Video Content Agency
Table of Contents
Video content is important in any marketing strategy due to its popularity. There is a reason that YouTube is the second most popular website in the world at the moment. Users prefer to watch video content, on the whole. But to produce good content, do you need a video marketing agency?
The answer is, it depends. In this article we will look at what makes good video content, what you can do yourself and where a video marketing agency can help you.
Research suggests that 54% of users would prefer to see video content from businesses that they support. In fact, it is expected that, by 2022, around 82% of online consumer traffic will be due to online videos. That is a pretty huge trend to ignore.
Google ranks well-optimized videos above web pages on search results. However, there is a lot less competition in the video space. Video content could be the key to your SEO optimization after all.
Ultimately, your marketing is vying for your target decision-makers attention. If your target buyer prefers video content, then it’s important to ensure that you provide quality video.
How to Record Video Content
The first step to a successful video marketing campaign is recording good quality video. This can be challenging if it’s a completely new area. While a video marketing agency can help, of course, help here, you can also do some of this yourself with out support. It just depends on how much time you have.
Think about your equipment. It can be easy to spend thousands on video recording equipment. Research and plan a list of necessities. Try to keep a comfortable budget in mind when making purchase decisions.
For some video content, a smartphone is sufficient. However, you will soon outgrow this when looking to produce more than customer testimonials and brand intro videos.
Here are some key components to consider, to create professional marketing videos:
Backgrounds
When focusing on the content of a video, it can be easy to forget about the aesthetics. This is especially true of your video backgrounds. Many workspaces can be busy, or messy, and aren’t ideal for a video backdrop. You might also be working from home, which presents challenges of its own.
However, the background sets the tone for the video. You need to present a professional setting, even if you don’t have one available. The most common solution to this problem is a green screen.
You can purchase a green screen set up relatively easily on most online shops like Amazon and other sellers. You can choose whether you purchase a stand, or they can be hung from a wall.
Green Screen Best Practices
- Ensure there are no wrinkles in the fabric. Wrinkles can make for a challenging edit. Depending on the fabric, use an iron to smoothen it out. Try to avoid wrinkling when storing.
- Avoid wearing green. Editing software won’t be able to see the difference between you, and your background. Again, this will present difficulties in the editing stage. Try to contrast your background as much as possible.
- Lighting is important. Uneven lighting can also cause challenges when projecting your background. Try to ensure that there are no shadows caused by lighting, or the positioning of your subject.
Lighting
Lighting can really affect the perceived quality of video content. The right type of lighting will depend on the kind of video that you’re producing. Consider the space that will feature on your video. If there is just one subject, a small ring light will suffice. However, more complex subjects, shots, or videos including green screens, will need a better setup. A video marketing agency may be required to get the lighting right. While some lighting problems can be fixed in post production, but not all of them can be.
For the majority of professional videos, three umbrella lights are needed. Umbrella lights produce soft lighting. Lighting that is too bright will produce shadows, and make the subject too bright. However, darker lighting won’t give sufficient contrast between the subject and the background.
Soft lighting isn’t too aggressive and creates a natural look. You want to avoid creating shadows on the face or background. It is also important to keep the lights level with the subject in the frame, rather than above or below.
The lights should cover all angles. One to the left of the subject, one to the right, and one in front. This arrangement should avoid shadows, and give even coverage.
Camera
The camera can very quickly become the largest spend in your video setup. However, you don’t always need to spend a fortune to meet your goals. Consider your content, and choose the best solution for you.
Smartphones:
These are typically the cheapest way to shoot content, at a reasonably good quality. Smartphone cameras are continuing to improve in quality, as we demand more from our handheld devices. The camera on the back of your phone offers the best quality. These can be useful for more original content, like user-generated videos or testimonials. It is important to invest in a smartphone tripod. Even the best software will struggle to reduce movement from handheld filming.
DSLR:
DSLR cameras are naturally a little more pricey. Consider whether your budget can accommodate this. However, they produce much better quality videos. This improves your viewers experience with your content. Photo and video quality cameras provide improved light exposure, stabilization, megapixels and more. Ensure you have a stable tripod, to keep your shots consistent.
Microphones
Between audio and visuals, audio can affect the quality perception of your content the most. Poor quality audio will reduce the user experience, no matter how good your video looks. Whilst some platforms use subtitles and transcriptions as standard, it is still important to get your sound right. There are a few different microphone options, depending on the style of your content:
Lapel/Wireless Microphone:
These connect wirelessly to the camera, and generally attach to the collar of the subject. They are discrete and provide the most consistent audio. However, it’s important to position them correctly. If the subject brushes the microphone, audio mistakes can be difficult to remove in editing.
Built-in/Attached Microphone:
These are the most convenient, as they stay attached to the camera, or come with your camera. However, their audio quality depends on the distance between the camera and the subject. They can pick up background noise, ahead of the intended audio.
