How to do Video Marketing for Small Business

Slick marketing videos were once the preserve of big corporates with swollen marketing budgets and access to top ad agencies.No longer. With technological advancements, creating professional video content is easier than ever for small businesses. The barrier to entry is lower, too, with everyday smartphones capable of shooting HD video that can be edited with relative ease.

Benefits of video marketing for small business in the UK

Today’s SMEs are finding that customers are increasingly looking for online videos on the products or services they’re after. Videos offer the next best thing to being in the store, giving buyers the insight they need to make an informed decision on what to purchase.Small-business promo video is becoming more and more important to online channels. It’s the most eye-catching content on the Internet. Videos no longer buffer and mobile websites are now a joy to use. Video is more accessible than ever – whether you’re sitting at home in front of your PC or stuck on a commuter train.

Multiple platforms

Video is also a hit right across multiple platforms including YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram and more. Last year, YouTube attracted nearly 1.5 billion viewers and latest figures show a cross-platform reach of 42 million users a month.Video streaming is the future. Video-on-demand has had a huge impact on other platforms. Just look at Amazon. The retail behemoth is now competing with Netflix and other platforms in the TV, movie and live-sports sectors.The move towards video has affected user behaviour. Consumers now interact online not only with each other but also with brands. They expect to see video on social media. If they don’t find it, they’ll move onto a competitor site.And what about ‘live’ video? Live video across Facebook, YouTube and Twitter offer a new raft of benefits. Cisco tells us that live video is set to account for 13 percent of all video traffic in 2018. Consider Twitch. Founded in 2011, Twitch offers an online service for watching and streaming live video broadcasts. Once focused purely on video games, it now offers streams based around talk shows, music and even the odd TV series.Twitch now has over two million unique streamers every month, with over 17,000 making good money through the Twitch Partner Program.

Live video

Big business has already caught on to the benefits of live video. Twitch is owned by Amazon and promoted through Amazon Prime. YouTube shows many live events. And broadcasting live is a hot new trend on social media.The popularity of live video stems from its authenticity. People are much more likely to trust something spontaneous and real than anything heavily edited. Tuning in to live broadcasts can also increase engagement with the brand.If you run an SME, consider what kind of content would work for you, either live or on-demand. While you chew it over, here are our tips for getting video marketing right for small businesses.

Small business video marketing tips

1. Stories work

Forget sell, sell, sell. Engage people with a story. It’s emotions that really sell. Try to weave your product into someone’s lifestyle and show how you solved a problem and saved the day.

2. Grab attention from the get-go

Around 20 percent of video viewers click away in the first ten seconds. That’s how long you have to grab your audience’s attention. Aim to make your video introduction entertaining, inspiring and different. Once your viewer is hooked, they’ll feel invested enough to continue watching.

3. Forget the product

Not entirely, obviously. But what the product does is far more important than what it is. Focus more on the mission than on the actual product or service. It’s the old drill-bits theory: DIYers don’t want quarter-inch drill bits; they want quarter-inch holes.

4. Find an SEO-friendly title

Your video’s title needs to do two things: show up on a Google search (so you need a keyword-friendly title) and appeal to your target audience. Consider what’s in it for your viewer. What problems can you solve for them?While we’re on the subject of SEO (search engine optimisation), get maximum value from your videos with a page description tagged with relevant keywords.

5. Be professional

Budgets can be tight, but one element you should never skimp on is the voiceover. Nothing comes across as amateur more than a script spoken by the MD. Get a professional speaker to read your script. If you really can’t run to that, at least find an employee who’s used to delivering training courses or making speeches.

6. Be interesting

Not much more to be said here. Be inspiring and interesting and people will watch your videos.

7. Don’t forget your URL

It’s vital you take every possible opportunity for shameless self-promotion. So display your URL on-screen in your SME marketing video to maximise exposure and increase traffic to your site.

8. Education, education, education

Wheedle your way into the minds (and wallets) of your audience by giving them useful content, rather than something purely sales-focused. A promotional item that offers useful advice, tips or information is often known as a lead magnet. It’s a great way of hooking in customers using the long game.

