“Using video to connect with a prospect is so much more than a cold call. Video humanises the selling process,” – Jill Rowley
Commerce and commercial ventures have always thrived using marketing and advertising devices. Video content has emerged as an important vehicle for marketing communications and advertising in the modern world. This emergence has been enabled by the ubiquity of the global Internet and the rise of mobile connected devices such as smartphones and consumer tablets. The majority of consumers in the world have personal access to such devices and this makes for an emphatic case for the use of video in modern marketing campaigns. In addition, video advertising is optimised to show a product or concept in action, thereby igniting consumer interest and gaining significant market traction. In light of the above, we must note that video technology lends itself admirably in fashioning attractive and intelligent marketing campaigns.
Video content boosts customer conversions and sales figures because this technology is engineered to attract human attention. Videos can be transmitted over the Internet through emails, on websites, on social media handles, via web-links, blogs, and online discussion forums. All of these represent significant means of media consumption by consumers in every location. A marketer that wishes to broadcast a definitive product or service message can invest in the creation of video content and present such content to every consumer, through laptop devices, desktop computers, connected tablets, and smartphones. We must bear in mind, that video content essentially combines animation, video, audio, and on-screen text to present a powerful marketing message. This versatility of the video medium makes it a preferred choice for commercial organisations. An exciting product video can help to convert viewers and online browsers into paying customers, thus justifying the investment into such an advertising platform.
Brands that introduce new products in the market can carve a greater mind share among customers when they deploy a product video via electronic mass media. For instance, a cosmetics and beauty products company can choose to invest in video content in an attempt to outline the merits of a new product line. Modern video technologies and professionals can be harnessed to create lavish video footage that details the said product for broadcast and online audiences. The various attributes of the product can be highlighted and thus spark market demand for said product. We must note that a product endorsement from a celebrity can be amplified through such video content and thereby create a market or niche market. These videos tend to engage all the senses of viewing audiences and therefore stand a significantly higher chance of boosting conversions.
The technical aspects of video content are gaining ground in terms of lower costs pertaining to video editing tools and video software. This is important for a commercial technology to gain ground because it widens market access to such tools and software packages. The ease of creation of video content and the ideation behind such videos has helped to make videos as integral part of the marketing mix. We must note that every piece of such content need not be perfect but must succeed in transmitting the basic commercial message. Short videos can be inserted into online video viewing platforms because these platforms have gained incremental traction among audiences worldwide. This generates significant return on investments for video content, which, is being viewed increasingly as a profitable marketing and advertising tool.
Online search engines rank and index websites and online platforms based on the popularity among audiences. Since video content attracts more eyeballs, search engines are likely to rank websites that bear videos on the higher end of search returns. For instance, an enterprise that regularly publishes original video content is likely to garner very high ratings on search engine indices. Interesting titles and descriptions can be appended to video content as part of a strategy to boost the ranking of such content. This represents prime real estate for marketing and advertising pitches. In addition, we note that marketing videos should be optimised for online viewing on a variety of platforms, such as mobile and desktop. This approach can amplify the reach of marketing campaigns and thus generate a higher return on such strategies.
Social media represents an ideal platform to pitch video content through marketing campaigns. Brief ten-second videos can be created to project the essence of a commercial message on social media handles operated by businesses. Arresting graphics and on-screen text can be coupled with a commercial messages that pitches a product or service to social media consumers. This approach is designed to defeat the short attention spans typical of online consumers. This approach can also help brands and businesses to generate viral action through ‘likes’ and ‘shares’ that are native to social media platforms. We must note that such campaigns should be designed to operate in conjunction with print and broadcast campaigns in an effort to reinforce a brand image and to boost customer recall.
Real world locations such as sports stadia, airports, shopping malls, and cinema theatres represent prime locations for the exhibition of video content. Modern technologies have enabled the creation of high definition screens and very large screen viewing areas. This enables marketers and advertisers to beam videos to masses of consumers and transform them into potential customers. For instance, an entrepreneur can commission the creation of commercial videos that highlight a new product in the market. When such video content is exhibited to captive audiences in the sites mentioned above, an emphatic marketing message is transmitted thereby boosting public awareness and piquing consumer interest. The creativity, ideation, and the technical aspects of such videos should be outstanding if such messages are to gain deep traction. That said such video content should also find resonance in other marketing planks such as television and the Internet. Interestingly, such display strategies can be augmented by product experience booths located and operated near the display platforms. However, recent research indicates that video advertisements operate to the detriment of certain vintage platforms such as banner ads that were once widely deployed in the early days of the global Internet.
In the preceding paragraphs, we have examined the efficacy of using video content to promote marketing and advertising campaigns. We must bear in mind that videos will increasingly become a dominant component of the marketing mix owing to its sheer ability to attract and influence customers. Video content can be used to leverage the experiences of real customers and such footage can be incorporated into a video-based marketing and advertising campaign. The body language and the utterances of real customers can impart a flavour of authenticity to video content and thereby boost the credibility of such material. Every brand and business should also undertake to archive their video content because these messages acquire vintage value over time and can be used to design video collages in the future. The real value in such collages lies in aiding customer memory and boosting brand recall in crowded commercial markets. Further, the astute marketer can choose to leverage video content to reinforce a brand reputation and to strengthen brand equity through calibrated reiteration of video content over different platforms. In light of the above, every brand and enterprise should invest in video content in an attempt to rise above the competition.
