Boost brand awareness and engage your customers with effective video marketing.
More people than ever before consume video content on a daily basis. In fact, as of April 2022, YouTube is the second most visited site in the world as well as the second largest search engine.[1]
With the majority of consumers watching video nearly every day, marketers have taken notice. As a result, video use in marketing has continued to rise with an all-time high of 91% of businesses using it in some form in 2023.[2]
If you’re a small business on the fence about introducing video into your marketing program, understanding why it’s important and what goes into implementing it will help you make an informed decision that will lead to better results—both now and in the long term. These considerations, along with tips from practicing video editor and content producer, Ryan Gutierrez, will help get you started off strong if/when it’s time to produce your first videos.
Ryan Gutierrez, video editor and content producer[3]
What is videography for marketing?
Videography in marketing is the process of producing video content that’s used for marketing purposes. This includes what type of video is being created, how it’s being filmed, and what type of script is needed. The process also includes the type of video editing software being used and any sort of post-production the video calls for. While videography focuses on production, video marketing is the process of distributing and promoting the videos once they’ve been produced.
For more in-depth info on video marketing and how it can transform your content strategy, check out our article here: What Is Video Content Marketing, and How Can It Grow Your Business?
Why is video marketing important?
Consumer habits have evolved considerably over the past three years, from everything becoming digital during the global pandemic to hybrid shopping habits becoming more widespread today. Accordingly, consumers have also integrated video consumption into their daily routines, watching exercise and DIY videos on YouTube, viral videos on TikTok, and live streaming content on platforms like Twitch more than ever before.
For marketers, it seems clear cut that more video is better, right? Not quite. Despite a continued rise in video consumption, marketers slowed their desktop ad impressions at a negative compounded monthly growth rate (CMGR) of 11% from July 2021 to June 2022.[1]
This means that embracing the devices and mobile-first channels consumers are spending their time on today is especially important. Staying the course with a video strategy and altering tactics for today’s audiences will help keep you on the right track to observe the following benefits.
For example, 87% of marketing professionals surveyed say video has helped them increase sales.[2] When it comes down to the bottom line, conversion is the most important aspect of running a successful business. If consumers aren’t buying your product or service to become customers, there’s clearly work to be done. Video helps improve this outlook by providing an engaging, rich way for potential customers to learn about a business.
What goes into a solid video marketing strategy?
Target audience
Your target audience is one of the most crucial aspects of successfully utilizing any marketing tactic, and the same can be said for video. With a variety of marketing channels, video types, and goals (e.g., engagement, awareness, conversion, etc.), it’s important to hone in on an audience to provide the type of content they are looking for in the places they spend their time online.[1]
For the purposes of videography, this means producing the right type of video in the right format. Entertaining, short-form, animated video may work well for one type of customer and objective whereas longer-form, live-action videos with an emphasis on professionalism may resonate better with others.
As Gutierrez puts it, it all comes down to creating content that resonates with your audience: “It's not just a matter of creating content and putting it out there. It's having something that's going to grab the attention of who you're wanting to reach.”
Getting started with defining your target audience
Customer personas[1] are used as part of a customer data management strategy to effectively personalize content and speak to the wants and needs of your most ideal customers. If you haven’t yet developed your own, take some time to brainstorm on the types of "characters” you’ll speak to with your brand’s story. This will help guide your marketing decisions and create content that resonates with your ideal audience.
Marketing goals
Another important aspect of syncing your videography and marketing efforts is ensuring that your videos’ production lines up with your organization’s marketing goals. This goes hand in hand with the target audience since you’ll want to create content that both resonates with your audience and speaks to your business' objectives.[4]
This is a powerful combo to consider: messages that resonate with your ideal customer while effectively promoting your main marketing aim. It’s possible to create content your customers love that just doesn’t drive results, or, conversely, content that has the makings to drive conversions (or engagement or brand awareness, etc.) but doesn’t work with your audience.
Getting started with aligning your marketing goals with video production
Define your most important KPIs with SMART goal setting then keep them in mind every time you’re planning a new video. For example, if the goal is educating your audience on a new product line, a succinct video with clear information and a more professional tone is a good idea. Or, if you’re hoping to engage audiences on social media to grow your follower base, you might opt for entertaining videos that speak to your chosen demographic’s sense of humor.
