Discover how to use video to achieve your business goals in customer support, learning and development, and more. We’ll also cover the video metrics needed to measure success.

There are countless types of videos a company can produce. Review these video use cases to set clear goals, measure effectiveness, and improve your video strategy. 

Note: The metrics below are common across video hosting platforms. However, we’ll discuss how to effectively improve each metric using the SproutVideo platform. 

1. Sales & Marketing

Goal: Attract new leads, shorten the sales cycle, and increase conversions.

Video was the primary form of content businesses created last year — likely due to the high engagement rate, popularity of video-sharing platforms, and SEO benefits. 

Let’s consider how an e-commerce brand might use video. For its spring clothing line, the company produces videos to target customers at all stages of the buying journey.

These videos might include:

• Product demonstrations 
• Customer testimonials
• Educational content
• About Us/Mission 
• Explainer videos 
• Advertisements 

For example, the e-commerce brand creates a 15-second product demonstration of a sequin-beaded dress sparkling in the sun. 

It’s featured on the product page, across social media, and within segmented marketing emails to one-time dress buyers, new subscribers, and loyal customers. 

Metrics to Evaluate Success

• Play Rate: Measure the effectiveness of video placement, thumbnail, and copy with play rate. A higher play rate increases the likelihood that viewers will absorb the video’s value and fuel their interest in the brand’s offerings. 
• Average Engagement Rate: Determine how much content average users watch to determine the significance of video engagement on purchasing decisions. Use this information to determine highly engaging strategies and recreate them. 
• Domains: Discover which marketing channels drive the most traffic and engagement to your videos. Use this information to optimize the most valuable channels and gain further insight into your audience segments. 
• Conversion Rates: Compare engagement data with your customer relationship manager (CRM) and Google Analytics. Determine the relationship between viewer engagement and increased conversions. Correlate new conversions with a traffic lift from videos. Take this further with individual viewer data: tag users to see how videos influence viewers on the SproutVideo platform. 

2. Employee Onboarding & Training

Goal: Train new hires efficiently and improve employee skills.

Expedite employee training and student education with video-based learning. For example, a national chain of hotels creates training videos for staff in multiple languages and across locations. Onboarding teams and leaders within the organization can share these videos with employees and new hires as needed, in person or virtually. 

Types of videos the company creates might include,

• Screencast videos 
• Company culture highlights
• Educational content
• Day-in-the-life reels
• Live stream events

Imagine the hotel chain hosts a monthly “Welcome to the team” live stream for new employees. The video introduces new hires to executive team members, covers company culture and core values, and presents profiles of employees who have enjoyed career advancement. 

During onboarding, new hires receive a “day-in-the-life” video on their position, how-to videos for learning their job, and a screencast video on using the company’s HR software. 

Metrics to Evaluate Success

• Heat Maps: Course completion is important for L&D teams. With heat maps, they can easily determine if individual viewers completed a video. Review all sessions so that the viewer can track completed videos across multiple viewing sessions. 
• Unique Plays: Proprietary and confidential training materials are usually for internal “company eyes” only. Monitor unique plays to ensure video plays don’t exceed the amount of people with access. If you suspect a leak, determine the cause by investigating individual session data. 
• Viewer Name: Utilize tagging on the SproutVideo platform to easily review all session data for individual users. Once tagged, users will appear by name instead of the Viewer ID assigned to them. Click on their name to see all the videos and live streams they have watched.

3. Internal Corporate Communications

Goal: Communicate across departments and enhance culture.

Internal communications must ensure that proprietary information and intellectual property are kept private and secure. Consider a Fortune 500 company with multiple locations, remote workers, and tens of thousands of employees who must communicate securely and effectively. The company uses video metrics to monitor internal content and protect intellectual property, unreleased information, and proprietary knowledge.   

Other types of internal videos a company might create include 

• Strategy or policy change videos
• CEO-led mission statements
• Financial updates for shareholders
• Department-wide communications

In remote workplaces, companies also use video for virtual celebrations, scavenger hunts, and other team-building activities. 

Metrics to Evaluate Success

• Average Engagement Rate: Evaluate how much content viewers watched. Review how people interact with the video, including what parts they watch and rewatch. This information allows you to review how people engage with important communications.
• Geographic Location: Track viewer location to ensure communications only reach intended parties or branch locations. 
• Unique Plays: Ensure communications reach the intended amount of people. Investigate individual session data if the number exceeds the intended audience size. 

4. Customer Support 

Goal: Provide personalized service and create a library of help videos.

Companies use videos in knowledge centers to provide 24/7 customer support and serve as pre-sales tools. Video is also great for personalizing customer support, as Support agents can send short messages or screencasts to customers that demonstrate the solution to their problem. 

For example, a solopreneur selling a video course on investing for beginners doesn’t have the resources to handle many support requests. However, she learns from past customers and generates screencast videos that address common issues and how to solve them. 

Support videos a company might create include:

• Product-based tutorials
• Screencast how-to videos 
• Video library of FAQs

When the solopreneur, from our example above, responds to support requests, she hits record and talks directly to the customer. This approach saves her valuable time and personalizes the support, increasing customer retention. 

Metrics to Evaluate Success

• Average Engagement Rate: Evaluate how much content viewers watched. Use this metric to determine the effectiveness of support videos. Learn what parts of the footage created “ah-ha” moments for customers. 
• Play Rate: Track how often people watch a video to find a solution to their problem versus reviewing the text of a help article or support email. This data validates the use of video for customer support and helps you optimize your knowledge base by highlighting which frequently asked questions need videos.
• Heat Maps: Discover what parts of the video provide the most important information for solving a common customer problem. Determine when a concept needs to be explained more deeply based on the density of rewatches within help videos.  

5. Regulatory Compliance and Continuing Education

Goal: Maintain compliance with regulatory requirements.

Video training is a common aspect of maintaining compliance within regulated industries (i.e., finance, healthcare, legal services.) For example, a personal finance company creates an online training platform to ensure employees comprehensively understand and adhere to standards. It also hosts live stream conferences to facilitate compliance management across a location-independent team. Types of videos the company creates include:

• Tutorials on compliance management
• Live stream workshops 
• Industry rulings and updates 
• Corporate policy videos

The company can use its secure video hosting platform to closely monitor employee engagement with compliance materials to ensure the information is absorbed. 