Boom Microphone:
These provide the freedom of a wireless microphone, with the technology of a camera microphone. However, it is important to ensure that the distance between microphone and subject remains the same. Also, it can be challenging to keep them out of shot. Generally, this requires a second person on-site that is responsible for the microphone.
Subtitles and Transcription
It is important to be as accessible as possible. This is especially true with online content, as your audience can vary. Transcripts ensure that your video can be appreciated by all, no matter their abilities.
Whilst this is valuable, it is also important to note that many video platforms use subtitles for a different reason. Blogs and other written content is crawlable by search engines. However, traditional video content is not. Search engines cannot understand the content in videos, in order to rank it.
Accurate subtitles can improve the SEO of your video content. Search engines can use the transcripts as “written content” to analyze your video for keywords. Ensure that you have an accurate script, and fill in this data when uploading videos.
Editing
Next to your filming, editing is the final step that can make or break your video content and messaging. This is where a video marketing agency can really help. While many computers come with video editing software built-in. However, these are typically very basic. Depending on the type of video content you’re looking to create, iMovie may not fit the bill.
There is also a level of skill required to edit and cut the video well and a video marketing agency will have a team of experts who can help here.
Consider whether you have the tools and knowledge to get the best out of your freshly filmed video. You’ll likely benefit from a video editor with experience in graphic work.
You might want to outsource this step, or your video content altogether. Video creation for lead generation can be complex, and time-consuming. Professional video editors have the expertise to produce, and edit, the specialist videos you need for your campaigns.
Download the Guide: How to Market B2B SaaS Startups
How to Use Video Content
Videos can be used in all aspects of your marketing strategy. Now you know how to create quality videos, you need to reach your buyers with your new content. Here’s how video content can fit into each of your marketing strategies. However, this is a generic overview a video marketing agency will help you craft the right strategy for your company.
Inbound
B2B inbound video content can come in many different formats. Your video marketing agency will work with you on the inbound strategy. But you can consider utilizing some of the following:
YouTube Videos:
When you think of video content, the video hosting platform YouTube immediately springs to mind. YouTube is the second most visited website in the world. The platform can host all kinds of videos, of any length. Users can watch for free. The platform also integrates with social websites and content management systems.
Video Podcasts:
Podcasts are increasing in popularity. Whilst the format isn’t new, listeners are enjoying the informative but conversational content style. Podcasts have typically been created as audio-only. However, many creators are now uploading their podcasts in both audio and video format.
Webinars:
These are much more popular within the B2B marketing space. Webinars can be used to inform and educate. This could be information about your solution, or a problem that your buyer is having. Webinars are a more formal type of video content.
Social Media Video:
The majority of social media platforms are capable of hosting video now. Social media videos should be short, eye-catching and to the point. Typically, they perform better for branding purposes, and can put your company at the forefront of users’ minds.
Social Media Lives:
Within the B2B industry, live broadcasts are often forgotten as a form of video content marketing. Many social media sites provide live streaming services. These can be a great way to connect with your buyers, in a less formal manner.
These are just some examples of the kinds of video content that are available to marketers.
Video content can be used to boost your inbound strategy. You can add them to blog posts, to further delve into a topic. They are also useful to boost your social media interactions. Videos are more engaging, and are appreciated by social media algorithms.
You might also be able to re-use or recycle content. For example, a successful blog post might also translate into an engaging video. As mentioned, users typically find videos more engaging, and less time-consuming.
Content is Key
Content is the real key to generating leads using videos. It can be easy to fall into the trap of video advertising. Whilst these may work for DTC companies looking to reinforce their branding, B2B companies don’t benefit from pressured sales content. Try to avoid talking about your solution, where possible.
Your videos need to provide value to your audience, just as your blogs do. You should look to solve their biggest pain points. Just like blogs, video content can help you to become thought leaders within your market.
In order to understand what is valuable to your buyers, it is important to know your buyers. Make use of your buyers’ personas, and keep them in mind when producing your video content. It is important that they are specific. The buyers’ persona should guide the type of video, video topic, how to optimize, and where your video goes live.
Buyer Persona
Your buyers’ persona will also guide your messaging. No matter how you broadcast your video content, your messaging should remain consistent. Analyse messages against each other, and assess which message resonates best with your buyer.
Video content can work just like any other piece of inbound content. However, your existing marketing strategies should be well-researched and strong. Use video as a facilitative tool within your inbound marketing arsenal, to engage, and develop your existing content.
Outbound
Outbound content can get away with being a little more “salesy”. Though, try to avoid pressure sales talk. However, the intention behind outbound content is to attract buyers and grab their attention. The content should still be useful, but it can afford to be a little more direct.