9. Consider mobiles

We’re long past the tipping point when mobile Internet access overtook computer access. That means your videos must be smartphone-friendly. Hire a video-production agency to make sure your film comes across well on the small screen.

10. Music is the food of, er, sales

Emotion sells and music evokes many emotions. That means it can be a powerful sales tool in your videos. Make sure you pick the right music for the message you want to convey.

11. Use Social proof

What’s social proof? It’s when your customers line up to tell the world how great your product is. It’s also one of only six proven sales methods recommended by psychology and marketing guru Robert Cialdini, author of Influence: the Psychology of Persuasion. Put your delighted customers in your videos.

12. Offer sneak peeks

People love going behind the scenes. It helps them engage further with the brand. Show them how your product is made, where the ideas come from, or maybe show a (brief) ‘day in the life’ of key personnel.

13. Show how it’s done

Don’t sell the company secrets, but do post online tutorials to connect with customers. Offer enough interesting and informative content that your audience wants to hear more.Consider also teaching customers how to use your product and get the best out of it. Create webinars that promote your expertise and position your brand as a thought leader.

14. Tell your prospects where to go

Not in a rude way. All marketing content should include a call to action at the end. Tell your prospects exactly what course of action they need to take next. Hint: a phone number is not enough. Try: call for our free offer, visit this web page for more hints and tips, book your product trial today. You get the picture.

15. Engage your audience

What better way to engage your audience than to pose questions? Get them to leave their responses in a comments section on the video page.

16. Short and sweet

We live in an era of short attention spans, with consumers bombarded with thousands of sales messages every day. Keep them on the page by keeping it short and sweet. Stick to one simple message. After all, throw three balls at someone and they’ll drop the lot. Throw just one and they’ll probably catch it.

17. Consider micro-video apps

We’ve already discussed keeping your videos short. But, for social media, what works best is micro-shortness. Micro-video apps reduce content to under ten seconds, making them perfect to distribute on Twitter and Instagram.

18. Perfection is overrated

Chasing after something that’s perfect can waste valuable time that could be spent selling. You’re not creating a Hollywood blockbuster. Just make sure your video looks and sounds professional. Camerawork, lighting and voiceovers should all be high quality. Hire a reputable video-production company and you shouldn’t have too many problems.

19. Don’t give up on the viral dream

Your videos are unlikely to go viral, although it would be nice. That said, you can learn from the experts. These videos all went viral. Notice how each contains an original and inspiring idea. You might not have the budgets of Pepsi or Volvo, but you might be able to tap into their creative mindset. And if you can’t? That’s what video production companies are for.

20. Hype it up

Don’t expect people to just find your video. Hype it up. Build a little excitement by promoting the launch date on your Twitter, Facebook and Instagram channels.

21. Make your thumbnail interesting

On most social media, including Facebook and YouTube, you can put a thumbnail alongside your video. That’s a still taken from your video that gives viewers an idea of what they’re likely to be watching. The idea is to create a great first impression.Research by Wistia found that play rates improved from 25 to 34 percent when a custom-generated thumbnail replaced an automatically generated one. So, avoid blurry pictures with lots of motion. Choose a still that suggests your video is high quality, and try to include people in the frame. People love people.

22. Add subtitles

If you’re going to post your small-business marketing videos on social media, make sure you add subtitles. Think of all those folk watching your video in a busy office. They don’t want to disturb their colleagues, so they watch with the sound turned off.

23. Use great copywriting

If you’re going to be professional, that means getting a great script, and you’ll get one of those only from a professional copywriter. But if you really want to do it yourself, stick to a proven formula, such as Problem-Agitate-Solution.Introduce a typical problem faced by the viewer, stir up their emotions by describing the associated inconveniences, then introduce your solution. Use social proof (testimonials) to back up your claims and finish with a specific call to action.

The importance of video marketing

Videos help prospective customers make buying decisions about competing products and services. So make it easy for them to choose yours.Make your marketing videos resonate with your audience’s problems and provide simple, accessible solutions. Good luck.