Metrics to Evaluate Success

• Viewer ID or Name: Track and review engagement data for each viewer to ensure viewer completion of all compliance materials. An easy way to do this is with log-in protection (or Single Sign-On) through the SproutVideo platform. 
• Heat Map: Review visual engagement data for each viewing session. View all sessions for any viewer to determine if the user started and finished a video later. 
• Viewer Minutes Watched: Track viewer time input for compliance regulations that require certification or continuing education hours. View the minutes watched for a single viewer across live streams and videos using individual session data on SproutVideo.

Dive into the world of video engagement and metrics with our series:

• Video Engagement: 10 Strategies to Grab & Hold Viewer Attention
• 15 Live Stream Metrics & How to Measure Success
• Video Metrics to Measure Performance and ROI

The post 5 Use Cases for Business Videos & How to Track Success appeared first on SproutVideo.

People who engage in your live stream are 43% more likely to buy a premium product. Furthermore, research on student learning shows that live streaming is “highly effective” while boosting creativity and cooperation. 

However, businesses with specific goals need live streaming metrics to measure success and inform strategy improvements. Across departments — marketing, learning and development, operations — these analytics help determine ROI, meet compliance standards, and maintain security measures.

Welcome to our walk-through guide on live streaming metrics. Learn what each metric measures, why it’s important, and how to use the information to meet your goals.

Quick Look: Top Metrics to Review Performance

Quickly determine how a live stream performed with your audience. These metrics are helpful for evaluating attendance and engagement across use cases.

• Total Views: total number of viewing sessions during the broadcast
• Unique Visitors: amount of individual viewers
• Average Engagement Rate: percentage of live stream watched

Click on each metric above for in-depth information — or keep reading to find it in the full list of 15 metrics below.

Note: The metrics above are common across live streaming platforms. However, some of the metrics below are SproutVideo-specific.  

15 Live Stream Metrics to Measure Success

Live stream metrics are organized into three categories: 

• During the live stream (real-time analytics)
• After the broadcast ends (post-live stream metrics)
• Data for each viewing session (individual viewer data)

Click on any of the links above to jump to that section.

Real-Time Live Stream Analytics 

When evaluating the metrics below, higher numbers are generally favored and indicate that you successfully promoted the live stream to your audience. Additionally, more viewers equals more opportunities for people to engage and absorb your content. 

Private live streams are the exception. In this situation, use real-time analytics to ensure the audience size doesn’t exceed the intended audience. Monitoring this data helps detect security leaks during a live stream with limited access. 

Note: There is some overlap between the analytics measured in real-time and post-live stream. We discuss each metric in relation to real-time and post-live analytics when applicable below.

Monitor the following metrics during the live broadcast. These metrics are displayed directly below the live stream, so it’s easy to glance at the numbers while hosting live. 

1. Currently Watching

The number of viewers currently watching your live stream (AKA concurrent viewers). 

This metric monitors live viewing engagement. It lets you quickly see how many people are tuned in and engaging with your live stream. 

This information is most helpful when starting a live stream. It is common to begin a broadcast and wait until a minimum number of viewers have joined before launching into the prepared material. This metric helps you determine when you’ve reached that minimum.

If this number suddenly drops to zero, an issue likely occurred during the broadcast.

2. Peak Views

The highest number of concurrent viewers who join during the live stream. 

Peak views represent the highest number of viewers who simultaneously watched the live stream up to the current point in the broadcast . After your broadcast concludes, it represents the highest number of people who watched your live stream at any time.

Peak views help you measure audience engagement during the broadcast. As this number updates, it indicates whether or not your viewing audience is still growing. 

A high peak views count post-live stream suggests your content was engaging and attracted significant viewers. On the SproutVideo platform, you can use the analytics graph (pictured below) to quickly determine what part of the live stream attracted the most viewers.

Across multiple live streams, this information can guide you in tailoring your content to match the interests of your viewers better.

Note: Currently Watching viewers and Peak Views measure non-unique viewers, meaning if a user plays the live stream in two browser windows simultaneously, it will count as two viewers or views. 

3. Unique Visitors

The total unique viewers who watched your live stream during the broadcast. 

Like peak views, this information helps you compare live streams and determine what topics perform best with your audience. 

For example, a company is promoting a product launch, and 8,000 people register for the event. If 3,500 unique visitors attend (44%), it suggests significant interest in the product and successful marketing of the launch event. 

For private live streams, monitor unique visitors during the broadcast to ensure your security measures work as intended. 

4. Average Time Watched

The average amount of time viewers watch your live stream. 

This metric tracks how long viewers watch the live stream and displays the average time watched in hours, minutes, and seconds. 

If you notice the average time watched is low during the broadcast, you can employ more interactive techniques to reengage viewers and encourage longer viewing times. 

You can also use this information to create more engaging live streams: determine if new engagement strategies are effective across multiple live streams.

5. Live Chat Participation

Unlike the rest of the metrics on our list, chat participation is qualitative data. Therefore, you base your insights on audience feedback rather than objective data. 

Live chat creates a direct line of communication between you and the viewer during live streams. Direct interaction encourages audience participation and provides insights into their frequently asked questions. 

Use this information to align your content strategy with your most engaged audience. 

How to Add Chat to Your Live Stream

Post-Live Stream Analytics & Engagement Metrics

On the SproutVideo platform, post-live stream metrics are organized into two dashboards: Analytics and Engagement.

The Analytics dashboard provides an overview of how many people watched the live stream.

Analytics Dashboard on the SproutVideo Platform

The dashboard also includes graphs on the domains people watched from, what devices they used, and where in the world they tuned in from.

The Engagement dashboard features metrics on how many people engaged with your live stream and for how long; it also includes individual viewer data (more on this later).

Engagement Dashboard on the SproutVideo platform

Some overlap exists between real-time and post-live analytics. These are Peak Views, Unique Visitors, and Average Time Watched. Click on any of the metrics to review them above. We’ll discuss the other available metrics and how to use them below. 

6. Total Views

The total number of live stream views accumulated during the broadcast.

This information gives you a broad understanding of your audience’s interest in the live stream topic. A high view count suggests you successfully promoted the live stream to your audience, and it garnered enough interest for viewers to join live.

In this way, total views and unique visitors provide similar information. However, unique visitors will never exceed the total views (though they could be equal).  

