How to create the perfect content marketing video?

Summary

Video is a great tool when it comes to marketing campaigns. In this article, in particular, we will talk about how to create the perfect content marketing video.

What is a content marketing video? 

Video marketing is a form of online marketing that incorporates video content into lead generation, customer retention, and sales processes in support of marketing activities.  

For example, including videos within blog posts, landing pages, and producing a video version of a podcast can be great ways to support a solid content marketing video strategy.  

Video opens up so many opportunities and gives brands a way to reach a much wider range of audiences. This is also thanks to social media such as YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, which is fertile ground for those seeking to market their products.   

But the question that arises is why content marketing videos have become so popular. It’s simple: the versatility that video content offers is incomparable to that of other content.  

Content marketing video: some numbers 

This isn’t the first time we have talked about the importance of video in your marketing strategy, but we are going to list some statistics to back it up.  

• It’s predicted that online video will be the leading source of web content by 2022, accounting for 82.5% of all web traffic. 
• 86% of companies use video as a marketing tool (source: Wyzowl).
• Youtube claims that over 500 hours of content is uploaded every minute (Source: YouTube). 
• In 2020, more than 3 billion internet users streamed or downloaded videos at least once a month. This figure is expected to reach 3.5 billion by 2023 (source: Statista). 

According to recent Wyzowl research, marketers say video has: 

• increased traffic to their website by 86%. 
• helped them generate leads (+84%). 
• directly helped them increase sales (+78%). 

It’s evident that content marketing videos are no longer just part of the future, they are alive in our present and will continue to grow in the future.  

The benefits of content marketing videos

If the data was not enough to convince you of the benefits of incorporating video marketing into your strategy, we will show you some benefits of content marketing video:

• Videos build trust and credibility: videos are an exceptional medium for putting a face to a brand. They help build valuable relationships and allow consumers to connect and empathize more easily.  
• They help consumers make decisions during their customer journey: a well-structured and well-shot video can play a major role during a consumer’s buying process. You are comparing yourself to your competitors, and the video can be the thing that convinces consumers to trust your brand and buy your product. Consider that as many as 84% of people say they have decided to buy a product or service after watching a branded video (source: Wyzowl). 
• Videos increase brand awareness: due to the large coverage of videos and the traffic they are able to bring, more than other type of content, they can be used to increase brand awareness. A video can cover a really large audience when uploaded to video sharing site or social platforms
• A video makes your content more likely to go viral: video is the type of online content that is most likely to go viral. Of course, it is difficult to plan for a video to go viral, however, the chances of it happening are definitely higher.  
• Videos increase traffic and help SEO: embedding videos on your website help improve your site’s SEO. In addition to displaying videos in Google’s SERP, because of its “bias” favoring video content at the top of the first page, videos keep visitors engaged for longer. This translates into more website traffic.  

However, enjoying all the benefits that video production brings, starts with creating a content video marketing strategy.  

7 steps to a content marketing video strategy  

So, let’s see how to create a good content marketing video strategy! We’ve got tips, best practices, and 7 steps to help you get started.

Don’t forget SEO 

In a content video marketing strategy, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is not only important for blog posts and the website, but it’s also important for videos. In fact, YouTube has become the second most important search engine, right after Google. Not surprisingly, you can now search for specific videos or general information on YouTube, just as you would on Google.  

So, how do you optimize SEO in videos? It is important to start with the titles, which are useful for attracting attention. Make sure they are short and informative and don’t forget the keyword, which should be added to the video description and accompanied by the website link.

Tags are also important and it is good to use them judiciously, serving different variants of the keyword. So are the thumbnails of the videos. A good thumbnail is the first thing that prompts a viewer to click to watch the video. It’s important that they are eye-catching and of high quality.  

And finally, never forget optimization for mobile viewing! 

What is the goal of the video? 

The clearer the goal of the video, what you want to communicate, the easier it is for viewers to watch it to the end.  

How to do this? There are two essential points: 

1. Write an accurate and informative synopsis. Highlight 3-4 benefits that viewers will get after watching the video. And if it is a narrative, outline the main points. 

2. It’s a good idea to make a transcript of your video. This allows you to offer viewers the content in a format that they can first read and eventually decide whether to watch. Having a transcript will also help search engines crawl your video content. 

Use social proof  

Using social proof is a great way to not only increase conversions, but to build trust and credibility between you and your audience.  

Consider that 50% of customers find videos of customer testimonials useful (source: Animoto). 

For example, you can show likes, ratings, views, and comments to demonstrate that other people find your video content informative and valuable. If you offer services or products, provide customer testimonials or case studies.  

Optimize video for conversions 

After enticing people to watch the video, you should make the most of it by focusing on conversions.  

Include a clear call to action, depending on your goal, whether it’s lead generation, sales, or just creating a relationship. You can include a CTA at the end of the video that leads to a landing page and add share buttons. Interacting with your video should be simple.  

Defining the right time to publish is also important. Analyze and determine the best time to share your video and get the most views in the first 48 hours. The more views you get, the more YouTube will recognize the significance of your video content to other viewers. 

Offer incentives to watch and interact with your videos as premium content. Most importantly, be creative and figure out what works best in terms of conversions.  

Finally, create videos that are simple and short!  

Choose your touchpoints 

Finding the right distribution channels for your video means taking it to different audience pools, from the website, to YouTube, to social media platforms. Of course, be careful not to overdo it; choose the platforms that work best for you and your target audience.  

Maximize the impact of your videos

Once the video is created and in distribution, don’t abandon it. You must continue to interact with your audience and keep the relationship alive. Ask for viewers’ opinions, respond to all the comments below the video, the positive comments and especially the negative ones.  

It’s important that customers know their opinions do not go unnoticed, that they feel heard. 

But that’s not enough. Thanks to ads, you can promote your videos on various platforms. You don’t need to have a huge budget, you just need to know your target audience well, customize the parameters, and make the right investment.  

Analyze the performance of your videos 

Success comes before analysis. Measuring the feedback from your content marketing video campaigns allows you to understand where you’re going wrong, if you’re going wrong, what your weaknesses and strengths are, and the decisions you need to make to improve them.   

With YouTube Analytics and Google Analytics, you can track video performance and learn more about views, traffic sources, total viewing time, and find your most popular, most successful videos.  

In addition, you can measure your overall brand awareness by the total number of views, the number of shares, and the number of mentions. Always having clear measurement methods is important for building successful content marketing videos. 

Conclusion

Getting content marketing videos right is not always easy, but with the right attention and advice, you can create interesting, entertaining, and engaging campaigns!  

And don’t forget to be creative, another secret for a great video!