4 Reasons Why Video Works For Your Business!

About a year ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Mark Newsome in an online Facebook group. We had several lovely chats and always looked for ways to improve our businesses.

As a Media Personality, Mentor and Trainer who is also Executive Producer of Janette’s TV (an online web TV series, in season 9, with over 450 aired episodes and an over 5 million following of women and smart men, ages 30-55 worldwide.)

And Janette’s TV Podcast, we would discuss the importance of being on-camera and making videos to grow your business and some of the mistakes I would see business owners make trying to use video in their business.

When it comes to marketing and advertising on the Net, the ubiquitous presence of pay-per-click ads and banners are usually what comes to mind at first. However, increasingly, these advertising strategies are being complemented by a perhaps more traditional medium – video.

Video ads are an extremely powerful way to get your brand’s message across and generate new leads which you can convert into sales.  There are 4 essential reasons why I believe video advertising works for any business – and here they are:

Why Do Businesses Need Video Marketing Strategies?

 

1. Video Drives Traffic

Videos from YouTube, the internet’s most popular site and second most popular search engine, appear often in very high positions on Google search results.

• When a video is associated with a particular search phrase, it increases the likelihood of that video appearing on the front page up to 53 times (Forrester).
• Video results appear in about 70% of the top 100 listings, the type of content most often displayed in universal or blended search results (Marketingweek).
• Videos in universal search results have a 41% higher click through rate than their plain text counterparts (RealSEO).

Video brings traffic to your business’ website more than any other type of search result.

2. Video Encourages Discovery and Engagement

Simply put, people love to watch videos. The numbers support this statement: 3 billion videos are viewed on YouTube every day. For the past few years, online video viewing has been exponentially increasing. It is expected that by 2021, 92% of internet traffic and 66% of all mobile data will be video.

Not only do people watch videos, they also act on them:

• • 60% of content-sharing messages specifically mention a brand or product name.
  • Landing pages with professional video generate 4-7x more engagement and response rates (SearchEngineWatch).
  • When it comes to engagement, online video is 5.33 times more effective than text.

Videos associated with your business will get your brand known and shared across the internet.

3. Video Increases Conversion

When potential customers view a video, there is a greater chance that they will contact your business. Visitors who view product videos are 85% more likely to buy than visitors who do not (Internet Retailer, April 2010). Videos on your business website can significantly affect visitors’ behaviour:

• It’s been shown that videos can increase the number of business profile clicks by more than 30%, business calls by 18%, website visits by 55%, incidence of purchase by 24% (PRWeb).
• Retail sites with video increase conversion by 30% and boost average ticket by 13%. (L2 Specialty Retail Report, September 2010)

Product pages with video have higher conversion rates than product pages without video. (Internet Retailer, February 2010)

4. Video Builds Trust & Loyalty

Online video is second only to word-of-mouth for its ability to influence decision makers in every stage of the purchase life cycle. Studies have shown that over 90% of shoppers surveyed found video useful in making purchase decisions (Internet Retailer, October 2010). Video is a powerful way to sensitize potential customers to your brand, products, and services, leading to significant increases in sales.

Video production is a complex and involved process that demands the skills and expertise of trained professionals. A badly done video can actually hurt your reputation and brand, while a quality production can bring your business all the benefits mentioned above and more.

I’m sure you will agree with me when I say, “getting started with video marketing can be difficult.”

There is a steep learning curve whether you’ve got a videographer on staff or not. Quite frankly, even if you’ve mastered production, there are many more things to learn and develop.

It’s Extremely Hard If Not Impossible To Correct What You Don’t Know! (Or You Don’t Totally Understand!)

The thing is, the most common mistakes that companies make with video could be easily avoided. In most cases, they simply occur due to lack of experience and/or direction.

My team and I work with companies each day to help them develop and execute great content and video marketing strategies. Over the course of watching their growth and experiencing the effects of making simple mistakes, we’ve narrowed down 4 key things that may hinder your success with video as well.

#1 Filming with Poor Lighting or Exposure

Poor lighting can be tolerated but is less than ideal, especially if you’re making videos for professional purposes and want to keep your brand looking strong.

Whether you’re using natural lighting or powered lighting, inside or outside, you want to keep your subject properly exposed, contrasted from the background, and maintaining normal colors.

This can be done with the help of technology by using a field monitor, histogram, and/or judging it by sight.

