Video marketing is gold dust for small businesses keen on expanding their digital sales. However, if you're considering using video marketing to promote your business for the first time, it's important to familiarise yourself with the potential pitfalls before you start. Designing a poorly thought out video marketing campaign could have a negative effect on your company's reputation and on your bottom line. In this article, we discuss the four biggest errors that businesses make when publishing video content, so you can avoid them and ensure that your campaign is a success.
1) Underestimating The Importance Of Video
There's a reason why businesses are now using videos more frequently. It's because people love watching them. In fact, 54% of people would like to see brands use even more video content. Video marketing is a versatile option for SMEs, as you can use this content format to:
- Tell potential clients more about your company;
- Explain or demonstrate your products and services;
- Position your company as a leader in your field by sharing useful information and tips;
- Answer frequently asked questions;
- Present case studies;
- Provide prospects with client testimonials;
- Educate viewers about relevant issues;
- Persuade potential clients to buy from you;
- Provide an interactive customer service experience.
2) Creating The Wrong Type Of Video
In order to get the best results from your video marketing campaign, you need to ensure that you keep your goals in mind. You can create an array of different types of marketing video and it's crucial to use the most appropriate one if you want to get results. For example, case study and testimonial videos could help you to improve your conversion rate. However, creating an FAQ video may be a better option if you want to cut technical support costs, as it may lead to a drop in the number of customer enquiries that you receive.
3) Using Inappropriate Distribution Channels
If you aren't sharing your videos via the channels that your target customers are using, you probably won't get a decent return on your investment. Therefore, your marketing team should research the available channels carefully to see which ones are likely to yield the best results. While Facebook and Twitter are great platforms to distribute B2C content, for example, some B2B companies may find that LinkedIn is a more suitable option for their needs. In fact, 87% of those who use the platform for video marketing purposes claim that it's an effective video distribution channel.
4) Forgetting To Include A Call To Action (CTA)
As with any form of marketing content, your videos should be designed with specific purposes in mind. What do you want viewers to do when they have finished watching your video? Spell this out clearly by including a clear call to action within each video, as well as within the website page, social media post or email message that you're using to distribute it. Don’t be coy. That call to action could be to sign up to your mailing list, download an e-book, call your sales advisors, or make a direct purchase. Make sure you track and analyse your response rates too, so that you can monitor your progress.
Next steps
For more hints and tips to help you to create a video marketing strategy that works, get in touch with the experts at JDR. We keep up to date with all the latest inbound marketing techniques and can tailor our solutions to suit your company.
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