Things to Remember Before Launching a Video Campaign

Most mobile users, in excess of 90 percent according to one survey, share video content with others. This is just one of the many compelling reasons to launch a video campaign as part of your online engagement efforts. As with other marketing endeavors, some planning before you get started can boost your overall return on investment and increase your odds of connecting with your intended audience.

Determine Your Budget

Establish how much you can realistically set aside for your video campaign. Plan to distribute videos during each stage of the buying cycle to target customers who are just browsing and those who may need an added incentive to convert. If you can only afford one major investment, consider hiring a videographer to handle the production and editing duties. You’ll need a good HD camera, but a lot of the software you need can be accessed online.

Figure Out Your Story

Each video campaign should have a purpose and a common theme or tone from one video to the next. Whether you’re introducing a new product or promoting an upcoming sale, map out how you plan to deliver your message. Explanation videos detailing what the product is and what makes it special tend be effective. Humor also resonates well with casual browsers, as long as you keep it relevant to the campaign. You can also effectively tell a story with:

• Interviews with industry insiders and influencers
• Product demonstrations with actual people, not just the products
• Serial videos where a single story is divided into a series of short videos

Plan to Keep It Short at First

One study found the human attention span is less than that of a goldfish at just nine seconds, although videos under a minute still have a retention rate of 80 percent up to the 30-second mark. You can even get away with a 5-10 minute video while still maintaining a 50 percent retention rate. Plan to keep your videos shorts, though, as in under five minutes, at least until you have enough stats available to determine if there’s interest in longer videos for future campaigns. Your goal isn’t 100 percent retention anyway. Instead, focus on generating interest among your target audience.

Choose the Right Platforms

YouTube may be the most logical place to upload videos for your campaign, but it’s not the only place where such content can be accessed, and it may not even be the most effective platform for your needs. Consider how your audience prefers to interact with you and which platforms generate the most interest, which may mean that your video campaign will be more effective on Facebook, Instagram, or Vine. Start with a few platforms to test the response to your videos before expanding to other platforms.

Consider Captions and Transcripts

Videos accompanied by captions or full transcriptions can increase your keyword density and visibility by allowing your video content to be considered for ranking purposes. It’s also a great way to emphasize the message being conveyed in the video, which can be further enhanced with closed captioning that can be activated by the viewer. You can even have captions slightly different than what’s on the screen to further enhance your message. There are transcription and closed captioning companies that can do this stuff for you for a fair price. Further increase engagement by:

• Including a call-to-action at the end of each video
• Recommending one of your related videos
• Placing keywords within your video titles or captions

More than 90 percent of marketers are using videos in some way to keep up with the increasing interest in visual messaging. Video marketing campaigns often have a shelf life that’s determined by the nature of the content. Yet a well-produced video, not so much in terms of production value but actual relevance to the viewer, can be effectively repurposed in your other online content, including your blogs, website, and social media posts.