According to recent research, one-third of online activity is spent watching video, and marketers who use video grow revenue 49% faster than non-video users. Video’s explosion as a marketing and communication tool isn’t news to those of us that work in the broadcast and AV industries, and many readers will have profited from new client-bases that have opened up as a result. So why are so few of us using video marketing ourselves?
Is it because video marketing takes time?
It’s undeniable that producing video content is more time consuming and requires more resources than writing a blog. Perhaps we’re put off by the time it takes to plan the content, record it (often a couple of times before we get it right) and then edit and export it. Just figuring out what format works best for which platform and how to get captions onto each version is enough to put anyone off.
Are we VICTIMS OF OUR OWN SPECIALISM?
We also make the process more difficult than it needs to be. We don’t think that something shot on an iPhone and edited in an app could be good enough to share with our professional network, so we hire professional cameras and download sophisticated software that we’re not entirely sure how to use. As video professionals, we’re inclined to believe that any video we produce needs to be at least as good as the broadcast content we deal with every day - even though our video is only destined to be shared on LinkedIn.
Is technology the problem?
Even those of us that embrace a prosumer approach are unsure of the best technology for the job. Identifying, testing and familiarising yourself with the video production tools that will suit your purposes takes time. And, if you’re not working with these programmes regularly, then every project requires another familiarisation period. More time.
GREAT EXPECTATIONS
After we’ve invested all this time and energy into creating video content, we’ve generally got some pretty big expectations about the results it will generate. We don’t only want high viewing numbers, but solid leads and sales. And if these results aren’t immediate, we’re quick to throw in the towel and decide that video marketing is unsustainable.
Could the solution be this easy?
But maybe, if we changed our approach to creating video content, we’d start to see why marketers all over the world are so excited about it. We could start with accepting that not all video content is created equal. In the same way that we differentiate between written blogs, case studies, thought leadership pieces and white papers and assign different levels of effort and budget to each, it would make sense to have different approaches to producing videos like showreels, product demonstrations and corporate announcements.
And, if we committed to adopting a sustained video marketing strategy and spent time up-front identifying suitable workflows and tools, we’d probably find the process less frustrating and time consuming. Finally, if we set realistic goals for our videos and refined our approach based on learning over time, we might just start to see some of the amazing results our industry helps other marketers achieve.
Now we just have to get over our fear of stepping out in front of the camera.
Get in touch to chat to us about how video can help your marketing and PR efforts.