5 Video Best Practices guide for Marketers (And Tips)

Looking at the many digital marketing trends that are popular today, one can’t help but notice the dominance video enjoys over its peers. Statistics about its influence continue to crop up very often, each bearing witness to the fact that video has shaped current marketing practices and will keep doing so for the foreseeable future.

Initially, video used to be just another option one would consider while crafting a content strategy, but that’s not the case anymore. Like it or not, you need it now more than ever because it engages minds, raises conversion rates, builds trust, encourages social shares, and search engines love it, among other things.

Unfortunately, it won’t be possible for you to enjoy the fruits of video marketing unless you learn and master the best video marketing practices that the success of your marketing campaigns depends on. Today is your chance to discover them.

1. Set Realistic Goals

For your campaign to be successful, you’ll require a plan, and part of it will include setting goals. Define them right from the outset because to craft an effective video strategy, you need to know the goals.

Think of them as your instructor or coach, there to guide and motivate you and your team as you work to create a great marketing video. For such a process, coordination matters and goals play the role of enabling the different people involved in the process to work towards the same thing.

That said, note that unrealistic or less challenging goals can impair your marketing efforts. You could have the best marketing video, but without proper goals, forget about success. Thankfully, there’s a way to avoid that.

Apply the SMART rule; i.e., make your goals specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound, and more importantly, adhere to them. Also, keep your audience in mind while crafting the goals.

2. Video Length Matters

You’ve probably encountered lots of expert opinions about how long marketing videos should be. Reduced attention span, the possibility of better conversion rates or going viral, and better engagement are among the reasons many insist on shorter videos.

Does that mean that longer videos are ineffective? Absolutely not, and this report from TwentyThree supports that. Based on this report, videos that are 15 minute long or higher account for over 50% of all video engagement, yet they are the least produced (8%), while shorter videos (less than 5 minutes) only account for less than a third of all video engagement and they take up the largest share (80%).

Well, video length politics aside, it’s wise to let the length of your video be guided by the topic in question plus the video’s purpose. For example, if you want to explain a complex subject, chances are one or two minutes won’t be enough. At the same time, those few minutes will be just fine if you simply want to highlight your brand or promote it.

3. Optimize Your Videos For Search

Here’s a fact that seems to elude many. Your good video won’t naturally rank higher in search engines, garner those coveted views and shares, or drive massive traffic back to your website unless you optimize it for that purpose.

It may be creative, engaging, and well-produced, but given that any savvy marketer will want to optimize viewership and do their best to meet the goals set out in the beginning, that justifies the need for video SEO.

Whether you plan to upload your video on platforms like YouTube and Vimeo, host it on customizable third-party video platforms or on your own domain, there’s a slew of things you can do to optimize their search performance.

Besides that, also consider creating interactive content. Personalized videos, for instance, can keep visitors on your website longer, and when Google takes note of the increased dwell-time, you will end up ranking higher on the search engine result pages (SERPs).

YouTube also takes note of engagement rate and video completion rate, both of which are attributes that personalized videos thrive in.

4. Tell A Story

In the past, and even today, stories continue to be viewed as the best thing one can use to create connections with an audience.

Naturally, humans will never hesitate to invest emotionally in great stories. We’ve seen this utilized not just in marketing, but also in movies and books. Titles like “Shawshank Redemption” and “The Fault In Our Stars” are popular across the world due to the stories behind them.

AirBnB’s marketing video (below) is successful largely because of the story it tells, which revolves around their logo and how it’s a combination of people, love, places, and the company itself.

Well, naturally, you’ll be tempted to simply pack into your video a lineup of benefits, features, or a boring narration about your business and then sum that up with a call-to-action, but this won’t be as convincing or as memorable as using a story to pass on that information.

Of course, your storytelling techniques have to be a little more advanced in order to capture the attention of a modern-day consumer. For instance, pick subjects that not only evoke emotion but also connect with your target audience.

Combining video, which as we’ve seen engages better and is easy for internet users of today to digest and share, with a compelling story leaves you with the perfect recipe for creating a powerful marketing video.

5. Add A Call-To-Action (CTA)

A call-to-action is what you would like your viewer either to do while watching or after watching your video. It’s the culmination stage where you have a chance to ‘close the deal’ and probably bring your goals to life.

Deciding on which CTA type to use and how to incorporate it into your video will depend on your type of video, goals, selected platform that you wish to upload it to, among other factors. This means you will have to make choices.

Besides deciding between a voice call-to-action, text call-to-action, image call-to-action, or buttons, you will have to choose where to place it (either at the beginning, middle, or towards the end) and how you would like it to appear (a question, free trial, form, etc.)

You may also be tempted to go for the easy and straight CTAs, like “Call Us for More Information” or “Buy Now”, which is not bad, but keep in mind that there’s no limit as to how creative you want to get with it. You can study what other brands have done and use the inspiration to create your own unique CTAs.

Summary

If you take a look at successful video marketing campaigns, it won’t be difficult to notice the best video marketing practices we’ve mentioned (I really dare you to). Those who created the videos clearly knew and understood the significance of applying these practices and doing so correctly.

Thankfully, our video best practices guide for marketers has set the foundation for you to build on. You have a chance to do the same to your video marketing project, which is an opportunity to achieve just as much as the successful brands have.