5 Video Marketing Mistakes to Avoid in 2018
We shoot a lot of video for clients, and that video adds a lot of value. But, our greatest value add may well be the work we do to help clients develop video marketing programs in which video is integrated throughout the marketing mix, in accordance with standard marketing best practices.
In doing this work, we often encounter the same mistakes being made by clients, again and again, as they look to add video as a serious component of their marketing strategies. Here are five of the mistakes we see, with suggestions on how to avoid them.
1. Rely on a single video to do all the heavy lifting.
A single video does not a video marketing strategy make.
Like most marketing assets, video works best when it is given a single purpose. Videos designed to do too many things at once, often fail to do anything very well.
Your video marketing strategy should involve multiple videos, each geared toward a particular purpose. Plan for this by taking a look at your marketing/sales funnel.
Where are things getting stuck, and where might a video or two help move prospects through the funnel toward conversion?
Videos that are great at attracting prospects, like live social video, how-to videos and thought leader video, are not especially effective further down the funnel, where prospects are trying to decide between you and a competitor. At that stage of the funnel, customer testimonial videos, for example, are much more effective.
You wouldn’t expect one blog post or one email to accomplish everything necessary for those marketing channels, would you?
Video is the same way. Start thinking about multiple videos, each targeted to a particular purpose.
2. Spend too much on production values.
People tend to obsess about the look of their videos. Don’t get me wrong, your videos should look good, but we often see people spending too much money on the production value of their videos.
How much is too much? There are two rules of thumb to follow:
First, you must make sure that your videos are in focus, well-lit, well-scripted and easily understood, with good audio. No exceptions.
Second, make sure that your production values are commensurate with your brand values. Spend the money needed to achieve that, and no more.
Your videos should look like they belong with the rest of your marketing assets. Videos that fall short of that mark look cheap and don’t reflect well on your brand. Videos that significantly exceed that mark, seem out of place, and make the rest of your marketing assets look cheap.
Spend the money needed to bring your videos in line with the rest of your marketing assets and no more. The money you’ll save on production values can then be invested in the production of more videos targeted at more stages of your marketing/sales funnel.
3. Ignore marketing best practices.
It’s all too easy to get caught up in the “Lights! Camera! Action!” aspects of video marketing.
New cameras, studios and production practices are exciting, but they can distract you from focusing on the desired outcomes established for your video marketing programs — that is, to develop more leads, shorten the sales cycle and drive more leads.
Like all components of your marketing mix, video should be subject to marketing best practices, and exposed to the scrutiny those best practices demand. Before you set up your camera, you should know precisely what the video is intended to achieve, and what it will cost.
Are you trying to drive leads the top of the funnel? How many? How much will you have to spend on the videos required to achieve that goal?
Where will the videos reside on your website? Will you build a separate landing page for the videos? (Hint: you probably should.) How will the videos support your existing search engine optimization (SEO) strategy, and what kind of SEO lift can you expect?
How will you promote your videos? How will your other marketing channels leverage the videos you’ve created? How will the videos fit with everything else you’re doing?
Once the campaign is over, did your videos perform as expected? Was your return on investment appropriate?
If not, something has to be changed (or possibly eliminated), going forward.
Conscientious marketing department are already subjecting their other assets to this type of forethought and scrutiny. Video should be no different.
4. Don’t integrate video with the rest of your marketing mix.
Video marketing should be part of a broader, integrated marketing strategy.
The good news is that video is especially well suited to integration. Video is easily consumed, so dropping a link into a blog post or an email can improve the effectiveness of both.
Video is also easily repurposed. Use a 15-second clip from a longer video, and post it to social media. Take representative clips from a handful of video testimonials, and turn combine them in a compilation reel that you display in your booth, at an upcoming trade show.
Most importantly, video needs to be promoted, just like any other marketing asset. Video lends itself very well to email and social campaigns.
[bctt tweet=”In the end, video is most effective as an organic component of a broader marketing mix.” username=”Thoughtcasting”]
One especially effective technique is to create a series of short videos on a particular subject and drive prospects to them through your other channels. As prospects begin consuming the content, stop the video somewhere in the middle and ask for an email address before showing the rest of the video. (Here’s a recent example of one such campaign.)
In the end, video is most effective as an organic component of a broader marketing mix. It both benefits from, and lends its support, to the other assets and channels that are part of your marketing strategy.
5. Use video only for specialized applications, or as a last resort.
Because it is relatively new, video is often an afterthought for many marketers. It involves new skills and can be expensive, if not properly conceived and executed. As a result, video content isn’t the first thing marketers think of when developing a new campaign.
But, that’s beginning to change. Some innovative marketers are beginning to adopt video-first marketing strategies, to take advantage of some of video’s unique qualities, and to protect against some less-than-happy trends in the market.
So, what are some of these qualities and trends?
First and foremost, video is easier and more enjoyable to consume.
Video alleviates the need for a lot of the cognitive brain function required to consume information. That’s why people would prefer to watch a video about something than read about the same subject.
More interest in video and less interest in the written word has smart marketers thinking about what prospects will be consuming in the future. Are fewer people reading your blog posts? Video might be something you want to consider.
Second, our “post-truth” world makes video especially attractive to brands hoping to instill trust in their customers.
Video is very revealing. It’s human. It’s raw. The next time you need to smooth the waters with your customers, try video to add a personal element that’s almost impossible to replicate with the written word.
Third, video content can be less expensive and faster to produce than e-books, reports, blog posts and other forms of written collateral.
This may be hard to believe for organizations just getting into video, but it’s true that marketing departments that have gotten the hang of producing quality video, can often do so very quickly and affordably. Done properly, video can reduce costs and speed time to market.
Finally, as video is being “democratized,” its cost and complexity has begun to drop dramatically.
There will always be a need for slick, heavily-produced video (think Super Bowl ads), but for most marketers, requirements are becoming less complex and less expensive.
Take social video, for example. Facebook Live makes it possible for brands to produce video that meets quality expectation, using nothing more than a smart phone.
Take the next step.
So, start thinking in terms of a video-first marketing strategy. With an honest assessment of your current marketing mix, you can determine where video will be most effective in helping you achieve your marketing goals, and begin putting a strategy in place.
You may be surprised to find that it makes a lot of sense for your organization, and that it is well within your financial and organizational grasp.
Next step: learn how video can help your business reach it’s unique marketing goals.
5 More Campaign-Killing Video Marketing Mistakes
Still worried you could be making a crucial error in the rollout of new video content? I’ve put together a series of 5 more video marketing mistakes you can’t afford to ignore:
Video Marketing Mistake #6: Hide Your Emotions
Video Marketing Mistake #7: Discount the Value of In-House Thought Leaders
Video Marketing Mistake #8: Don’t Use a Video Hosting Platform
Video Marketing Mistake #9: Ignore Streaming Video
Video Marketing Mistake #10: Do It (All) Yourself
