Video has grown from a ‘fun to have’ to a ‘must have’ part of B2B marketing. It’s become a key part of multi-channel marketing. While video can be more complicated and costly to produce (especially if you want to do it well), it can be very effective is building relationships with customers – and of course driving sales.
While video is not the cheapest form of marketing, it doesn’t have to break the bank either. But we’ll talk about that later.
- Companies who include video in their marketing grow revenue 49% faster year-on-year than those who don’t, according to research from Aberdeen Group.
#1 Explain Complex Products
If you’re selling a technology product, a process, or a product that has functional properties, then video is an essential tool.
The ability to give customers a demonstration of ‘how your product works’ is worth a thousand words (if we adapt the old saying to modern times).
Seeing is believing and so a demonstration serves as a kind of ‘proof’ that your product works. You can actually show people the benefits of using your product or service.
An Educated Customer is Your Best Customer
The more customers understand about your product – how it works, how it can solve problems they are facing and how to implement it – the more likely they are to purchase from you.
#2 Take Advantage of Your Back Story
This works for any company, regardless of your product. It’s a brilliant way to differentiate yourselves as a cut above your competitors.
Regardless of your company history product, every business has a ‘story’ – its simply a matter of finding it – and developing it into a compelling video or written article. An experience writer can do this.
Your ‘back story’ is what happens behind the scenes. It can be how you got started, how you manufacturer your product (the painstaking, quality driven steps you take to deliver excellence) that is the backbone of your brand.
Today more than ever a back story is essential to convincing customers to buy your products. A good back story will help convince customers to pay more for your products. This is because they can literally see why they are better.
To most buyers, one product is just the same as the next. Why not buy the cheapest one then? No one wants to feel like they are paying a premium just for a brand name.
Decades ago people learned that paying a premium for branded products simply meant subsidizing celebrity endorsements and fancy marketing campaigns.
Through video you can take that customer on a journey – through your entire manufacturing process, if necessary, so that customers can see for themselves the steps you take, the materials you use, and the attention to detail that justifies buying from you.
Depending upon your market, you can make the back story either a longer dive into your company’s history and current business – or a quick overview about how you got started and what you are doing now.
EXPERT ADVICE: A shorter video is more likely to get watched until the end. If you have a longer video, at least offer a condensed version for customers who are either pressed for time or who have shorter attention spans.
#3 Make It Personal
One of the biggest advantages of video is that you can literally put a face to your company’s name.
By featuring yourself and/or some of your colleagues in a video customers get to ‘meet’ you. They feel like they know you better. Even if you simply show a person without having them speak – it still makes it more personal.
Being more personal helps create a closer connection with your customers. We all know the value of in person meetings versus emails, don’t we? Yet meetings can be time consuming, and costly (especially if it involves travel).
As customers see you on video, they feel they know you. The value of this – in terms of building trust and confidence – is critical. This is particularly true in a day and age when people want certainty and stability.
The unknown is scary and risky – and must be avoided.
Is It Worth the Investment?
Video is not cheap, but it can be a very worthwhile investment. It can truly be that ‘evergreen’ content that companies seek.
Once your video has been produced, you can display it on your website, showcase it on monitors in your office, send a link to customers as a way to introduce your company – and many other options.
Like all digital content, it can be posted anywhere. And we suggest that you do that.
Pro Tips
- Keep videos short. Less is truly more. People have short attention spans.
- Make the video interesting with lots of additional photos and text call outs.
- Use text captions – this helps viewers understand what you are saying.
- Consider adding captions in a second language (for audiences who don’t understand the speaker’s native language).
- Do you have a long story to tell? Break it up into two or more short videos. Yes, creating a series will cost a bit more, but you’ll have much greater viewership.
- Videos need to be fast paced but too fast and know one can really see your products or understand what you are saying.
- Avoid being too ‘corporate’. Show the ‘real’ or human side of your executives. Customers will be better able to relate to them.
