One of the most difficult parts of launching a video advertising initiative is that you feel like you’re starting from square one; if you don’t already have video collateral, as well as processes in place to measure video results, then the thought of mounting an entire video advertising campaign basically from scratch can seem daunting.
It’s all the more daunting when you’re also starting your company from scratch—but here’s some good news: Not only does video advertising work, but it can often work quite well for startups. Video is a great medium for introducing people to your business, for creating a memorable first impression, for drawing traffic to your website, and for humanizing a brand that has very few associations in the minds of customers.
A Few Strategies for Video Advertising Success
Of course, all of this hinges on you doing video advertising well, which is by no means something you can take for granted. Here are a few video advertising tips that we would offer to companies that are literally just starting out.
Target a specific niche. The dream of video advertising is to create something that will go viral, yet actually producing video content with such broad appeal is incredibly difficult, and frankly requires a lot of luck. Set more reasonable expectations for your brand: Armed with buyer personas, make video content that speaks directly to your niche, not to the general masses.
Don’t assume that video advertising has to be wildly expensive. It doesn’t, and there is no great impetus to invest heavily in video equipment when you’re first starting out. Just look at the businesses and brands that use simple built-in webcams to achieve success through Facebook Live, or the companies that thrive on Periscope simply by filming with their iPhones. Indeed: There is much you can do with a basic mobile device and some low-cost video editing software.
Pair videos with landing pages. Your videos should lead people through your sales funnel, which means directing traffic to somewhere a bit more specific than your company homepage. A good landing page can be a smart way to welcome those who are just finding your brand through video content.
Take notes from your competitors. While you don’t want to copy them wholesale, you can and should keep tabs on what comparable companies in your vertical are doing with their video advertising—what kinds of videos seem to work, and which ones don’t.
Measure everything. As with anything else in your marketing endeavors, it’s important to track and record your progress; both YouTube and Google offer analytic tools that might prove helpful, though of course you will also need to define your KPIs and have a good sense of what you’re trying to do through video.
That’s something we can help with. The enCOMPASS team would love to chat with you about your goals as a startup and how video might be part of a broader, integrative marketing strategy. Feel free to call us today to start the conversation.
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