← TO THE BLOG
Video is the most powerful tool marketers have at their disposal. The popularity of video exploded last year, with the number of videos posted on Facebook leaping from 4 billion in April 2015 to 8 billion in September 2015.
This growth in popularity was cemented by a study by Cisco which predicted that 80% of all internet traffic will be video by 2019.
Statistics show that video also shows that video is becoming the medium of choice for executives and other decision-makers that you want to reach. 59% of senior executives said they would prefer to watch a video rather than to read text on the same material.
According to a Google and Millward Brown Digital study, 70% of B2B buyers watch videos throughout their path to purchase. But the far more convincing statistic that means something is that 74% of B2B marketers say that video converts better than any other medium (according to a study by Demand Metric). And it is giving a tremendous boost to businesses who use it.
And the statistic that we’d all like to hear comes from the Aberdeen Group. They discovered that companies who use video for marketing grew their revenue a massive 49% faster than those who don’t use video.
So instead of asking if you should use video as a marketing tool (the correct answer is you should!), ask instead, what can you do to ensure the budget and effort spent on videos is maximised.
Use video selling in B2B technology markets
Sales representatives should use video in innovative ways to increase their sales. For example, they may use their smartphones and webcams to record personal greetings or to send a follow-up message following a meeting. Video testimonials will also rise in popularity, with many sales reps using video testimonials to showcase how other clients are achieving success.
A highly requested video in B2B technology marketing is the “micro demo” video. Instead of using sales reps to deliver live demos to every prospect, reps use a customised on-demand product demo. This is done by assembling a series of short videos on different topics into a simple playlist for the potential customer.
The advantages of such a video library are many; it improves efficiency and reduces the time spent by the reps on demos. It also enables the demo to be shared easily within the organisation, and with those involved in the buying process. It also enables the sales rep to track when different prospects tuned in and how much content they engaged with.
Putting the viewer in the driver’s seat with interactive video
We have a bold statement to make, and that, 2016 will be the year watching content stops being a one-way street. It will transform into a medium where viewers get to direct what they see. The use of integrated questionnaires, surveys, data collection forms, and other practical tools will help marketers turn videos into active tools. Tools that you can use to generate leads, qualify customers and drive greater engagement.
There will also be a new category of video in 2016: the choose-your-own-adventure video. Brands will empower viewers to self-select their content journey within a single video player. This makes the content relevant and engaging for the viewer while enabling the marketer to collect insights on the interests of prospects.
Salesforce.com, a leading sales automation tool, offers a great example of an interactive video with its CRM Advisor video. The target audience for this video is a range of buyer personas (sales, marketing, and customer service) involved in the process of researching and purchasing CRM software.
To address the very different needs, budgets, interests, and questions of these customers, a typical video would usually be created using either of the following formats: One long—and probably boring—video that covers every persona’s pain points, or a series of persona-specific videos, which could be costly and inefficient.
With its CRM Advisor interactive video, however, Salesforce.com avoids both of those problems by creating a dynamic video that feels much more like a personal conversation.
The video begins with a narrator asking the viewer how many of their employees would actually use Salesforce CRM. From there, it lists six options that, when clicked, prompt the narrator to transition to more targeted questions and information that specifically pertains to the option selected.
The video is successful because it creates an environment that ensures its viewers stay engaged by only providing relevant content, gathers information from the user without seeming intrusive or overly pushy and presents very targeted, relevant products to the different viewer personas.
At the end of the video, a survey is presented to further engage viewers with a series of more targeted questions. While not everyone will respond, that feature is helpful and effective. This is because the company not only captures more information about its prospects, it can also offer more targeted content or call-to-action steps for the viewer.
With video bringing incredible potential as a marketing tool to the table, it’s time you used it to your advantage, and watch the ROI on your marketing efforts pay off in a big way.