Channel selection
The next stop once your goals and target audience are fleshed out is the channels where you plan to reach them. Conveniently, this is largely informed by your audience and goals since you’ll want to produce content that promotes your objectives on the channels where your audience spends their time online.[1]
Depending on the type of content you’re producing, there may be clear cut winners here. In the case of video, hosting sites like YouTube or social media platforms with short-form video features like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok are great options. It also bears mentioning that video hosted on one channel or in one format can be easily and effectively repurposed elsewhere. Gutierrez discusses this in the context of saving time and energy by planning up front: “the more information you can get to your editor in the beginning the better. So you have all your bases covered…”
Mapping out your content in this way not only saves resources—it can also make for a more cohesive final product. Think about it: If you create a series of videos (or the same video) in multiple formats during the same process, all the ideation, feedback, and work will contribute to the same end product. This is contrasted with the situation of realizing you want more from the same campaign or video after the fact then having to reformat the video (or worse, create something else entirely).
Getting started with channel selection
Focus on the most common formats first. A standard 16:9 (landscape) aspect ratio works for most video sharing platforms like YouTube and LinkedIn, whereas a 9:16 (portrait) format works well for mobile-first social platforms like Instagram and TikTok.
This aligns with the fact that 93% of marketers say that producing vertical or short-form video content is extremely or somewhat valuable to their company’s marketing objectives. Ideally, if you plan to share video on both, anything you have created professionally should be formatted for both aspect ratios from the outset.
Software selection
Software is your next stop for producing videos. First, assess features that exist within software you already have, including video editing tools within social media platforms. Instagram and TikTok both have video editing features that Gutierrez agrees are great for beginners, “A lot of these apps have pretty decent editors already built into them. So that is a good starting point. Again, it's how much time do you want to put into video editing?”
After taking advantage of native platform features, free versions of professional software can also be a great option. If you want to tackle advanced editing yourself, this is a low- to no-cost way to experience more full-featured software. You may discover that you don’t need as advanced of a tool to accomplish what you need or you may find that you want the features they provide but don’t have time to learn (more on that soon).
The third option for tackling this is taking the plunge to purchase specialized video editing and/or video marketing software. This option is best reserved for those who have in-house video editing expertise and have decided to fully invest in videography for marketing purposes. Generally, once you’ve begun forming your program and found success with the low- to no-cost methods above, it may be time to consider this step.
Getting started with choosing video editing software
Explore the free options you have before considering a software purchase. Getting started with social media videos is as easy as filming from your phone then taking advantage of native features on your chosen social platforms. Oftentimes this is really all you need to get the message out to your existing customers and experiment with new tactics.
Expertise
The final component to consider when implementing a new marketing tactic is the expertise required for success. And with videography for marketing, this expertise is considerable. Videos need to be conceptualized, scripted, directed, shot (or animated), then edited and produced for distribution. This requires time, equipment, and a good amount of knowhow.
As a small business owner, it’s unlikely that all these things are already in your skillset. And for Gutierrez, it really comes down to, “being able to put [video editing] into the hands of someone who does know how to do that. They find that gives them the freedom to really focus on everything else.”
If you’re part of the 48% of marketing professionals that either lack the time or don’t know where to start when creating video content[2], you can rest easy knowing there are people out there who can help.
Enter: video production companies. These services perform tasks such as branding, advertising, content marketing, and overall creative support. The scale and duration of the relationship is up to you, ranging from ad hoc support for a single video up to a long-term strategic partnership. Visit the Capterra Video Production Company Hiring Guide to learn more.
Getting started with honing your expertise
Whether or not you already plan on hiring someone, exploring the free resources and software available to you will help you gain an understanding of what goes into video production, determine your knowledge gaps and needs, and also learn to speak the language so that you’re more prepared for creative conversations.
Ready, set, action! Time to give video marketing a try
Now that you know exactly what you need to get started with creating video content, how about hearing from small business owners who have had success with it? These 3 Video Marketing Tips From Successful Small Business Owners will put you on the right track, and there’s a wealth of information on the Capterra blog if you’re ready to learn more.
Keep an eye out for new marketing content and start with these helpful resources: