The use of video in marketing has increased over the last fifteen years. Not only has it grown in popularity, it's also become one of the most effective types of marketing.
Software Advice's 2012 B2B Demand Generation Benchmark Survey shows that most respondents prefer video over other forms of content marketing such as white papers, case studies, webinars or live demonstrations. That means your audience is more likely to engage with your message through video than other advertising media.Psychologist Susan Weinschenk, Ph.D. has uncovered four reasons why people like video:
- Our brains pay attention to faces to gather information and believability
- Movement grabs attention
- The sound of a human voice converts information into meaningful content
- Video is an emotional media and emotions are contagious
Two effective ways to use video to sell your products and services are commercials and sales letters. An effective marketing strategy includes both of these types of videos. Here’s why:
Video Commercials
Video commercials are advertisements–the same types you see on television–which you broadcast on your website. The basic function of a video commercial is to create and sustain awareness of your products and services. A video commercial can also help you create your brand image.
The standard length of video commercials is either 30 or 60 seconds. You have just enough time to communicate a product benefit and call to action.
To be most effective, you’ll need to distribute your video commercial on websites that appeal to your target market. It may take several impressions before a viewer responds.
A video commercial can be part of both your inbound and outbound marketing strategies. As part of your website, your video commercial can play a big part of your inbound marketing. Visitors to your website will view your commercial. You can also choose to advertise your products or services by placing your video commercial on other company websites that cater to your target market.
Rocket Fuel, a company that offers programmatic media buying, projects an increase in spending on digital video advertising among 80 percent of brands, according to a report in StreamingMedia.com in July 2013. The survey found that marketers plan to shift a big part of their commercial budgets from television to online video.
Video Sales Letters
Video sales letters are similar to long-form sales letters from print. Instead, you have a narrator tell the story to your audience. You can do this with either the words also appearing on the screen or with images that complement the verbiage.
Unlike video commercials that are short, a video sales letter can take 20 minutes or longer.
As reported by eMarketer in September 2013, VideoHub found that online marketing videos that run 30 to 60 minutes in length have the highest completion rates. Completion rate is the percentage of viewers who watch the entire online video after clicking on it. These videos engage viewers who are receptive to watch these to the end and are more inclined to buy.
With this amount of time, you have a big opportunity to sell your audience your product or service. The video should include a strong lead and powerful call to action so your audience can respond right then and there and purchase what it is you are selling.
A video sales letter is ideal for online direct marketing. In fact, direct marketers are using video sales letter more today because they sell, according to Target Marketing Magazine. Video sales letters condition viewers and reward them with new and valuable information that compel them to buy the featured product at the end of the message.
You can include a link in your email to a landing page that contains your video sales letter. Plus you’ll need to insert a link on the landing page for the viewer to be able to go to your shopping cart to make the purchase.
Integrate Video Commercials and Video Sales Letters in Your Campaign
An effective marketing campaign starts with awareness and ends with a strong close. By integrating a video commercial and a video sales letter in your campaign, you’ll be able to create awareness of your product and service and create an online sale. Plus, this dual strategy will enable you to attract new customers while you increase your target market penetration at the same time.
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