8 rules for effective video content marketing

By Alyssa Lahham

Video marketing services is becoming an increasingly popular addition to content marketing due it its shareable and engaging nature. In a Demand Metric study, a whopping 82 percent of companies using video for content marketing reported it to be successful. Whether you have a well-developed content marketing strategy or you’re just getting started, you need to make sure you are using video effectively in order to reach your goals. Here are some guidelines we recommend following so that your content marketing videos are as successful as possible:

1. Set goals first

Start with your end goal in mind, and then work backward as you set your entire video marketing strategy. What do you want to achieve with the video? It could be new prospects, increased brand awareness, more sales, thought leadership, or something else entirely. Whatever it is, make sure your goals are clear before laying out your video plan.

2. Answer the right questions

This rule holds true for content marketing across all mediums. You need to be relevant to your audience and answer questions that your customers are looking for answers (bonus points if the answers aren’t already out there). You can determine what questions you should be answering through direct conversations with your customers or through market research. Try to focus on offering a real solution to a real problem, rather than focusing on big picture ideas.

3. Budget wisely

You’ll want to make sure you get the max ROI out of your videos. And we know, sometimes it can be difficult to convince stakeholders that video is a good idea because it can get pricey. We always recommend filming multiple content marketing videos over a single-day shoot. If you are able to plan out multiple concepts at once, you can have have several scripts ready and film them all at the same time (we recommend 6-10 per day depending on the length). The costs to film will usually be based on a full-day rate, so shooting multiple videos in one day will spread the cost out and make each video cost less.

4. Make the video the right length

To ensure you are keeping your viewers’ attention for the length of the video, you’ll need to make sure it’s the appropriate length. The timing will differ depending the content in your video, the platform you are posting your video on, and what action you want the viewers to take. You should be tracking and analyzing how long viewers are watching your videos to optimize their lengths (see step seven).

5. Use headlines and titles

Many viewers will be watching your videos silently on their computers at work, on their phones in public, etc. Make sure to use headlines and titles to emphasize key points to make your video effective with or without sound. For even more tips on how to optimize your video to be viewed silently, check out our 6 Steps to Video Success on Facebook Using Silent Videos blog.

6. Optimize for search

Even if you have a huge following, you should optimize your videos so that potential customers can find them. This includes adding strategic keywords to your video titles, descriptions, and tags, organizing videos so they are easy to browse, making sure your site has a video sitemap, and letting other people embed your videos, among other tips. SEO for your videos will be a huge piece of their success stories.

7. Measure your success

To make sure you’re getting the best results possible, you should measure the success, analyze, and then adjust your strategy accordingly. Metrics are included in most video players online, and you can also add a trackable CTA such as a landing page, custom phone number, or purchase promo code to track leads and purchases back to your video. You should also allow comments on your video so you can interact with viewers’ questions and opinions.

8. Have fun

People love to laugh and are more likely to share videos when they are funny and entertaining. Be creative and original with your content, and just have fun with it. It’ll show in what you create, and it’ll make the process much more enjoyable! For Sparkhouse’s video content marketing, we do a mix of informative videos and fun content to show off our capabilities.

Of course, there is more to a successful video than just these guidelines, but following these eight rules will get you started in the right direction. Below are some samples from Sparkhouse to ignite some ideas for content and style! And of course, we’re here to help with any questions on creating video content marketing you might have.