By 2021, 80 percent of online activity worldwide will access content by video, which means that companies must include it as a primary source of branding. A video-friendly marketing strategy for every social media platform or online channel will ensure that you reach different consumer demographics. For businesses that lack large budgets, using explainer videos and guides to learn about marketing strategies ensures your teams are prepared for branding and advertising.

Why You Need a Video Marketing Strategy

Video integration of yesterday is no longer effectively meeting the needs of marketers as the content was designed by a creative team as part of a larger marketing strategy. Facebook predicts that video will be a video-only platform by 2021. The video marketing strategy of tomorrow will be company-wide and used by companies to bring about an action that is analytically measurable and contain a call-to-action. The video marketing strategies of the future will also entertain yet increase conversion and open rates. This ultimate guide will get you ready from video production quality to cost-effective methods of attaining the right equipment.

Types of Marketing Videos

The first thing a marketing team or small business owner will decide is what type of video you will create. Here is a list of different marketing videos from which you will be able to choose.

Product Demo

No one knows your products better than you. Using a demo video allows you to set the narrative for your product. Since 90 percent of consumers research products before buying them, this is your chance to spotlight product testing, features, and user benefits. A demo will be an asset on a website or social media platforms.

Branding

When a marketing team creates branding videos, they bring awareness to a company’s goals, vision, and products or service advertising to attract new demographics.

Company Events

From keynotes to conferences and presentations, event videos allow you to share the information with your shareholders, employees or customers.

How-to Videos

How-to videos on YouTube have increased viewership by 70 percent this year and are gaining in popularity. They are also terrific assets for your salesmen to attach to sales emails.

Leadership Interviews

The best way to boost your company’s expertise is to do interviews with your experts. It will build your brand authority as well as trustworthiness with consumers.

Animation

Animation is a popular video format when trying to explain company concepts or abstract ideas. It is also an entertaining way to use visuals as a marketing strategy.

Informational Videos

Informational videos help your marketing team communicate with different demographics about the need for products and services to consumers as a problem solver.

Consumer Testimonials

Testimonial videos are ideal for word-of-mouth advertising. More than 90 percent of consumers read the website feedback to find out if a product lives up to its name.

Video Creation Process

After choosing your video concept, you need to determine what your call-to-action will be after viewing. Having a clear picture will allow you to determine what you need to shoot and the frames you need to capture which will make editing easier to accomplish. The better aligned your team is on what each person needs to do, the more definitive a video you will produce as a team. To figure out your marketing video strategy, answer these seven critical questions as a team:

1. Who is the target demographic?
2. What goal do you want to achieve with your video?
3. What platform or channel will the video be used?
4. What is your budget?
5. What is the delivery timeline for the video?
6. What challenges will you face regarding skill sets, budget, or resources?
7. What performance indicators do you want to achieve?

Write Your Script

As video transitions as a dominant force in marketing, so too will writers who will need to focus on scripts. While some videos are great unscripted, businesses must use a script to ensure that all the critical points are made and that you use language that keeps consumers engaged. Just like writers start a blog with an outline, so too should a video producer which states your logistics order and key marketing points. It will allow you to stay focused while ensuring your budget and time are not wasted.

Learn About Your Video Equipment Before Shooting

Do not wait until video shooting to learn how to use your video equipment. Depending on the type of video you want to shoot, marketing teams will opt for a camera or iPhone. Professional cameras are a must for commercial-grade video production:

• Frame rate or frames per second (fps) is a setting that allows you to customize how many frames you will capture per second. You must decide on 24 or 30 fps for video production. You need to set the resolution above 1920×1080 pixel quality.
• The shutter speed is the set time length that the sensor is visible to light.
• Aperture refers to the lens f-stop opening size which controls how much light the camera takes in. A smaller f-stop number causes the camera to have a larger lens while a larger number will result in a smaller lens. The lower the f-stop, the brighter the image while a larger number is better for depth in a video.
• ISO refers to your camera’s light sensor function. A low setting will make your camera less sensitive to light while a larger number will create grainy images if there is a lot of light present when shooting. A low setting is ideal with natural light. A higher number will be productive if the natural light is not bright.
• A white balance setting will tell your camera the color temperature for a video shoot. After you set up for the video, you will need to choose manual color temps or customize it based on settings, location and weather.

A clear understanding of video production will allow you to determine what you need to focus on, the frames you need to capture, and the right equipment you need to achieve your goals.