When there is a significant difference between these numbers, it might suggest that a substantial portion of viewers left and returned to the live stream during the broadcast. 

However, it could also signal buffering or disconnection issues, a viewer switching devices, among other possibilities. Review individual session data by studying viewer behavior to create a more complete picture. 

7. Total Hours Watched

The total amount of time all viewers spent watching the live stream.

Higher total hours watched are generally associated with greater engagement. This information is better contextualized as the average engagement rate (discussed next). 

However, you can combine this information with individual session data to discover highly engaged audience members who spend more time watching your live stream than average. Heat maps make it easy to identify these viewers.  

8. Average Engagement Rate

The average percentage of the live stream viewers watched. 

The average engagement rate showcases the amount of your live stream that a single viewer generally watches. It’s one of the best metrics for determining audience engagement. 

The SproutVideo platform provides a graph that displays the average engagement rate at every point of your live stream. This graph is a hugely useful tool for determining what parts of your live stream are most interesting to viewers. 

Use this metric to determine what aspects of your live stream would benefit from additional engagement strategies and again to evaluate the success of those strategies.

9. Geographic Location

A map of every country where your live stream played. 

You can click each country from the world map on the SproutVideo platform to see specific regions where viewers watched your live stream.

Local businesses that market within a specific region and multi-branch companies that must communicate internally and privately often use this metric.

Geographic location is also a helpful metric when gathering customer insights for tailoring marketing campaigns and understanding your audience. 

Finally, geographic location is necessary to comply with state or federal regulations within relevant industries. Tracking geographic location is generally needed when ensuring your live stream reaches the correct audience.

10. Domains Where Viewed

Domains identify where your live stream was played on the internet. 

If you embed your live stream in multiple places, this metric is ideal for determining what channels generate views. 

Data on domains is also helpful when auditing security for private live streams: you can easily ensure only viewers from intended domains watched the live stream.

11. Device Type

Determine the device, browser, and operating system used to watch your live stream. 

This information provides insight into your audience’s viewing behavior and preferences, which is helpful when creating a marketing strategy. It can also inform how to optimize your live stream’s landing page.

On the SproutVideo platform, click on each device type to view more in-depth information.

Individual Viewer Engagement Data

Post-live stream analytics provides a bird’s-eye view of metrics for a specific live stream. Individual session data, on the other hand, provides data view-by-view.

There is some overlap between post-live analytics and individual session data. The difference between the data is whether the information pertains to the entire live stream or a single view. 

This overlapping information includes geographic location, domains where viewed, and the device type. Click on each metric to return to its section above. Check out the other available individual session metrics below.

12. Date Viewed & Time Stamp

The day the viewer watched your live stream and at what time (in your time zone).

This metric conveys when each viewer tuned into your live stream. The dates will be the same for any single live stream. 

This information is helpful for diligent record-keeping, especially in regulated industries.

13. Viewer Name with Total Live Streams Viewed (When Captured)

The names of viewers whose contact information has been tagged.

You can track specific viewers if their information has been captured or tagged. 

Log-in protection is a common way to do this. When the viewer watches a live stream after logging into their account, their name appears instead of “Unknown Viewer.”

Tagged viewers will also include a small box next to the name that indicates the total number of live streams the user has watched. 

Click on any individual session, including “Unknown Viewers,” to view all of the viewing sessions (across live streams and videos) recorded for that user, as well as their total time watched. 

The practical applications for this information are abundant. 

• Monitor participation in employee training and educational lectures. 
• Use the information to tailor or segment marketing campaigns. 
• Track individual viewers to ensure compliance in regulated industries. 

Note: When a live stream is viewed internally by a logged-in SproutVideo account user, the viewer session data will feature a small box that reads, “Internal.”

14. IP Address

The IP Address associated with each view of the live stream. 

IP addresses are collected to identify viewers and their location.

Track this information to audit the security of live streams while employing IP address whitelisting, which is a security measure that makes streaming content available only to viewers with approved IP addresses. 

15. Heat Map

A cool-to-warm visualization for individual viewer engagement data. 

At a glance, “heat spots” indicate where the viewer rewatched content. Rewatches indicate areas of greater interest or sections of information that are too dense to absorb the first watch. Portions of the live stream the viewer didn’t watch are white space.

This map also includes the percentage of the total live stream the viewer watched. This information allows you to determine how much of the live stream a viewer completed during any one session. 

Note: Download live stream data as a CSV for offline viewing and easy record management with the SproutVideo Forest plan — built for businesses and institutions. These downloadable reports are Live Stream Event Analytics, Engagement Data, and an Access Log (for log-in-protected live streams). 

5 Live Streaming Use Cases for Business + Metrics to Track

Effective live streaming starts with clear goals. Here are some common ways businesses use live streaming, alongside example goals and the metrics needed to evaluate success. 

Note: Click on each of the “Metrics to Evaluate Success” to learn more about it. 

1. Optimize customer journey & tailor marketing efforts

Goal: Create highly engaging live streams to encourage loyalty and interaction with the brand. Employ insights gained from highly engaged viewers in the brand’s overall marketing strategy.

Metrics to Evaluate Success: 

• Average engagement rate: Evaluate overall success by how much content viewers watched. Additionally, compare the engagement graph with the live stream’s content to identify successful aspects and areas for improvement. 
• Qualitative engagement data (i.e., live chat participation): Review participation to discover highly engaged individuals likely to build emotional investment with your brand.  
• Heat maps. Track individual viewer engagement to tailor marketing efforts or segment your audience based on topics of interest. 
• Domains Where Viewed: Determine what channels most effectively drive viewership to the live stream based on where viewers tune in. 

2. Influence purchasing decisions & increase activations

Goal: Engage leads by solving product-related problems to drive interest in company products or services. Track attendees’ post-live stream engagement with your website (i.e., shopping cart checkout, requesting a demo, subscribing to free resources, repeat purchase) to measure success.

Metrics to Evaluate Success: 

• Average Engagement Rate: Determine how much content average users watch to determine the significance of live stream engagement on purchasing decisions.
• Heat Maps: Discover highly invested contacts and gain insights into viewer content expectations; use this insight to improve future live stream engagement. 
• Viewer Name: Review engagement data for each session to see how the live stream influenced individual viewers. Tag users and compare these insights with your customer relationship manager (CRM). For unknown viewers, track the Viewer ID given (each viewer receives a unique Viewer ID).