Some questions you might ask yourself include:

• Is your subject’s face completely visible?
• Are there hard shadows on either side?
• Is there enough contrast between the background and foreground? You can capture great lighting by simply sitting next to a window, but you need to understand how light affects your subject. This means you’ll also need to be familiar with exposure and how your camera captures lighting in different environments.#2 Capturing Bad Audio Bad audio stinks.
• No exceptions. Capturing good audio that is properly leveled, isolated to the person speaking, and easy to listen to is the goal. This means you need to calibrate and monitor your audio while you are shooting.
• Many audio issues cannot be fixed in post production. In most cases (like 99.9% of cases), your onboard microphone on your camera will not cut it. Instead, you’ll need external microphones and recording devices to capture all of your audio.Different scenarios will call for different microphones as well. Lapels or Lavaliers are best suited for capturing audio in a crowded area. Shotgun mics are good for capturing audio in a quieter area where you may have more than one subject speaking. Cardioid microphones are good for voiceovers or interview settings that require a mobile microphone.
  

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  #3 Breaking the Rules of Composition

  It might not sound critical, but it makes a big difference when you can create aesthetically pleasing shots. This requires proper framing using balance and intention.

  There’s actually a science to this formula, known as the Fibonacci sequence, or golden ratio. This has been linked to the way that we perceive beauty, as well as a way to direct our eyes to a subject. I’m not going to explain all the science, but using the rule of thirds is important.

  By using the rule of thirds, you avoid the by products of bad composition like:

  • Improper Head Room – having too much or too little space above your subject’s head
  • Improper Lead Room – not able to see where the subject is looking or where the subject is moving to.
  • Another element of proper composition is using leading lines, or in other words, framing the subject in a way that draws your eyes.
  • By using this technique, you create a more pleasant viewing experience and avoid distractions for the viewer.#4 Improperly Using a Video Script
  • In most cases, scripts are a very valuable element to the production process. Using a script template, you can make a full outline which gives the camera operators, on-camera talent, editors, and others an order of events.
  • This script, though, is not meant to give a full dialogue to your educational marketing videos. It’s rare that you’ll have “actor level” talent within your organization.
  • But that’s okay because we aren’t trying to act. Instead, you want to put real people in front of the camera and have them speak to viewers as if they were there in person.We’ve found that the best way to write and use a script is to divide your message into sections and bullet point your lines. This way you can communicate each bullet point with your own words. This comes across more genuine and helpful rather than robotic and rehearsed.
    

                                                                                Bonus!

    It’s rare that you’ll have “actor level” talent within your organization. But that’s okay because we aren’t trying to act. Instead, you want to put real people in front of the camera and have them speak to viewers as if they were there in person.

    We’ve found that the best way to write and use a script is to divide your message into sections and bullet point your lines. This way you can communicate each bullet point with your own words. This comes across more genuine and helpful rather than robotic and rehearsed.

    At Janette Burke Productions we emphasize media/on-camera training prior to filming any video. Click here to learn more – www.janetteburke.com

    Any friend of Mark’s, is a friend of mine! If you need to improve your on-camera presence by polishing your communication, presentation and performance skills.

    In order to be better when conducting media, pod, webcast or Zoom interviews, making your own promotional videos on your phone or computer.

    Or speaking virtually or in-front a LIVE audience on stage. I’m pleased to offer you an exclusive 15% discount on my On-Camera Rescue Package. This is a 1:1 package where I work with you directly by the number of hours you choose. You can learn more by clicking HERE:  https://www.janetteburke.com/on-camerarescue.

    While visiting my site, be sure to Join Janette’s Mailing List and register to receive your 30-minute complimentary On-Camera Assessment worth $125!

    Your Long Term Video Marketing Success Is Potentially Just A Text Message Or Phone Call Away!

    Should you have any additional questions, feel free to reach out – janette@janetteburke.com; 416.802.0655.

    See you in the Spotlight,

    Jeanette.

    

    Janette Burke is the Executive Producer of Janette Burke Productions, and Host/Creator of the award-winning Janette’s TV and Janette’s TV Podcast.

    An advocate for women’s rights & issues and champion to Women in Business and Leadership, she has interviewed countless A-list celebrities, thought-leaders, game-changers, influencers, and experts.

    Janette knows what it takes to assume the spotlight and effectively spread your message. So she also provides Media/On-Camera Mentoring & Training to CEO’s, executives, entrepreneurs, professionals and sales agents alike.

    Who wish to garner more media attention and improve their presentation, performance and communication skills when appearing on-camera (media, pod & webcast interviews, videos or LIVES.)

    On-stage (speaking virtually or in-front of an audience, solo or as part of a panel), preparing for a TEDTalk or interacting with prospective clients, investors, sponsors, and staff.

    Janette Burke Productions

    Janette’s TV, Janette’s TV Podcast, Janette’s Trade Secrets Media/On-Camera Mentoring & Training

    Be Brilliant On-Camera, On-Stage and When Presenting

    Phone/Text: 416.802.0655

    Email: janette@janetteburke.com

    www.janetteburke.com