Is anybody watching your video?

Why video strategy is just as important as video creation.

Are people watching your video? Your most recent video project may look amazing and perhaps it ticked all the boxes in the brief, but what was the planning behind it and what’s it doing now? 

It’s easy to view video as the last marketing asset on the to-do list and the final thing to ‘get done’ before the campaign goes live. But approaching video strategy as an integral part of your marketing planning gives you a much better chance of maximising your return on investment.

Here are our three recommendations to help your video content deliver results.

 

1. Your video content should be part of your annual marketing strategy 

The further ahead you fix plans, the better you can use and allocate resources, work with the suppliers that best fit the project and plan for how you’re going to distribute it (this includes spin-off social content). Whilst there is still room for spontaneous content in your marketing plan, you should ensure there’s a substantial amount of video content planned in advance. This will ensure top-quality production that fits your brand story, your budget and your campaign objectives. Video content shouldn’t be rushed and ideally, it should complement your campaign strategy whether it’s for colleagues or customers. 

Treating video as a core element of strategy may also create a professional culture around it so colleagues are aware of its importance. Participation in filming (etc) should be seen as an opportunity rather than a chore. Decide what aspects of your objectives video can affect the most. We encourage you to do this as far in advance as possible (ideally 12 months ahead). 

Producing content in bulk could also be advantageous to planning, production and budgets. For example, you could create six core short creative videos to distribute across all your channels throughout the year to keep the brand story alive. These could be shot over a few days, thus saving time and budget with your production team and securing a bank of readily available quality content. You can read more about producing video content in bulk in this interesting article by Clipchamp. 

Additionally, if you’re a product-based business then seasons are often very important to your customer journey. Plan holiday and celebration video content in advance so that you can create offers and competitions around these familiar dates and make the most out of this meaningful purchasing time. 

Plan ahead for your own peace of mind. This will help you (and your team) feel more confident and comfortable with your marketing strategy and ready for a successful campaigning year. 

 

2. Have a distribution plan

It’s essential that you decide what you’re going to do with your video before it’s made. Don’t treat uploading your finished content as the end of the video project. You may be pleased with your video, but people need to know it exists for it to be watched.

There are many elements to consider when creating a robust distribution plan for your video(s). 3 key areas to prioritise are:

1. Channel consideration: Once your video is live this is just the beginning. Look at all the different platforms you can host your content on and which are right for your audience. Consider each channel carefully – perhaps some would work better for adapted versions. Also, consider how viewers will view your content on each channel. For example, many people have Facebook (Linkedin?) in video autoplay mode.
2. Supportive messaging: Your video alone isn’t enough to create a fantastic distribution plan. Have you thought about the caption(s) that will go alongside it? What’s your main message and call to action? Can you have a variety of messages for different audiences, purposes or timelines? Your messaging should be short, simple and complementary to the content without revealing too much. Aim to intrigue and quickly create curiosity to inspire action (i.e pressing play)
3. Reuse and recycle: Ensure you get the most out of your video by using it across different channels and platforms.. Whether it’s email campaigns, social posts, offline at events or a flat screen in your reception. This content took time and money to make so keep it working for you. Plan short cutdowns and versions for social as part of the initial brief.

Top Tip: Your production team will be able to create better and more useful content if they know about your plans for distribution. For example, they can ensure a script has hooks to work quickly on social media or shoot it in the best format to feature on Instagram, or create montage reels if you plan to feature it at an event. Having this knowledge before they start out will mean they can create the right content that works for you and your plan.

3. Consider a ‘video first’ strategy

If video is the most engaging format, why not lead with it? Consider what would happen if all your marketing activity led with video, and other channels supported it. Video allows you all sorts of creative freedom and because it’s a digital format it can be a really positive influence on your other marketing, both in terms of design and content.

• Explain products or services in a quick and accessible way. Well produced and scripted video content can explain a message far more quickly and effectively than written copy.
• People-centric content is powerful. Now more than ever our audience craves human connection. If we can’t meet our customers in person easily, then we can do the next best thing by creating content that helps them feel connected to us.
• Surprise your audience  Often businesses are restricted within the boundaries of brand guidelines and traditional approaches. It’s not always practical or constructive to revamp your brand, or your website or your main marketing materials. But video allows you to be creative and do things differently when your brand is stuck in a rut. 

Want video at the centre of your 2022 campaigns? Do you feel like your annual campaigns are too repetitive and predictable? Would you like to surprise and excite your audience in 2022? Does your brand need a much-needed injection of originality?  We provide video strategy support to ensure your video content gets to where it needs to be, gets the right results and is relevant for your audience.  Have a look at our brand new range of services to support you before and after video production here.