The 7 Most Important Rules of Advertising with Video

Advertising with video is potentially the most powerful marketing method on the Internet today but many small business owners shy away from video marketing because they either don’t understand the benefits or they simply don’t know how to make videos. I can fully understand their hesitation; no one wants to invest time, effort and money into something only to see it fail. Countless times, those without the time or expertise who have tried advertising with video have watched their campaigns flop because the team behind them didn’t have the resources or knowledge to make them work.

Marketing is just like flying a plane – you need to know how to take off, stay in the air and make it all land.

By hiring a video creator, you take the guesswork out the technical aspects of advertising with video. All you have to know are the fundamentals of video marketing to be able to clearly communicate your vision and desired outcome. This involves being aware of the video marketing strategies and best practices that can lead to campaign success.

The 7 Most Important Rules of Advertising with Video

Without incorporating these seven video marketing considerations you’re probably just throwing your money away:

KEEP YOUR AUDIENCE IN MIND

One basic question to ask yourself before creating a marketing video is, “Who is going to watch this?” Maybe the better question is, “Who do I want to watch this video?” Depending on the answer to this question, the tone and purpose of your video can be drastically different. For instance, you wouldn’t market to a Millennial the same way you’d market to a 40+ businessperson, would you? Your demographic decides your tone, and you have to stick with this tone all the way through your video.

KEEP YOUR VIDEO ADVERTISEMENT SHORT

It’s never a good idea to bore your audience with a video they have to “sit through” instead of “watch.” Videos made with marketing in mind should be short and attention-grabbing. Audiences typically have a short attention span, so aim for videos that are no more than two minutes. Socialbakers, a software and analytics company, did a study that found that the perfect length for Facebook advertising videos is 22 seconds. Of course, you might need more room than a 22-second commercial, but remember – it’s a marketing video, not a biopic.

SIMPLIFY YOUR VIDEO MARKETING MESSAGE

You may have a lot you want to say in a video, but remember to edit, edit, edit before you even open your video software. Your script and concept should focus on a single purpose to keep things streamlined and super simple for your audience to digest and retain. Remember these three words – inform, educate, entertain.

AUDIO ABOVE VIDEO

While you may be working on a marketing video, your audio is where you’ll really appeal to your audience, or drive them away. It has been said time and time again that audio is as important, if not more important, than the quality of the video. A crisp, easily-understood audio track is the cherry on top of your video ice cream sundae.

NEVER LEAVE OUT THE CALL TO ACTION (CTA)

A call to action is what tells your audience what they need to do next, and it’s a very important part of any marketing strategy. Your video shouldn’t leave your audience wondering how to engage with you – it’s your job to tell them directly.

A call to action must always include business contact information. If you have a preferred contact channel, such as a Twitter or Facebook, include that in the video, as well as in the video’s written description if you are hosting your video on YouTube or Vimeo, and feature these accounts prominently in your video.

ALWAYS THINK OF SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION (SEO)

SEO and advertising with video go hand in hand, even though you may think they don’t. Unless you optimize your video and its description for Google’s search algorithms, your marketing strategies won’t go much further than your own social reach because they won’t be found in Google Search.

SHORT, SWEET, REPEAT

Instead of creating one long video your audience can watch once and forget about, consider making a series of shorter, topical clips. A series of advertising videos have a better chance of going viral, or at the very least you are increasing your odds by creating multiple videos that all lead back to your product or service. The bite-sized format also works well with social media and the general attention span of an online audience.