In outbound, your target is much more specific. Form a list of ideal companies. This should be based on relevant data, and some business preferences. Outbound marketing contacts the decision-makers at these businesses directly. Therefore, your video content can be much more specific to their business, solution or strategies.
Here are some examples of how to use video content within your outbound strategy:
Tutorials:
Tutorials are particularly useful for B2B companies. Typically, their solution isn’t physical or is more complex. This is particularly relevant to SaaS businesses. Tutorials offer the ability to use visual aids to look at a solution in further detail. You might use tutorials to create “how-to’s” for your product, or to delve deeper into prospects’ problems or pain points.
Critiques:
It is important to be tactful with these kinds of videos. It’s important to avoid coming across as negative. However, constructive criticism is important for growth. Tools like loom offer the ability to screen record, and use your webcam, at the same time. Demonstrate your expertise in your market. Take a look at their solution, or their website, for example. Identify areas for improvement, or suggest how your solution could help.
Demonstrations:
Demonstrations can be similar to tutorials. However, they may go more into depth regarding your specific solution. Create an example “case study” and show your solution at work. This is useful for more abstract business solutions. Written content can be challenging to fully understand, and too wordy, when explaining abstract concepts. Your demonstrations can be personalized to the target business, and show how you can specifically help them.
Testimonials:
This is an opportunity for your existing customers to speak for you. Happy customers are your best advocates. With permission, discuss how your solution solved their business problem. User-generated content is ideal for this. Ask your customers for their reviews. If they’re not willing to appear on a video, transform written testimonials into video format.
Typically, outbound videos can be a little less well-produced. Due to their nature, buyers should receive a more personalized experience. Therefore, you can make use of tech that you already have access to. For example, a smartphone or webcam. These videos take less time to put together, but can be just as effective in nurturing prospects.
The most common delivery method for outbound video content is via email. This could be in targeted emails to a decision-maker, or email sequences to a targeted business group. In fact, research suggests that using the word video in email sequences increases open rates by 19%.
The benefit of sending videos via email is that each recipient is different. You can target each business, and they get to see your solution in the appropriate context.
Paid Ads
Paid ads can be tricky to get right. Your targeting and messaging must be well researched. If not, you might waste a lot of your marketing and advertising budget. Most video marketing agencies will have an in house team to help with paid ads.
Effective messaging and strategy can result in a positive ROI but you can also waste money if you aren’t careful. The majority of websites carry a form of paid advertising. There’s plenty of scope to reach your buyers.
Using video content in your ads is a great way to maximize your advertising spend. Video is visually rich, and engages online users. They catch the eye much more effectively than a text advertisement.
Consider the following paid advertising platforms:
LinkedIn:
LinkedIn is oriented around business relationships. This makes the platform ideal for B2B marketing and advertising. The platform allows image and video ads. You can target ads to job roles, locations, companies, education and more. Again, good targeting and quality video will increase your ROI on LinkedIn Ads.
Facebook:
Facebook is the third most visited website in the world. Whoever you’re targeting, they probably use Facebook. Paid ads can take advantage of the social media sites extensive reach. However, B2B buyers are less likely to be searching for solutions on Facebook. Consider using videos in Facebook Ads to raise brand awareness, and grab your buyers attention.
YouTube:
YouTube is often left out of the list of online advertisers. It shouldn’t be. The website is beat in visitors only by Google, which is its parent company. It is also the second-largest search engine in the world. The increasing popularity of tutorials and how-to’s has formed an excellent advertising platform. Paid ads feature both in search results, and recommendations on video pages. Consider demonstrating your video advertising skills on a site that users visit specifically for video content.
Utilizing Video Content
Regardless of which paid advertising platform you choose, ensure that your content is right. It can be tempting to rely on Call-to-action’s in paid advertising. However, your video ads need to stand out from the crowd.
As with your inbound and outbound marketing, try to focus on content, rather than “contact us”. Use the richness of video to create something original, and different to your competitors.
At Nituno, were are a video marketing agency that works only in the B2B tech space. We produce and work with video content to boost your inbound, outbound and paid ads efforts. If you’ve not marketed with video before, it can be challenging to know where to start. Improve your lead generation from your marketing campaigns and get in touch with us today.
Professional SEO Services
Search Engine Optimization is a critical component of any inbound marketing strategy. Without effective SEO, websites and content cannot perform as intended. You need SEO to generate inbound traffic, and thereby conversions.
Inbound marketing is one of the most popular marketing methodologies in the B2B tech space. The approach is based on building relationships with buyers, rather than immediately trying to pitch your product to them.
Direct Marketing
What is direct marketing? In B2B, direct marketing is often used by businesses that need a quick boost of engagement. Learn more here.
Demand Generation
A marketing strategy that drives brand awareness and thereby demand for your product. The key to this is forming a full brand image, and nurturing those that interact with your business. Spend time on your leads, and be the first choice when your leads are ready to buy.
