Navigating The Landscape of Video Marketing

It’s hard to understate the importance of video content when trying to get audiences more engaged with your brand. Video offers an opportunity to showcase either you or your brand’s personality, foster connections with your audience, or present information in a more engaging manner. 

In 2024, 91% of businesses surveyed reported utilizing video in their marketing strategy according to Wyzowl's marketing statistics. Those who don’t use video content cite multiple barriers ranging from time, cost, unclear ROI, and uncertainty of how to begin. Whether you’re interested in starting from scratch or building from an existing campaign, we are here to help you determine the path best suited for your business or non-profit.

Video vs. Static Images

While there are benefits to both video content and static images, video is a proven method to hold consumers’ attention in a digital landscape where they are constantly bombarded with various messages. 

Video offers a uniquely immersive experience that you simply can’t achieve with static imagery, allowing you to connect with viewers on a more personal level. Everything from the video shots to the audio selection can offer an insight into your brand and evoke an emotional response that may make them more likely to engage with your company in the future, whether that be purchasing a product, scheduling a service, or making a donation. Later on, we will discuss how you can best amplify your brand voice through video.

It is important to note that while video is more engaging, static images do still have their place among digital marketing strategies. Use these images to compliment the videos, offering more succinct information when an in-depth explanation may not be necessary.

Getting Started with Video Marketing

If you’re new to video marketing, it may seem daunting. Many organizations spend a lot of money on video production to create extremely high-quality content that may not be possible for your organization. While this can be discouraging at first, it’s important to focus on crafting your message, targeting the appropriate audience, and making the best of the resources available. Just because you don’t have the fanciest camera doesn’t mean your video can’t still make an impact! Here are some “dos and don’ts” for getting started on your video marketing campaign.

DO: Define your objectives and target audience

Before you start brainstorming video ideas, sit down and think about what your organization’s goals are. Are you looking to expand your brand’s reach? Convert viewers into customers? Provide important information?

Once you’ve determined your campaign’s objectives, look at your target audience. Who are you trying to reach? This answer will guide you through the planning process, as it will help you determine what kind of videos to make, how to craft your message, and where to post your videos. 

DON’T: Post where your audience is not

Different platforms have different viewer demographics, and it’s important to do your research into where your target audience spends the most time. For example, if your target audience spends a lot of time on Facebook but you’re only posting on TikTok where they’re not as active, the video likely won’t reach its intended target. 

DO: Match your brand

There are many ways you can brand your video content. The easiest way is to incorporate your logo, as it is often the most identifiable feature of your brand. There are plenty of options for how to do this, from a consistent watermark in the corner of your videos to a logo end screen. Additionally, using a consistent color scheme boosts brand recognition and helps your content profile look more cohesive. And if your organization has a slogan or tagline, those are excellent things to include as they represent your organization on more than an aesthetic level.

DON’T: Overcomplicate social media videos

The ideal run time for a social media video can vary depending on the content. Short-form Instagram reels (announcements, humor, promotions, etc.) should ideally be between 7-15 seconds for maximum engagement, though 15-60 seconds is more appropriate for long form content (product demonstrations, testimonials, staff spotlights, etc.). Adam Mosseri, the Head of Instagram, has said that reels over 90 seconds long are not prioritized by the algorithm, so while the longer run times may be appealing to include more information, it’s important to take that into consideration when it comes to the platform you post to. Longer videos might be more well suited for a platform like YouTube, where viewers are more likely to sit and watch a longer video.

When it comes to social media content, simplicity is key. Convey your message in the clearest, most concise way possible and use visuals to enhance that message, not distract from it. Too many choppy cuts and crazy transitions could be detrimental to the video’s impact, even if it looks more eye-catching. Views are important, but the focus should always be on getting your message across.

DO: Keep a consistent posting schedule

Once you’ve outlined your goals, target audience, and brainstormed your video ideas, create a schedule you can stick to for posting your videos. Keeping your organization in your audience’s periphery will increase their awareness and increase the chance for a viewer-to-customer conversion.