3. Maintain compliance with regulatory requirements

Goal: Ensure compliance with regulations and data privacy standards in relevant industries (i.e., finance, healthcare, legal services.) Maintain records of compliance for specific users.

Metrics to Evaluate Success: 

• Viewer ID or Name: Track and review engagement data for each viewer to ensure all compliance materials are watched. Log-in protection (or Single Sign-On) through the SproutVideo platform is an easy way to do this. 
• Heat Maps: View engagement data for each viewing session visually. View all sessions for any single viewer to determine if the user started a live stream and finished it later. 
• Total Minutes Watched for an Individual Viewer: Track time input for compliance regulations that require certification or continuing education hours. Within individual viewer engagement data on the SproutVideo platform, click on the viewer to see the total minutes watched across both live streams and videos.

4. Onboard new hires and improve employee skills

Goal: Track employee or student engagement with educational materials to ensure proper training. Easily gain insights into participation and engagement for future improvements.

Metrics to Evaluate Success:  

• Viewer Name and Total Live Streams Viewed: Utilize tagging to assign viewer names to their Viewer ID (used to track sessions). Then, review session data for individual users to track engagement with live streams and completion rates. 
• Heat Maps: Use this information to determine if the user started and finished a live stream later and how much of the live stream they completed.
• Unique Visitors: Audit live stream security measures by reviewing the unique visitor metric. If this number exceeds the limited audience for a private live stream, investigate individual session data to determine the cause. 

5. Communicate across company teams privately and efficiently

Goal: Host secure live streams to communicate effectively across teams and multiple branches, inform shareholders, and collaborate on pre-launch content and marketing materials.

Metrics to Evaluate Success:  

• Unique Visitors: Ensure communications reach the intended amount of people. Investigate individual session data if the number exceeds the intended audience size for a private live stream. The SproutVideo platform identifies account users as “Internal,” making it easier to separate internal and external security breaches. 
• Average Engagement Rate: Evaluate how much live stream content viewers watched. This metric is essential for determining whether the audience received the knowledge and information from the live stream. 
• Geographic Location: Track viewer location to ensure communications reach all intended parties or branch locations. 

Note: SproutVideo accounts include security tools like password protection, login protection (including single sign-on), and whitelisting for domains, IP addresses, and geographic locations.

Ready to launch your live stream? Grab our 30-day truly free trial. Or learn more about live streaming with our other content:

• How to Build Your Own Live Streaming Website
• Private Live Stream: How to Host Exclusive Events Online
• Live Streams VS Webinars: 8 Key Differences

The post 15 Live Stream Metrics & How to Measure Success appeared first on SproutVideo.

It showcases the likeliness of videos increasing awareness, sales, and retention. Additionally, 98% of enterprise organizations credit video for better and faster employee training and improved internal communications.

However, video production is a scalability challenge for many companies and organizations because of their required resources. To address this challenge, optimize each video for viewer engagement and get the most out of your video budget.

We’ll cover ten strategies for increasing video engagement — try incorporating one or two of these ideas into your next video!

What is Video Engagement & Why Should I Measure It?

Video engagement measures how people interact with your videos. It’s one of the best ways to determine whether or not the intended audience is receiving your message. 

Commonly, video engagement is a key performance indicator (KPI) used by professionals to evaluate, measure, and improve the performance of video content. 

Here are four video engagement metrics to measure and what they reveal.

• Play Rate: how likely someone is to play your video. A high play rate percentage suggests the video grabs enough attention to encourage views. When low, consider optimizing your title, thumbnail, and whether the video aligns with the page topic.
• Average Engagement Rate: how much of the video engaged viewers. Along with its accompanying graph, this metric is useful for determining the percentage of video content watched and where viewers lose interest. 
• Heat Mapping: viewer engagement habits expressed on a cool-to-warm color scale. It visually represents what parts of the video a user watched, rewatched, and skipped over. 
• Individual Session Data: data on who viewed the video, from what device, and where. Every viewing session collects data. Use this data to tailor marketing efforts, audit secure video access, track user completion rates, and more.

For example, Learning & Development professionals will likely optimize videos for optimal information absorption and track individual completion rates. On the other hand, marketers might track the average engagement rate and incorporate CTAs to move leads down the funnel.

 Video Metrics: How to Measure, Evaluate, and Increase Engagement

10 Strategies for Improving Video Engagement

1. Understand Your Viewer’s Motivation

Viewer motivation has a measurable impact on video engagement. Internally motivated viewers produce higher engagement rates than those motivated by external rewards or consequences. 

• Internal motivation is when a viewer watches a video for enjoyment or to satisfy their curiosity.
• External motivation means the viewer is watching to gain something, such as impressing their new boss by seamlessly onboarding. 

For example, Notion is a fun productivity app built for individual customization. If a viewer is excited to learn how to use it, a 30-minute video on Setting Up Notion Step-by-Step is worth the time in the viewer’s mind. The inherent satisfaction they expect to receive will increase their engagement in the video when the value is delivered.

On the other hand, new hires engage with training videos to maintain employment and showcase their value to employers. They aren’t engaging with the video from an internal drive but rather an external desire to maintain good standing at work. 

For example, a video on Everything a New Employee Needs to Learn on Day One will be more engaging when split into six shorter five-minute videos rather than one long 30-minute segment.

Consider your audience and balance the length of your videos with

• the value of the information provided
• the viewer’s intrinsic motivation

In other words, you can inspire viewer engagement by appreciating what your audience finds valuable, insightful, and enjoyable.

2. Connect Emotionally with Viewers 

An emotionally connected audience generates 52% more value than a highly satisfied one. Empathize with your viewers to identify how to incorporate emotion into your videos. Consider the viewer’s pain points, questions, and knowledge gaps. Then, prepare viewers for the emotional ups and downs while providing calls to action.

For broad appeal, many brands use light-hearted emotions, such as surprise (like the Generic Brand Video by Dissolve) and humor (or this TrueCar welcome video).

However, incorporating heavier emotional tones like grief, loneliness, and struggle (such as LifeStraw’s thank you video) can be especially powerful when the emotion is transformed in the video. 

