Content might be king, but video content is the king of content, at least for now. Consumers love videos and respond strongly to video marketing. A recent study by HubSpot and Wyzowl found that 96% of consumers say they watch video to learn more about a product, and 89% say the content convinces them to make a purchase.
Not surprisingly, marketers are embracing this powerful tool. The same report noted that 91% of all businesses use video in their marketing campaigns, and 70% of those who don’t plan to begin in the next few months.
However, this market saturation results in an awful amount of noise and distraction, making it very hard for your video to be seen or remembered. Here are seven important things to keep in mind when upping your video marketing game and developing content that stands out among the crowd.
1. Bake in accessibility
Accessibility features like closed captions and descriptive audio allow people with disabilities to enjoy your content, plus it makes video more appealing for everybody. Today, many consumers watch videos in a noisy environment, choose to watch with the sound off, or passively scroll video while listening to music.
What’s more, many businesses don’t realize that the standards enforced by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) can apply to video content. Numerous companies, including giants like Netflix, Amazon, and FedEx, have been sued for publishing inaccessible videos and podcasts. This sets the strong precedent for accessibility laws to apply to all video content.
Using Kapwing, you can auto-generate captions, which you can then edit for accuracy, making it easy to increase accessibility.
2. Optimize video for different channels
Make the most of your raw video content by adapting it and using it on as many channels as possible. This includes your own website, your TikTok and YouTube channels, and other social media platforms like X/Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
It’s a good idea to cut your raw content down to shorter bite-size chunks for TikTok, which rewards short videos, but keep all the extra value of the longer video for YouTube.
You can also edit, enhance, and optimize video footage using different filters, playback speeds, and formats, according to user preferences for each channel. Videoleap, developed by Lightricks, includes a plethora of video templates, so you can speed up the editing process and churn out more high quality video in a shorter period of time. You’ll even benefit from AI-powered special effects that turn mundane video content into something extra-special.
3. Raise your video quality game
In a crowded market, you need to make your video stand out for all the right reasons. Consumers have no time for poor quality video content, so ensure that your videos are diamond-sharp, with no wobbles, blurring, or pixelation. Even ordinary camera-captured video has become familiar and unexciting, with viewers feeling little impetus to pause their scroll to watch it. Use a user-friendly video editor to enhance your video and elevate it into something remarkable and memory-grabbing.
4. Shoot more live video
Consumers love live video. It’s perceived as being more authentic, genuine, and relatable than pre-recorded video content that’s been edited and improved, so invest the time and energy in live content.
Many channels make it simple to publish live video, with tools like Instagram Live and Facebook Live.
You can also livestream video on your own website, to keep the views and clicks on owned assets. Webinars head the list of popular forms of live video, alongside behind the scenes videos and explainer videos. Maximize the value of your live video by repurposing it for on-demand viewing, and cutting it up into shorter clips for use in ad campaigns or memes.
5. Invest in longform video
Short videos rule the roost, but don’t ignore longform videos. More than half of all buyers say that webinars and digital events are their preferred type of video content, and these are essentially long-form video. Long videos are ideal for deeper analysis and opinion, which develops a deeper relationship with the viewer.
B2B companies in particular can reap many benefits from longer videos. Longer videos are excellent for lead capture. You can build custom retargeting audiences on social media platforms based on how much of your video they watched, so longform video provides vital intent data for a video-based funnel.
Additionally, you can cut your long video into shorter clips to drive traffic to the full-length version.
6. Customize your video player
Video is huge on social media, but it’s also key for your website.
It’s a smart idea to host video content on your own pages so that you can benefit from first-party viewer data and make good use of lead capture forms. Whether you host a marketing or a finance blog, the longer people spend on your website, the bigger the boost you’ll get for SEO, too.
Although you can use a generic embedded video player, you’ll get more bang for your video buck with a customized player. You can use Wistia to adapt your video player so that it matches your branding and the aesthetics of your website. This reinforces brand awareness while improving overall customer experience.
7. Add interactive annotations
YouTube offers the option of adding annotations to your videos. Annotations, as opposed to captions, include another layer of information onto your videos.
This brings more value and depth to your content, without distracting viewers or coming across as heavy-handed or intrusive.
YouTube annotations integrate within the video to be a more subtle CTA for viewers. You can use them to add extra text and links to your videos, gently encourage viewers to subscribe to your channel or visit your website, and enrich the whole experience.
Marketing video can be powerful tool — when you do it right
The proliferation of video content testifies to the potential of video to drive conversions and sales. It also raises the bar for video quality and the depth of the video experience. With the right tools and a little creativity, marketing teams of any size can produce excellent video that helps achieve your marketing goals.
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