You don’t necessarily need to post daily, but making sure that videos come at a consistent rate will increase your brand’s recognition as you become a staple in social media feeds.

DON’T: Ignore thumbnail images

Thumbnails aren’t just important on YouTube! It can be easy to forgo selecting a thumbnail image for your social media video and sticking with the default selection, but it’s important to make sure that the thumbnail properly represents the video. If you are posting a product demonstration and the default thumbnail isn’t of that product, you would want to select one that showcases the subject of the video. This helps potential viewers determine their interest in the video and can lead to higher engagement rates than a default image.

If you want to go the extra mile, most platforms allow you to upload your own thumbnail that you can design to make it more eye-catching. This is an excellent option if your video is revealing a secret (new product, event, etc.) and you want to garner interest but not spoil the surprise.

DO: Call to action

If the goal of your video is to get your viewer to take an action, whether that be purchasing a product or signing up for an email list, make sure to put a clear call to action in your video. If you present your audience with a compelling message to take action but don’t tell them how to take that action, you may not see the results you were hoping for. It can be as simple as a “Visit our website” or “Schedule a consultation today!” but that final call to action can make all the difference when it comes to conversions.

DON’T: Ignore the benefits of closed captions

While an obvious benefit to closed captioning is increased accessibility, they also offer a unique benefit for search engine optimization. Search engines like Google crawl through text on pages when determining how relevant a page is to a search query, and that includes the closed captions file for a video. If your script includes major keywords, these can greatly boost your page’s SEO.

Outside of your organization’s website, adding closed captions to videos on YouTube help boost your video in YouTube search results to increase exposure.

DO: Monitor campaign success

Video sharing platforms offer various metrics to measure video success outside of just views and likes. Keep track of which videos have the highest retention rate (meaning viewers stay to watch the entire video), incite the most action (clicking a link, registering, purchasing advertised product, etc.), and see what similarities you can find to make your most effective videos.

If you post a video that significantly underperforms compared to other videos, take a look at the differences between it and your more successful videos. Video success can vary based on many factors besides just video quality: time posted, duration, tone, relevance, and plenty more. This will help you formulate plans for future videos.

Producing Content In-House

According to Wyzowl’s survey, 38% of businesses produce their video content in-house, 24% outsource to a video production to a marketing company, and 38% use a combination of both. While there can be value in high-level productions, they are not always necessary: sometimes all you need is a smart phone camera and maybe a tripod (or someone with a steady hand).

Videos in which someone is speaking to the camera, be it a product demonstration or testimonial, are easy to create on your own. If the area you film in is well lit and without excessive background noise, you don’t need an external microphone or lighting kit. Simply record the video, import it into your editing program of choice (if you’re not experienced in editing software, you can use your chosen platform’s built-in editor) to add any necessary text, logos, music, or supplementary images and videos.

Canva also offers a variety of video templates that you can fully customize to fit your brand by importing your own assets. These are excellent options if you don’t have much experience in high-end editing softwares, as you can often drag-and-drop items into predetermined placeholders.

When to Hire a Professional

The key to engaging content is high-quality video, and while most smartphones nowadays can capture video of comparable quality, sometimes you’ll want a more polished and professional look. 

Even if you’re not looking to partner with a production company, it may be worthwhile to hire a professional videographer to capture video for your organization to build a library of video to use in your content. An archive of professional high-quality video is an incredibly valuable resource, as it can boost the aesthetic appeal of your videos easily. While smartphone video quality has increased, a professional camera has a variety of settings that allow an experienced videographer more control over the final image.

You may also want to look into hiring a professional team if you are creating a video that will be central to your brand, such as a commercial or an intro video that you will highlight on your website. Due to the wider exposure of these videos, you will want to make the best impression possible, and a professional video team is best equipped to deliver that result. They understand the psychology behind editing techniques, image framing, and aesthetic choices that will help boost the video quality and improve the likelihood of a good ROI.

If you’re looking to get started on a video marketing campaign for your business or non-profit, you can schedule a consultation with K Marketing Company to see what we can offer your organization.