it effective. There's no need to aim for a million views. Concentrate on the essentials: getting the right message to the right people.
But how do you identify the right people?
Establish your audience
Segmentation is still the rule for all marketing actions. It's the sine qua non for undertaking relevant actions and obtaining concrete results. And of course, video is no exception to the rule.
That's why we advise you to define your target profiles, your personas, in advance. Also take an interest in their customer journey, to identify the most opportune moment to receive your video message.
By doing this, you'll be able to identify the distribution channels and social platforms your audience prefers.
Choose the right distribution channels
Understanding the customer journey of your personas enables you to identify the best distribution channels among the many possibilities offered by the Internet:
- YouTube obviously remains THE video hosting and distribution platform (over 1.9 billion people use it6). Hosted by Google, it will also serve your SEO ambitions.
- Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram... and all social networks in general have the power to make your main channel shine, generate virality and broaden the scope of distribution of your content at lightning speed.
- Finally, remember the excellent open and click-through rates generated by the presence of a video in your promotional e-mails.
Determine the right format for the right message
There are no hard and fast rules here either. It all depends on what you have to say and the means of production at your disposal.
It's worth noting, however, that there are many different video formats. Here are a few examples:
- tutorials: accompany users and win them over with their teaching skills;
- Live: creates engagement by encouraging users to react live;
- teasers: keep your community on the edge of their seats;
- motion design animation: popularizes information in a fun, graphic way, etc.
Please also note the following recommendations:
- Always give priority to quality. Framing and sound recording must be impeccable. And sometimes it's better to scale back your ambitions if you don't have the means to achieve them.
- Choose short formats. Internet users are increasingly in a hurry. That's why they prefer concise videos with a punchy message.
- Think mobile-friendly. In view of the growing use of smartphones, ask yourself a number of questions. Should you opt for a more mobile-friendly vertical format? Is your message understandable without sound? This last question is particularly important: users are likely to view their videos in situations (public transport, waiting room, etc.) where sound can be a hindrance.
- Take care with tone. With a view to improving the customer experience, your videos will be all the more powerful if you convey emotions, using humor for example.
Draw up a production and distribution schedule
As with any editorial strategy, you need to know where you're going.
To do this, we recommend that you build a table in which you list the following elements:
- your target audience,
- the stage in the customer journey at which the video will be used,
- format and distribution channel,
- content,
- shooting dates,
- broadcast dates.
Evaluate your results
Finally, always evaluate your results, to identify areas for improvement in future campaigns. Set KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) for each video. These can be defined according to your objectives, but here are a few examples:
- number of views,
- number of shares,
- the number of likes or "likes",
- the open rate of your e-mails with video and the number of clicks,
- the number of clicks on a call to action at the end of the video,
- the number of leads generated by your videos, etc.
Armed with all this advice, do you feel ready to launch your first video campaign?
Then the question arises: communications agency, or not communications agency?
What about communications agencies?
Given the scale of the task of setting up marketing videos, you're wondering whether you should use a specialized agency?
In reality, it all depends on your in-house expertise:
- If you don't have a marketing department, you can call on a communications agency to provide you with personalized support for your marketing strategy and content production.
- If you have an in-house marketing department and a substantial budget, you can call on the services of a video communications or audiovisual production agency. This type of agency follows your brief and manages video production from A to Z.
- If your marketing department wants to control the entire video production chain and its production costs, you can train a person to be in charge of filming, with a minimum of equipment. In addition, certain software packages are becoming indispensable for saving time, boosting productivity and achieving economies of scale.
Have you chosen the latter option? Let's take a look at the hardware and software you'll need to get started.
Hardware and software to create your marketing videos
When it comes to video communication on the Internet, you need to opt for solutions that match your financial resources. Here we present you with the essential hardware and software you need to succeed with your marketing video, whatever your budget.
What hardware should you use to create your videos?
To get started, you don't need to equip yourself like a big Hollywood production. However, here's the minimum we recommend you acquire:
- a state-of-the-art smartphone, camera or HD camera,
- a memory card with ample storage space,
- a tripod, with a smartphone adapter if you're using one, to stabilize the image naturally,
- a stabilizer, or gimbal, to compensate for movement in dynamic shots,
- a lapel microphone, an omnidirectional microphone or a boom microphone,
- stand-mounted artificial lighting for indoor filming, with softboxes for bright light or umbrellas for softer light,
- a black background, or green if you'd like to include video.
And of course, add to this the various software programs you'll be using in the editing and post-production phases.
Which software to use for video creation?
First of all, you'll need to know that you can download some of the editing software that comes with Windows or is freely available on Mac OS via the Apple Store, such as iMovie.
More experienced users with ambitious projects can turn to Adobe products: Adobe Première for video editing, and Adobe After Effects for special effects.
On the other hand, if you're a beginner, here are two programs that should interest you.
Kannelle
With Kannelle, you can quickly and easily produce professional-quality videos that reflect your corporate image.
To do this, choose a scenario from the many available, depending on your objectives (customer testimonials, for example). All that's left to do is to let Kannelle guide you through the process of quickly editing your video (in just 15 minutes) and personalizing it with your company's colors.
Kannelle is also particularly effective when it comes to capturing footage: the application helps you to guarantee optimum quality for videos filmed from a smartphone.
Pitchy
Pitchy makes it quick and easy to create your own video without any technical skills.
All you have to do is shoot your video rushes (filmed sequences) with your smartphone, then load them into Pitchy for further processing: editing, music, adding text and subtitles, integrating a call to action, and so on.
With this software, you can also create a video from A to Z, thanks to numerous video and animation templates to customize (corporate, social networking, Whiteboard, Flat, Tech, etc.).
Last but not least, Pitchy streamlines processes for marketing teams, with a collaborative space for validating milestones.
Create a dynamic brand with video!
As you can see, video is the essential tool to integrate into your marketing plan. Its diversity of formats, as well as its ability to capture attention and arouse emotions, make it the preferred communication medium of the majority of French people.
It's up to you to come up with staging ideas that will thrill your audience and generate sales.
And the good news is that you don't have to be the new Spielberg or spend a fortune to achieve a level of quality that captivates Internet users. Software publishers have clearly understood the benefits of developing tools that are accessible to as many people as possible, even those with no technical skills.
From now on, there are no limits to your creativity.
Have you already produced videos to develop your online communication? What were your successes? Your mistakes?
Share your thoughts in the comments!
Sources :
1fr.semrush.com
2wearesocial.com
3lueurexterne.com
4iswissweb.com
5brandwatch.com
6youtube.com
Updated article, originally published May 2019.
Article translated from French