Here are examples of how you might use emotion and storytelling to drive engagement:

• Highlight or emphasize an external or internal conflict and showcase the resolution
• Use The Hero’s Journey to inform story beats and create a satisfying story
• Give the video (or main character) a goal: follow the journey to reward and share it
• Align video topic (or the character’s fears and desires) with those of your audience

You can incorporate storytelling elements in every type of business video to contextualize the content and build emotional investment in a product or service.

3. Add Subtitles or Captions

Viewers are 80% more likely to finish a video with subtitles. They also increase information absorption by enabling people to watch and read the content. Finally, subtitles are important for viewer accessibility.

 How to Add Subtitles to Your Videos Easily

4. Hook Viewers in the Opening or Introduction

Encourage engagement for the entire length of a video — whether it’s 15 seconds or 30 minutes — by centering, teasing, or jumping directly to the core valuable idea. 

Consider, “What about this topic is enticing, valuable, or entertaining?” Use the introduction to explain or illustrate the core idea helpfully or satisfactorily to the viewer. 

A video’s introduction should be concise and relative to the video’s length. Here are some examples of how to use the introduction to keep viewers watching:

• Discuss what they will learn and how it will unfold (i.e., a brief table of contents)
• Open with an engaging shot or sequence that teases or encompasses the core idea
• Expand on the title’s hook and contextualize the pay-off 
• Create a short skit that is relevant to the core idea of the video

Deliver on the promises of the video’s introduction to create viewer satisfaction.

5. Expand Video Reach with SEO 

When a viewer is looking for specific information and finds your video, they are more likely to engage actively. Organic discovery puts your content in front of people who are directly seeking it.

Learn how to rank in search with these video SEO best practices, then use this guide on video metadata to get started.

6. Use Sound, Visuals, and CTAs to Hold the Viewer’s Attention

Elevate your video with thoughtful sound design, cinematography, and actionable takeaways. Think of it this way: every movie and television show builds an emotional atmosphere to create an experience. Everything from the casting, script, and storyboard to the location, camera angles, and color grading focuses on building the right vibe. 

You may not have the resources or budget to mimic movie studios, but you can refine how you use sound, visual cues, and calls to action to bring dynamism to your videos.

Video creators commonly add onomatopoeia (i.e., “boing” or “ding”), b-roll video or gifs, background music, and on-screen text to maintain viewer attention. Utilize these ideas if they align with your brand and audience. Here are some other ideas for how you can use sound, visuals, and CTAs to engage and maintain viewer attention:

• Create effective calls to action by providing a resource or solving a problem
• Use sound and music to set pacing expectations for the viewer intentionally 
• Add supplemental visuals wherever relevant to stoke interest and expand learning
• Include on-screen presentation slides, whiteboard sketches, or screencasts
• Combine these elements into a consistent tone to build audience trust

Much like a stage play in a black box theatre, the possibilities are endless. It’s about what you do with the tools and skills you have while being open to trying new things.

7. Create Effective Thumbnails

Effective thumbnails increase the likelihood that a user will click on a video. Thumbnails can be a still image from the video, an eye-catching custom image with subtitle text, or even an 8-second animated gif pulled directly from the video (available on SproutVideo). 

Certain thumbnail elements, like faces and bright colors, lend to views. The end goal is to establish a brand-aligned look that consistently encourages clicks.

8. Optimize Videos for the Intended Distribution Channels

Where you embed or share a video greatly influences how you optimize it for engagement. A recruiting video, for example, will be different from a product demonstration, which is different from a social short (which also varies by platform). 

Yet you could repurpose elements of a recruiting video or product demonstration to share on Instagram or TikTok, lending to diverse content and added value. In other words, consider tailoring your videos to match each intended distribution channel. 

Our first episode in a three-part series on color grading.

If you plan to share a video across multiple platforms, consider creating separate versions of the same content to optimize engagement for each channel.

Making multiple marketing assets from a single video is not a new concept. Just like B2B video marketing has different best practices than video marketing for e-commerce, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to effectively repurpose content. In other words, don’t compare your audience to another. Find out what your audience values.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by SproutVideo (@sproutvideo)

The condensed social media version of the long-form episode above.

Here are some examples of producing multiple versions of a video to tailor it for specific distribution channels:

• Share compelling 30-second or less clips from a longer-form video (i.e., promote a podcast episode by making several shorts from the most watched moments).
• Create a 2-minute, 1-minute, 30-second, and 15-second version of an advertisement and A/B test to determine what performs best in different situations. 
• Provide part of a paid online video course for free to generate interest in the course and build trust in the level of information provided.

 Four Secrets to Optimizing Video for Social Sharing

9. Include Interactive Elements for Deeper Learning

Quizzes, checklists, and discussion questions are examples of interactive elements that lead to improved information retention. Quizzes, for instance, improve information retention by 25%. 

Interestingly, interactive elements increase engagement in B2B and B2C scenarios. Lead generation, web traffic, sales, and referrals all increase alongside overall video engagement. 

Create interactive elements by considering the next steps your viewer needs to take. Provide solutions for the viewer with supplemental resources (such as a downloadable PDF summary) or tools for applying the knowledge learned (like a step-by-step checklist on what to do). 

You can also use interactive elements to direct viewer attention during or after a video with in-player CTAs and post-play screens.

10. Edit, Refine, and Replace Videos Based on Engagement Data

So, you published a video on your website that didn’t perform as desired. Instead of returning to the drawing board, use video engagement metrics to determine what parts of the video aren’t resonating with viewers or where they lose interest. 

On the SproutVideo platform, the Engagement dashboard features a graph showing the percentage of viewers engaged with your video throughout its duration. The graph lets you pinpoint the parts of the video that people engage with most and where you’re losing them.

You can view the average engagement rate to determine how much of your video people watch. A low overall engagement rate suggests that viewers aren’t receiving the value intended from the content. 

Here are some ideas for evaluating the data to improve engagement:

• Look for spikes, which highlight areas with increased audience engagement or rewatches. Drop-offs highlight a significant decline in engagement or parts of the video viewers skipped. 
• Engagement above 100% indicate video rewatches. Rewatches highlight heightened interest or information too complex to absorb on the first watch.
• Play rate (impressions/views) tells how likely people are to click on your video. A new thumbnail, title, or video placement can improve a low play rate.

