Video is becoming increasingly de rigueur for a company’s marketing strategy as opposed to simply a singular marketing tactic (Hubspot).

Yet many smaller companies who lack the budget and expertise to produce video are shying away from this powerful medium.

Did you know that by including video in a marketing email you can increase click-through rates by 300% (Forrester)? Or the word “video” in your subject line can improve your open rate by 19%?

But do these analytics convert into sales?

You’ll be pleased to know that in 64% of cases, watching a video can make potential customers more ready to buy from a website.

Still the question remains, how do you go about implementing video into your strategy without the necessary resources?

It’s easier than you think!

Video is now at the reach of smaller companies and individuals through a Smartphone alone.

With your phone, you can capture 15 seconds of video for your Instagram Story easily and cheaply.

This gives you the chance to show off your brand’s personality, making customers feel connected, thus building a “tribe”.

So why else does video deserve your love?

• For its “storytelling” capabilities: It’s not just a marketing buzzword that’s been doing the rounds for a few years now, it’s the epicentre of marketing. It’s the basic foundation from which we understand the world and can process concepts and information more easily.
• For efficiency: If a picture is worth a thousand words, then 60 seconds of video is the equivalent of 1.8 million words.
• For customer service: Imagine how much easier it is to show someone a video rather than explain a complicated process over the phone? And from your customer’s point of view, a short video gets to the point a lot quicker than reams of text.
• For authentic testimonials: Bring positive customer feedback to life by filming them. Seeing the happy customer on camera uttering their sentiments with their tone of voice and body language evident feels more honest.
• For addictive content: How often do you scroll through your Instagram feed only to catch sight of movement? Do you linger a little longer on the moving image, even without turning the sound on? Try explaining to your animal brain that this isn’t magic. We’re still enchanted by these pictures even with all our human understanding.
• For entertainment: Alarmingly, the Independent reported earlier this year that we Brits spend nearly a decade of our lives watching television. Scary! It also goes to show how much we are entertained by video media. As marketers and business owners, it’s our job to put out valuable content that people will enjoy and also learn from.

In our follow up post, we will guide you through some of the ways you can use video to build your brand and make it more accessible.

If you’re in need of help creating promotional videos, we can take you through all the stages, from storyboarding to scriptwriting, to voiceovers and final cut.