There are endless statistics to support just how much we enjoy watching video content in our everyday lives but also to justify why businesses and brands should be investing in their video content. Here are just a few:
Is your brand leveraging the power of video content to boost your ROI? Whether you love to be in front of the camera or not, here are eight ways you can use video content to increase your sales…
1. Create a YouTube Channel
With over 1.9 BILLION users, YouTube is the second largest search engine and the second most visited site after Google. But we won’t bore you with statistics – you want to know how it can boost your sales, right?
As with any channel, find out what types of content would be useful to your audience. Some of the most popular types of content include ‘How To’ videos and product reviews. Try some different videos relevant to your brand and see what works – learn from what doesn’t. By providing content that is useful to your audience, you can help to drive traffic and sales.
For example, you might use the format of ‘How to use X Product to solve Y problem’ to help boost sales of a particular product, or you might provide an interior video of your showroom to boost footfall for a sale event.
Don’t forget to optimise your YouTube channel with keywords to help your search engine optimisation (SEO). You can use the same best practices for your channel as you do for your website or blog.
Creating your videos and hosting them on YouTube provides countless ways to then share that content across other platforms and can even be embedded in your website.
Check out this great infographic from mediakix about the most popular types of video on YouTube:
2. Go Live on Facebook
Since its launch in 2016, Facebook Live has had a huge impact on users around the world, with the number of broadcasts almost doubling year on year to reach a staggering 3.5 billion broadcasts in 2018 alone!
So how can you leverage Facebook Live to boost your sales? Here are some examples:
- Q&A Session: this gives you a chance to connect and engage with your audience, allowing them to ask questions on your chosen topic or even running an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session. You could use this as an opportunity for people to ask questions about a product, an upcoming event, a service you provide, etc.;
- Behind-the-Scenes: give your audience an insight into what happens behind the scenes, whether it’s showing off how a product is made, or preparing for an event – it allows people an authentic view of your business or brand.
Why is live video better? The stats show that live videos are watched 3 times longer than non-live video and gain as many as ten times more comments.
3. Use Instagram Videos
The third most popular network after Facebook and YouTube, Instagram has over 1 billion monthly active users, with engagement for video posts 39% more than that for photo posts. Additionally, around 70% of Instagram users watch video content in the form of Stories on a daily basis.
Businesses and brands use videos on Instagram in a similar way to Facebook – to provide authenticity and behind the scenes content. Don’t be pushy or salesy.
Why not showcase the experience of using your product, build buzz around an upcoming event or even provide an Insta-exclusive offer for your followers?
4. Product Videos
Did you know that consumers can be anywhere from 64-85% more likely to buy after watching a product video? According to Wyzowl, 98% of the people surveyed said they had watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service. Using product videos gives you plenty of opportunity for boosting your sales.
Usually around 30 seconds long, product videos allow you to promote your brand and tell a story in a short, effective way that connects with others. Here are some ways you can use product videos to boost sales:
- Explainer videos – tell people how to use your product and the benefits;
- Product reviews – get people to give video reviews of your product in return for a small reward [a sample, trial or freebie, for example];
- Product demo – give people a short demonstration of your product and the key features.
5. Live Event Video
Unlike regular videos, live videos are broadcast in real-time to a live audience, who could be anywhere in the world. Live streaming on platforms such as Facebook Live, YouTube Live, Instagram, Periscope, Twitch and others allows for a level of interaction and engagement you wouldn’t normally achieve.
From small webinars and performances, to massive conferences and product launches, you can reach your audience wherever they are with live streaming – even if they can’t attend in person, they can still participate in the running comment stream during the event.
6. Use Customer Videos
Don’t have the time to create your own videos? Leverage consumer-created content! People look for recommendations from others who have experienced your brand, products or services, so what better way to promote them than through the eyes of your existing customers?
Ask your customers for videos of them wearing or using your products, attending your events or visiting your stores. Share the best videos on your social media profiles!
7. Animated Videos
If you’re camera-shy but looking for a powerful, fun and engaging way to tell your story, or the story of your product, or even an explainer video to show you work, animated videos are perfect.
On average, animated videos on a website can increase the time spent on the site by up to 2 minutes. Why? People buy with emotion. The emotional parts of the brain’s language are pictures, not words…and if a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth, well, you get the idea…!
Here’s an animated explainer video for Splento:
An animated video containing valuable and engaging content could help increase your sales through brand awareness. Create characters that represent your brand and personality – make sure the audience identifies with them and you can be sure you’re on to a winner!
8. Testimonials
The best form of marketing has been and will always be word of mouth. There is no better way for your brand or business to be promoted than for someone who’s had an experience with you to shout about you in a positive light.
People are already talking about your brand and leaving reviews on Google, Facebook and the like but why not go one step further and request a video testimonial. These testimonials can be done in a raw format, with the customer recording their own video. Alternatively you could arrange for an interview format.
Video testimonials provide additional benefits to written testimonials – they tend to be more authentic, since they can convey emotion and resonate with your audience in a much more sincere way than some text that anyone could have written.
Whatever video content you choose, ultimately if you create great, high quality and meaningful content for your customers it will give you:
- Improved brand awareness and recognition;
- Increased trust in your brand;
- Increased sales!
For more inspiration, why not check out these ten types of video content to master, or find out more about the benefits of video marketing.
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