What are brand videos – A complete guide

First of all, we will open this post by clarifying certain terms and thus narrowing down the field we are going to address. 

Brand videos are often short in duration, with the primary objective of telling the story of a brand’s values and identity. Thus, we’re not talking about videos that promote specific products or services. 

We’re also not talking about “branded videos” videos that are sponsored or created by a brand, but don’t focus directly on the brand itself; we will focus on this type of video in an upcoming post on our blog. In short, brand videos are useful in creating positive associations, an overlay of imagery; they’re perfect for offering the viewer added value that is perceived as “free,” disinterested, and unrelated to sales.

Beware, though! There are points of contact between brand videos and branded videos; and it’s not just because of the two terms that sound almost identical. 

If you think about it, both of these types point to the same primary goal by different routes: that of brand awareness. We’ll start from the point of view of brand awareness and its importance, in the next section.  

Then, we’ll continue by providing three decisive tips for producing the most effective and memorable brand videos.

Brand awareness is the public’s awareness of a brand. It is an index, therefore, of people’s ability to recognize a brand. It is a matter of recognition which in turn translates into desirability. 

Certainly, brand videos can play a key role in all of this, and we’ll show you how in this post. First, however, let’s also answer another question: why is brand awareness so important? 

To put it briefly: because it constitutes the highest part of the path the customer takes to arrive at a purchase, what—in technical terms—is referred to as the funnel.

To translate this into more concrete and operational terms: the more recognizable and attractive your brand is, the more customers there will be, the more conversions there will be, and ultimately the more revenue and turnover will soar. And so far it is all very intuitive and consequential.  And that’s not all.

Why? Because, today more than ever, it’s not just about buying a product or service. It’s also, and more importantly, about embracing the value system, status, and imagery that are created around a brand. It is not only a matter of buying but, in a sense, also of belonging, of advocacy. The ultimate and most ambitious goal of this journey? 

To turn customers into the first and most effective testimonials of your brand. It’s from this dynamic that the old word-of-mouth mechanism springs. If you think about it, word-of-mouth is more relevant than ever in the social networking ecosystem, for example, on platforms that collect customer opinions and reviews.

Before we move on and focus on the three decisive tips for creating effective brand videos, here are some very telling numbers on the importance of brand awareness:

• 59% of customers prefer to buy new products only from brands they already know. 
• 77% of people refer to certain products by their brand name.
• 82% of investors want the companies they invest in to have strong brand awareness. 
• 75% of companies say that building brand awareness is among their top priorities.
• 46% of consumers say they are willing to pay more to shop with brands they trust (source: salsify.com). 
• 77% of consumers prefer to shop with brands who share its same values (source: vivendi.com). 
• In Semrush’s latest report on content marketing, which surveyed more than 1,500 marketers from 40 different countries, it found that increasing brand awareness is the first priority for as many as 45% of respondents (source: semrush.com). 

Let’s make it clear: There are many best practices for producing the best brand videos. Above all, they always depend on the context, the specific identity of the brand, its history, goals, targets and so on. In short, there is no universal recipe that applies to everyone.  

However, we have decided to isolate three general but very concrete points—these are real pillars on which to build the best brand videos. 

The first and indispensable piece of advice is this: always aim for the highest quality of content (both narratively and technically). Of course, you need to be very direct: to succinctly and effectively show the profile of your company. It’s even more important to be able to build a coherent, original, and engaging narrative around your identity. To put it another way: build fascinating imagery before building messages. Thrill before informing. 

Therefore, it’s a matter of storytelling: and video is the king of content for digital storytelling.  But where do we start from to create this storytelling? First, from some questions. 

• What is your story? 
• What is your mission and vision? 
• How is your brand different from all others?
• What is the context in which you are immersed? And what is the sentiment attached to this context? 
• And especially, watch out for this other decisive question (which we will return to extensively in the third and final point): who are you addressing? Who are the target audiences of your video?

Answering these questions accurately and effectively will enable you to find the “voice” of your brand. This concerns authenticity as well as empathy. The result? 

Those who view your video will not perceive it as a self-celebrating message that is only concerned with economic interest. On the contrary: a good brand video is one that is able to offer added value to those who watch it. 

In this scenario, the dynamic is always win-win.

Let’s think about our common experience: we all access all kinds of content from a variety of devices. We switch from desktop, to tablet, to smartphone multiple times throughout the day. Also: we have contact with brands through diverse platforms. From our inbox to a social network bulletin board; from an advertisement on YouTube to one on the homepage of a news site we are browsing.

These are all essential for creating an effective brand video. And the need is very clear: you have to design and produce your videos in an omnichannel mode. What do we mean by this?

First and foremost, optimizing for each type of device is crucial. In this regard, the primary role should be given to mobile, because smartphones are the main tool that we use to watch videos. But it’s not just about devices.

Above all, it’s a matter of optimizing your videos according to the platforms on which they are distributed. In fact, it’s one thing to create a brand video for the company website; it is another thing to create a video that you will send through an email marketing campaign. It’s yet another thing to create a video that will be uploaded to YouTube or a dedicated app.

And then there is the fundamental playing field of social networks, a very diverse ecosystem: what works for TikTok, for example, may not work for LinkedIn. And, on Instagram, you have to optimize your videos differently whether it’s a Reel, a post in the feed, or a story. Be careful, however, not to fall into the opposite mistake: while it’s imperative to adapt the format, style, and tone of your message depending on the channel, it is also crucial not to lose the unity and consistency of the brand voice.

In short: it’s a matter of delicate balances. You have to learn how to best dose stylistic and recognizable elements within the technical limitations of different devices and platforms.  

Here is a decisive point and one that concerns the recipients of your brand videos. Let’s emphasize the most important thing right away: there is no message that works for everyone perfectly. It all depends on the recipients: their tastes and preferences, their values, their past habits and behaviors, their needs and desires. 

This has always been true. Of course, it’s also true for video marketing, and even more so for brand videos. We said in the beginning that the main goal of brand videos is brand awareness. Hence, recognizability. 

But follow us in this final decisive step: the best recognizability is the one that can reach each individual customer while maintaining its consistency. 

Do you remember Coca Cola’s famous “Share-a-Coke” campaign? It’s the one where the names of individuals were printed on the brand’s cans and bottles. It was 2011. And it was one of the very first awareness campaigns that understood the value of personalization. Not surprisingly, Coca Cola has always been one step ahead in everything related to branding.  

Today you can go much further and act with much greater surgical precision. Especially when it comes to video marketing. How? 

First, thanks to Big Data analytics, it’s possible to know your audience, even when it is a very large audience. As a result, you can make videos that maintain brand consistency and recognition, but that also adapt to the characteristics of the individual viewer. These are the personalized videos that Forbes, in an article, referred to as “the marketing breakthrough that brands need“.

Personalized videos are videos built and automatically based on the characteristics of each individual viewing them. In short, companies implement a single video marketing campaign that is also simultaneously multifaceted and tailored to each individual recipient. 

So, how can you make them and distribute them through a variety of channels? By relying on specialized platforms such as the one offered by Babelee.