You can also review heat mapping data collected for every individual view session on the SproutVideo platform. Heat maps visually display what parts of your videos individual viewers watched and rewatched. This data is ideal for reviewing student or employee engagement and spotting sessions from viewers who shouldn’t have access. 

Once you’ve determined how to improve the video for increased engagement, you can easily replace the old version with the new one. SproutVideo preserves all historical analytics data.

Dissecting a Video That Nails Engagement

Content creators rely on engagement to generate income. While a business’s applications and goals may differ, organizations can incorporate engagement strategies from highly successful videos to elevate brand content. 

Take this video by YouTube creator Phil Edwards, for example. Phil combines many of the strategies above in his video production, resulting in a video that’s hard to stop watching.

Here are three ways the video above successfully employs engagement strategies:

1. The video opens with a skit related to the core idea.

2. Phil hooks the viewer by relating the trend to world history. He teases this information and circles back later.

3. Sound, visuals, and editing create dramatic effects throughout the video.

Any of these elements can be strategically incorporated into business videos. Consider your goals, review the data, and make informed choices to improve video engagement.

Video best practices, like trends, are in a constant state of change. Fight the urge to follow fluctuating advice.

Focus on what your audience craves from you. Doing so won’t just increase your video engagement — it’ll increase viewer satisfaction and your bottom line.

The post Video Engagement: 10 Strategies to Grab & Hold Viewer Attention appeared first on SproutVideo.

To this end, companies rely on video to increase sales more than any other format. In fact, 80% of marketers credit video for directly increasing sales. 

Video is effective because it builds emotional connections. Emotional connections generate a 306% higher lifetime value over satisfied customers. There is no easier way to break through the noise than with a sincere or humorous moment that lightens viewers’ hearts. 

This article covers how to use video at every stage of your sales process. So no matter where or how someone engages with your company, they receive the value your business offers. 

Benefits of Video in the Sales Process

Weaving video into your customer experience yields benefits for both the consumer and the company. Here are a few ways video helps move leads toward conversion and retention. 

Jump-Start Discovery & Consideration 

Videos are easy content to digest. If someone discovers your brand or product and likes what they find, a library of video content makes it easy for them to learn more and become invested in obtaining your product or service. 

Supplement Your Customer Journey

No sales process is one hundred percent linear. Planning the customer journey is essential for good marketing, but the goal is to meet people where they are. In this case, that might be social media, their email inbox, your website, or a Google search.

Foster Trust & Showcase Values

Video is a powerful storytelling medium. Tell the story of your company. Share its greater “why” with those you intend to serve. Or showcase how your products and services improve people’s lives. By uplifting your company’s mission, you create an opportunity for viewers to emotionally connect with your brand in a meaningful way. 

Save Time for Customer Support & Sales

Knowledge bases and support documents have become commonplace, especially with enterprises. But text-only resources can quickly become overwhelming for someone already frustrated with a roadblock. Video for customer service provides visual, step-by-step solutions to specific questions and common hurdles. 

Elevate Your Brand

It doesn’t take much to create a professional website with the plethora of online platforms available. Presenting a business that consumers can trust is often found in the details, like consistent branding, good grammar, and responsive support. But another way to quickly elevate a brand is with a high-quality sales video. The video acts as an introduction to your brand. And a well-made video can quickly establish a baseline level of trust with the consumer. 

How to Use Video to Increase Sales

A video that is valuable to consumers in the awareness phase usually doesn’t translate to retention. Instead, create sales videos that cater to various stages of the sales process. This strategic and valuable content will move your target audience closer to conversion. 

Showcase the Value of Your Products 

Introduce leads to the value of your company and its products or services. This might include product demos, explainer videos, and brand stories to be used as advertisements, on social media, and embedded on your website. 

Create Value in Your Niche 

Produce value for your ideal audience. The tried-and-true way to garner trust and build loyalty is by providing valuable information that makes customers’ lives easier. Create helpful information on topics relevant to your industry; this will naturally lend to strong customer relationships. 

Entice Leads with Inside Information

Provide an in-depth look into your products and services. Give leads a peak behind the curtain to stoke interest and promote continued engagement with the brand. This encourages super-fans to congregate around your products and services. If your business can ignite customer passion, your brand awareness will rapidly increase by word of mouth. 

Boost Email Open Rates

Email marketing remains one of the most cost-effective ways to convert leads into buyers and maintain contact with loyal ones. Encourage engagement by incorporating video in your email campaigns, then use video analytics to evaluate success. Just using the word “video” in email subject lines can increase open rates by 6%. 

Personalized Support Messages

Allow your support team to offer snippets of value, provide a moment of validation, or offer their opinion on best practices. Video provides the opportunity to provide personalized value in short video responses, without replacing text-based support. These should be supplemental, allowing the customer to choose whether to engage with the video or quickly solve their issue via text. 

Types of Sales Videos (with Examples)

The goal of any sales video is to move prospects further down your sales funnel. Any video created to improve the customer journey can be considered a sales video.

Product Demos

Product demos provide the experience of using or handling a product. They highlight standout features and the unique value propositions your product or service offers. Product demos are used throughout the sales process and can be valuable for generating awareness just as much as converting an interested consumer into a buyer. 

Sony Headphones

This combination of an explainer video and product demonstration excels at highlighting the headphone’s standout feature: noise cancellation. Within 15 seconds, the main value proposition for these Sony headphones is perfectly conveyed.

The rest of the video highlights the product’s many features while following two young people moving throughout the city, seamlessly engaging with others without ever taking the headphones off. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) videos expedite the time between discovery and purchase by allowing the consumer to get their questions answered immediately. Have you ever had the experience of discovering a product, watching video after video to learn more, and getting excited? 

FAQ videos allow consumers with some knowledge of your brand to dive deeper into the experience before deciding to purchase, making these videos highly effective as middle-of-the-funnel content. 

Nespresso

Nespresso is known for creating tantalizing product demos. But their information content is perhaps more impressive, albeit underrated. 

This is the ideal “consideration” stage video. The lead has heard of Nespresso, and maybe even tried the coffee. But they don’t understand the unique pods Nespresso machines use. This 5-minute video not only explains the range of coffees available for use with the machine but also provides backstory into how the company began and how to make the perfect cup of coffee. 

Explainer Video

Explainer videos are the ultimate top-of-the-funnel content. Consider this the elevator pitch for your product. Companies have made some truly clever explainer videos to garner public interest.

