This blog post was beautifully written by one of our newest clients, Neil Brown of Brown Advertising. It is so exciting to see our clients become convinced of the power of video to grow their business. Please check out his post which is full of great information for local Winston-Salem and Greensboro companies who are considering web video as part of their marketing strategy.
Written by Neil Brown, Nov. 11, 2011:
USING VIDEO TO PROPEL YOUR MARKETING TO THE NEXT LEVEL
There are many different tools you can use as part of your marketing strategy,
from brochures to blogs to email marketing. One of the most effective tools for communicating your marketing story is through the power of video.
Video engages your audience’s emotions and creates a much deeper
understanding than text and images alone. A great video will captivate your audience—which is an action that every marketer wants to achieve in today’s fast-paced society.
In fact, studies have shown that:
* Website visitors stayed an average of 2 minutes longer when engaged with video
* Viewers were up to 85% more likely to purchase after watching a product video
* Videos are up to 50 times more likely to rank on Page 1 in Google
* Over 55% of people who view a video then visit the company’s website
And videos can be used in many different ways, including:
* Posting directly on your website (especially the home page)
* Uploading to your own YouTube channel (with links back to your website)
* Posting to your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn network
* Showing at a trade show
* Playing in your company’s lobby or waiting room
* Burning to a DVD and sent out as part of a direct outreach campaign
* Adding to your Google Places page
So if the power of video in marketing is overwhelmingly effective, then why isn’t every company using video in their marketing?
I believe there are several myths about video that is holding many companies back from taking advantage of this great medium:
Myth #1: Video is “too hard”
Many companies don’t even know where to begin when it comes to video. Do we have to come up with the idea and script? What is involved in planning the video? What kind of lighting and equipment do we need? How do we best showcase our products and services? How many videos do we need—and how long should each one be?
Frankly, video is hard—if you’re trying to do it yourself. That’s why you hire a professional video production company who is experienced and skilled in being able to communicate your story. They handle all of the details to make the process really easy and stress-free.
Myth #2: Video is “too expensive”
When you work with a great video production company, they’ll take the time to understand your needs and help determine your budget.
Video, like other forms of effective marketing, is really an investment rather than an expense. It will help to bring you new clients and/or sell more to existing clients.
Would you spend $5,000 if it brought you $25,000 in new sales that you wouldn’t have had otherwise?
Great video has the power to do just that.
Myth #3: Video is “not flexible enough”
Some companies worry that as details of their products or services change, their videos will become outdated and unusable.
But your video company can shoot new footage and edit the video to keep it current as your situations change.
Once you make a video, it’s not carved in stone. They have the raw footage and native video files that can be edited to stay relevant and effective.
Myth #4: Video “won’t work for my industry”
Naturally different businesses have different needs and face unique challenges. There are few cookie-cutter approaches.
But I’m hard pressed to think of any industries where video would be ineffective. Video is perfect:
* If you sell products
* If you provide services
* If you train employees
There are many different types of videos, including documentary style, screen capture, slide show, talk show, training, etc.
A video company can help determine your goals and recommend the best approach for your situation.
Myth #5: Video is “too intimidating”
A lot of people are hesitant to be on camera. They could be self conscious about how they look or how they sound. Or they may be shy or intimidated when it comes to speaking in public or on camera.
But that’s normal! Especially for people who don’t speak in front of groups or on camera often.
A good video production company will take your raw footage and work their magic. Pauses and “ums” will be edited out. They’ll take parts of one clip and merge it with parts of another.
You may trip and stumble all over your words throughout a 15 minute interview. But when that gets edited down to 1-2 minutes by a skilled video editor you come out sounding like a polished professional!
My own experience
I’ve actually just gone through this process myself—having a video made about Brown Advertising. It’s truly been an enlightening experience!
I work with (and highly recommend) Apex Video Productions. Christopher Brown and Sarah Holmes are an award-winning team with over 20 years of experience (including National Geographic, Discovery Channel and PBS) so you know you’re in good hands. They truly take the stress out of doing a video and manage the process all along the way.
The final editing is being performed on my video at the time of this article—so I’ll post it for next week’s blog.
Plus I’ll even show some unedited clips of myself stammering over my words to give you a peek of the raw footage (at my own expense!) compared to the final result! Stay tuned…
How can we help you?
We provide a free one-hour consultation where we can discuss your video production needs. We will be glad to brainstorm with your about some possible web video solutions for you. Gives us a call today to schedule a time to meet (336) 403-9273 or fill out our contact form. We look forward to providing you with high quality video production services!
