I’ve written a lot about the importance of video marketing (a refresher: in 2018, video will attract almost 80% of total consumer traffic, 55% of people watch videos online every day, and 65% of video viewers watch more than ¾ of a video).

At the very core, video content is important because some people are more drawn to a “play” button than they are to a “read me” button, and you need to create content that appeals to all your potential customers. Plus, video content allows you to reach more platforms (like Youtube, or Facebook Watch), which, in turn, allows you to reach more people.

As we take on this lofty goal ourselves here at Yelling Mule to create more video content in the upcoming year, I thought it could be beneficial to narrow down a strategy you can use to get started today on creating and marketing your own video content.

Step One: Do Your Video Marketing Research

As with any new skill, you first need to be the student. Luckily, all the tools you need are a keyboard’s-touch away. Start Googling (or Youtubing), and figure out what your competitors’ are creating. Watch content other businesses are putting out there–what do you like? What do you think you can do better? (Keep reading or scroll down for some of my favorite examples.)

Also, consider the various components of video production to narrow down on a budget: are there studios in the area you might be able to rent out, if you don’t feel your office is adequate? Do you know any videographers who are willing to help you out, or video editors, if you don’t have any in-house? What other tools do you want to employ?

This might sound expensive, but it doesn’t have to be: check out Brian Dean’s video, “Keyword Research: 5 Untapped Strategies.” He hired a studio, a videographer, and an editor for graphics.

And it only cost him $190.

(If you do end up renting out a studio, equipment, a videographer, etc., perhaps you want to create a multiple-video action plan ahead of time, so that you can shoot a bunch of videos on the same day and get the most bang for your buck.)

Step Two: Set Your Goals, and Identify Your Target Audience(s)

If your goal is to get 5 million views and be featured on The Ellen Show, it might be time to reevaluate.

More realistically, what are your goals? At which stage do you hope to reach your target audience? Here are a few possible goals you might have in mind:

1. Advertise Your Product or Service
2. Present Your Company Culture (i.e. a video for your ‘About Me’ page)
3. Show Customer Testimonials
4. Educate Your Audience–Show You’re an Expert
5. Entertain Your Audience–Get More Brand Awareness

All of these goals, of course, have one of two primary purposes: attract a new (i.e. larger) audience, or satisfy your repeat visitors (and convert these visitors into customers). Of course, I’m sure you want both–but a video about “10 Ways to Use Our Product” is more for visitors further down the purchasing funnel, whereas a “Look at These Crazy Cats” video is more to attract an audience in the first place.

When you’ve narrowed down your goals (and you can have a few!), figure out who your target audience is for each of these goals.

For instance, if you want to create a video for your “About Me” page, your target audience is potential future employees–so have your current employees make a list of what they like best about your company culture, and put all that in the video (perhaps even interviewing your employees on screen?). If you want to create a video about “SEO Strategies for 2018,” maybe you want to focus your topic more closely: “10 SEO Strategies Bloggers Can Use in 2018,” with your audience then being, bloggers.

It’s a lot easier (and more effective) to create different videos for different (highly specific) target audiences, rather than trying to create an all-encompassing megavideo to please everyone.

For instance, Taulia has generated $125 million in new pipeline from video, and their Senior Marketing Manager, Bhaji Illuminati, credits their highly-targeted videos: “rather than trying to make one video that appeals to the entire world, we’ve learned that we can get stronger results by making many videos that appeal to specific audiences.”

Step Three: Figure Out the Right Platform

The platform on which you promote your content is arguably just as important as the content itself. You’ll be creating and editing your video based on this platform, so narrow it down before creating a video.

Some potential platforms to share your video:

Note: If you do use Youtube, take advantage of their Cards and End Screen Elements features. The Cards feature (the grey title that slides out during videos) can link externally to your website, or to another video. The End Screen Elements feature is the floating thumbnails you see at the end of videos: not only can they send viewers to more of your videos, playlists, or channels, but they can call for a subscription to your channel, or promote your website or merchandise.

Step Four: Create Your Video Content

Okay, so we’ve already discussed some production elements you might want to consider (studio, videographer, graphics, etc.), and we’ve covered budgeting, we’ve focused on a goal and target audience, and we’ve chosen a platform. Now, it’s time to figure out what kind of content you want to create to convey your message.

And what is your message, anyway?

There are so many different directions you can go, when creating your content: do you want to rely on humor? Do you want it to be serious? Do you want it to feel informal, or more professional? These questions can be answered by brainstorming with your team–what kind of personality do you want to show off in your videos? What type of video would best align with your brand?

I can’t answer those questions for you, but I can give you some great examples of what other companies have done to create unique, quality content.

Examples of Great Video Marketing Strategies:

1. If you want to advertise your product… check out Taulia’s video that promotes their eInvoicing product, using humor to keep the viewer engaged.
2. If you want to create a compelling ‘About Me’ video… check out Connelly Partners’ ‘About Me’ video, which is (in my opinion) more powerful and intriguing than ‘About Me’ text.
3. If you want to educate your audience… check out Moz’s Whiteboard Friday videos, which are incredibly helpful and informative, while still feeling casual (just a guy and his whiteboard!).
4. If you want to show off customer testimonials… check out InVision App’s videos with customer testimonials from Netflix, Uber, and others.
5. If you want to embed video content into your blog posts, for longer audience time-on-page, check out how Brian Dean does it (I’ll admit, I’ve gotten stuck for an hour on his site, clicking from video to video–they’re pretty addictive).
6. If you want to entertain your audience… check out this Hubspot video, “Everything You’ll Do on Social Media During the Holidays.” It isn’t advertising a new product, and it isn’t a lesson in Social Media–it’s just a fun-to-watch video for their audience (and, hopefully, a sharable one, too).

Bonus… Video Marketing Tools to Check Out:

If you are feeling anxious or burdened by the prospect of hiring a videographer or renting a studio (or, perhaps that simply doesn’t match the goal of your video), check out these other tools that should help you get started creating a video for your business (Read more about some of these tools here):

• VideoMakerFX
• GoAnimate
• Sellamation
• Nutshell
• Magisto
• Animoto
• iMovie App

Leave a comment with any video marketing strategy questions or tips you have!

Check out our other marketing blog posts.