These videos highlight a common customer pain point and showcase how the product or service is a transformative solution. The result is emotional catharsis for the viewer and a clear understanding of why your business exists. 

Puls

Puls conveys its value to consumers in 30 seconds: the company will set up or fix your digital goods any day of the week. Not only does it give a wide array of potential reasons to hire Puls, the video shows you how easy it is to book the appointment online.

This is a great example of a video that centers its message. There’s nothing fancy about the production — and there doesn’t need to be. The value of Puls quickly becomes apparent.

Brand Story 

Professionalism and providing free value go a long way to building trust with consumers, which is important for making the sale. But it is easier to establish trust through shared values, personal stories, or the service-based mission that leads a company forward.

Brand story videos are usually on a company’s About page, shared across social media, and sent to media contacts for additional distribution via press request. 

Etsy

This brand video is a masterclass in visual storytelling. Etsy is an online marketplace where makers and crafters sell their goods. This short ad successfully showcases its value to the consumer and small business owner. We see a mother connect with her son by embracing his interests in the fantastical, while the small business owner can visualize the positive impacts their goods will have on buyers.

Case Study

A case study provides a real example of how your company has positively impacted one of your buyers or clients. It paints a “before” and “after” picture, then discusses how your product or service was able to produce those results.

This bottom-of-the-funnel content is highly effective at converting curious leads into customers. Case studies are ideal for B2B companies that want to present proof of past success to prospective clients.

HubSpot

Avison Young is a real estate service provider with worldwide branches that use different customer relationship management (CRM) systems. In the United States alone, Avison Young increased broker CRM adoption from 23% to 90% — just by switching to HubSpot.

The video centers the before and after transformation for Avison Young, allowing the viewer to imagine how HubSpot could improve their business as well.

Personalized Video

Customer support and direct sales are perhaps the most underrated uses of video. With the rise of short video content, consumers have welcomed casually-made vertical videos. Companies can use this to build stronger relationships with current leads and customers. 

Personalized videos allow the customer to receive specialized attention, making them feel seen, instead of just another customer. This generates loyalty and retention. Another approach to personalized videos that have become popular is the personal achievements video, which highlights your platform-specific wins based on that year’s data.  

Example: A customer support person is answering a complex support question. They share a short screen recording alongside text-based information on how to solve the issue. They include a voice-over that validates the customer’s experience while providing an easy solution.

Nike

Nike outdid itself with 100,000 personalized achievement videos. Designed to retain Nike+ users, the video uses 2D-styled 3D animation to bring French illustrator, Mcbess’ illustrations to life while showcasing the viewer’s specific running achievements in 2014. 

There are plenty of lower-cost ways to achieve a similar video that engages your audience and encourages them and celebrates their success. But this type of personalized video effectively builds an emotional connection between your platform and the user by encouraging them to appreciate the progress they’ve made and inspiring them to continue. 

Customer Stories

Customer stories are emotional powerhouses in marketing storytelling. Similar to testimonial videos, they generally have greater production value and cut-away scenes. By focusing on a specific customer and their unique journey, this middle-of-the-funnel content allows viewers to easily relate by imagining the customer’s transformation as their own. 

Peloton

This customer story features a mom who bought a Peloton after giving birth to her first child. She talks about the Peloton groups she belongs to that help her stay motivated. “We’re all on our own journey but we’re never alone,” the one-minute video concludes. 

People in the comments shared their own stories and how they can relate to her. Peloton created a series of videos like this, allowing people from various backgrounds to find themselves in the content and feel the potential transformation the product offers.  

Best Practices for Effective Sales Videos

Create Tension & Resolution

Remind viewers of frustrations and create a sense of conclusion by showcasing the transformation your solution provides. This can be applied to any type of sales video. A brand story, for example, highlights the personal struggle or business conflict that inspired the company. A case study highlights what wasn’t working and why a company was instrumental in creating the current success. 

Know Your Audience 

Center your ideal audience in everything your business creates. Even the way a brand story is told should consider the pain points and experiences of the audience. A sales video can exceed expectations by stepping into the customer’s shoes, understanding what they value, and showcasing how your company provides the next level of service in that industry.

Determine Your Hook

A sales video should “hook” the viewer within eight seconds. A hook is anything that convinces the viewer to watch the video. Some examples of hooks include humor, storytelling, pain points, and questions. 

Value The Audience’s Time

Video lengths vary greatly depending on the type of content you’re producing. Explainer videos typically run 90 seconds or less, while an FAQ might be up to 20 minutes long. Always consider your viewer’s time. Eliminate superfluous material and get right to providing value. 

Tell the Story With & Without Audio

It’s highly likely that your video will be watched without sound. Especially across social media, videos are often watched muted and/or with subtitles. Therefore it’s important to consider how much of the story your video conveys through visuals alone.

Even with the option to display subtitles, craft a video your audience can understand without sound. Another approach is to create a hook so compelling that it convinces the viewers to turn on the sound.

Include a Call to Action

What action do you want viewers to take after watching the sales video? This call to action might be as simple as “Shop Now” or “Get a Free Trial.”

You can also use a call to action to entice viewers further down your sales funnel by highlighting related videos, sharing freebies, or setting up a call with the sales team. 

The process of moving leads from discovery through retention can be messy. But driving sales with video cleans up the process, allowing you to reach potential customers wherever they are. 

Ready to start brainstorming script ideas? Or, learn how to effectively use emotion in video storytelling and get inspiration from this list of the best explainer videos. Our library of helpful content can also teach you how to produce high-quality animated videos or discover special effects that can help your content stand out. 

The post Strategic Guide to Increasing Sales with Video + Examples appeared first on SproutVideo.

Yet simply adding product videos to your website and social media accounts doesn’t necessarily make them effective.

Video marketing, especially for B2B products and services, requires a strategy with clear goals, a winning customer experience, and contextual market understanding. 

The right B2B strategy will leverage video content for lead capture, relationship building, customer support, and sales. 

In this complete guide, we’ll walk through every step — researching, planning, budgeting, and executing — of an effective B2B video marketing strategy, with examples for brainstorming. 

What Is B2B Video Marketing?

Business-to-business (B2B) marketing sells products and services to other businesses and organizations. B2B video marketing is a marketing strategy that uses video throughout the customer journey to inform, educate, and assist current and prospective customers. 

