Video has become increasingly important for attracting a wide audience as it offers marketers a broad range of ways to tell a story, build relationships, and maintain connections with current and prospective customers.
Add to that the fact that 43 percent of people want to see more video content from marketers, and it becomes clear that now is the time to start incorporating more video to your strategies for each stage of the buyer’s journey. Here’s what you need to know to be successful with video marketing and how to use video to make your content shine.
Top of Funnel Activities
At this stage of the buyer’s journey, you need to appeal to a wide audience with a range of topics. You want content that helps viewers identify their problems and demonstrates that you have the right solutions. You also want viewers to start learning about your company and your values to begin building a relationship.
Here are some ideas:
- How-To Videos. There’s no better way to showcase your expertise than a video that demonstrates your solutions. Consider creating several videos that offer solutions from a number of perspectives, or shows your solutions as ways to solve different problems.
- Repurposed Webinars. A webinar can be a major production, so it only makes sense to get as much mileage from them as possible. Offer shorter webinars in a single video, or break up longer ones by topic or into episodes so it’s easy for viewers to find the nuggets they want.
- Interviews. If you want prospects to trust your solutions, you need to show that you’re a leader in your industry. Interviews with key players in your company will not only humanize your business, but they will also inspire trust with viewers as well.
- Company Culture. People want to do business with real people, not faceless companies. Show them who you are and what you do with short, fun videos that provide a little insight into what makes you unique.
ProTip: Don’t forget to add a call-to-action either at the end of your video or as a pop-out. That way, you can start moving interested and engaged viewers down the funnel into content that takes a deeper dive.
Middle of Funnel Activities
At this point, you’ve caught the attention of viewers and they’re ready to dig in and learn more. Your prospects are trying to determine if the solutions you provide are the best. Here, you want to give more details and specific information, as well as a sprinkling of social proof to seal the deal.
Here are some ideas:
- Case Studies. Video case studies offer a one-stop place for prospects to learn how others are using your solutions in real life to solve their problems while also demonstrating that they’re happy with your services.
- Testimonials. Consider that 88 percent of consumers trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation and you’ll see how important video testimonials can be to your conversion rates.
- Product Demos. Think of these as a supercharged how-to. Where top-of-funnel videos need to provide quick insight, middle-of-funnel demos should help prospects imagine what it would be like to implement your solutions themselves. Get detailed!
Bottom of Funnel Activities
At this stage of the journey, you want to keep in touch with customers who recently made a purchase. Not only should you make sure they’re happy with their decision, but also that they are maximizing your solutions for the greatest impact. That way, you’ll start building bridges toward repeat sales while also ensuring a bit of word-of-mouth advertising, too.
Here are some ideas:
- FAQ Videos. In addition to making support staff available for questions, a video FAQ can give customers a fast way to have their questions answered along with a reference that can be used over and over again when necessary.
- Team Videos. Introduce your support staff so customers know who they are calling when they have questions. Or, include videos straight from your sales team with key information that new customers tend to have.
How to Use Video to Boost Engagement
In many cases, trying to wade through a lengthy text piece isn’t going to provide your prospects with the fast information they want to reach a purchase decision.
Video delivers quick ways for people to get information while also giving visual cues that can be impossible to create with text or photos. Want to learn more about increasing lead generation with video marketing? Reach out to one of our marketing experts.