B2B marketing focuses on the pain points, desires, and solutions needed for businesses and organizations. These marketing strategies balance the needs of the business and the wants of the decision-maker. 

A formal approach may feel natural, but B2B sales still hinge on building connections. Instead of old-school salesmanship, foster authentic relationships through knowledge sharing and genuine care. This is why video is why it is becoming standard across industries. It is highly effective at establishing trust with the viewer.

Why Use Video for B2B Marketing?

A potential customer can absorb much more information from a 15-second video than in 15 seconds of reading text. But the benefits of video marketing go beyond information retention.

• 59% of B2B decision-makers prefer video over text when learning about a product.
• 92% of video marketers cite a good return on investment (ROI) for video content.
• 70% of B2B marketers say videos convert better than other types of content.
• 4.8% is the average conversion rate for websites with video (compared to 2.9% without).
• 70% of B2B researchers and buyers watch videos during their path to purchase.
• 60% increase in response rates when using video for sales outreach.

How to Create a B2B Video Marketing Strategy

1. Create Clear Marketing Goals

A marketing strategy is a cohesive approach with a theory of success. Assuming it is successful, what are the key performance indicators (KPIs) that will indicate its success?

Every KPI should be measurable, specific, and include a deadline. Here are some general examples:

• Increase trial conversions from 5% to 8% by Q4 2024. 
• Secure two new enterprise memberships a month.
• Reduce customer churn 2% month-over-month by end of year.
• Achieve a 10% increase in organic traffic year-over-year.
• Generate a minimum of 100 activations per month by Q3 end. 

The strategy you develop will determine how you approach achieving these goals. But knowing what you intend to accomplish ahead of time will make it easier to create an effective strategy, ensure it’s working, and pivot as needed. 

How to Use Video

Internal communication is important for success. Most marketing strategies will involve multiple teams within a company. Using video to communicate goals and outline the strategy is an efficient way to ensure everyone is on the same page and contributing their ideas throughout the planning process.

2. Refine Your Brand & Voice

Branding with a consistent tone produces a sense of trust and reliability. A clearly defined brand will make it easier for prospective customers to remember your business and visualize the unique and innovative ways in which your business solves problems.

Ahrefs is a standout example. From its bold color scheme and unique graphics to the blocky font and educational content, its branding choices align with the target audience. This allows it to feel both personable and professional while setting the company apart from its competitors.

Unless your business is new, your brand and voice are likely established. Evaluate all of your marketing channels and your website. 

Implement a consistent brand and voice across channels as part of your B2B video marketing strategy. Consider the tone, colors, fonts, images, and user experience you present. 

How to Use Video

A consistent brand and tone of voice can be brought into your video content as well. Bring the same energy and perspective, and use the same graphics, fonts, and colors in your videos as the rest of your marketing content. With SproutVideo, you can also customize the video player itself for a branded, distraction-free customer experience.

3. Identify Target Market & Audience

An essential aspect of creating a successful B2B marketing strategy is understanding your company’s market position and its relation to the competition. 

Review your sales data. What kinds of businesses move through your customer journey and make a purchase? What companies become return customers or long-term subscribers? 

Identify the businesses you want to target. Consider,

• Business Size (small, medium, enterprise)
• Industry (Healthcare, Education, etc.)
• Number of Employees
• Revenue
• Location (by region or specific country)

Next, who are the people within those businesses that you are targeting? Identify the departments within the company that your product serves — marketing, human resources, executives, product development — the list goes on and on. 

Develop a specific persona for the person who works at this company. Consider,

• Age
• Gender
• Location
• Job Title
• Beliefs and Perspective
• Education Level
• Pain Points
• Consistent Routines
• Industry Idiosyncrasies 

Use this information to develop customer avatars. These buyer profiles will make it easier to map a successful customer journey and gain potential leads. 

Every business attracts outliers with similar needs and interests. But your core business marketing should be positioned for your ideal persona. Take notice of the audience segments that convert at the highest rates and investigate. 

Example: A social media management platform might target small business owners in North America who are women aged 20-35 that feel burned out and frustrated with social media. Alternatively, a semiconductor manufacturer might target Senior Product Managers in Asia over 45 who are hesitant to change and require executive approval. 

How to Use Video

Customer profiles are an essential part of any business strategy. But it can be challenging to personalize content for a group. Consider asking customers to share video testimonials or host video interviews in exchange for exclusive discounts or benefits. Identify individuals who fit your audience segments and ask yourself if they would personally benefit from your content.

4. Analyze the Competition

Next, review your company and assess your competitors to determine where your business fits, and how it should be positioned, within the market.

Start by researching direct rivals: businesses that are similar in size and target the same industry. Make a list of these competitors, as well as companies that are smaller and larger.

From your list, select three to five companies that cater to the same target market and audience as your own. Review their branding, customer journey, and product features. Become a potential customer to learn more about how your competitors convert browsers into buyers. 

Example: SproutVideo is a video hosting platform. While there are many video hosting companies, the list of competitors with platforms built for enterprises and priced for small businesses is short. We serve this niche. 

How to Use Video

Knowing where your business fits into the market will allow you to create a winning strategy that sets your company above the rest. Depending on the industry, competitors may be underutilizing videos or creating lackluster content. Consider how you can use video to outdo the competition by making each step of the customer journey easier to engage with and enjoy. 

5. Build a Market-Specific Strategy

Think of your strategy as the thesis statement of your organization. What is the outcome your business wants to achieve? What approach would make your competition irrelevant? 

1. Outline Brand Vision

Develop a clear vision of what your business intends to accomplish. Answer these two questions for your B2B marketing strategy: 

• Why are we in this market (and not another one)?
• How are we going to be the best in this market?

Look at how your company solves customer pain points in a superior way. Or pinpoint the ways your business innovates in your market to create new demand. 

2. Identify Unique Value Proposition

Reflect on your company mission statement and the transformation your product or service creates for customers. Having researched your close competitors, are you filling a gap in the market or innovating on the current standard? This is your unique value proposition. 

If you’ve ever wondered why there are so many companies solving the same problem, take a closer look at their unique value propositions. You will see significant differences in the audiences those businesses serve and the core features they promote.

Example: Mailchimp focuses on helping small businesses grow email newsletters. The company was one of the first to allow new business owners to freely use the platform’s core functions until a certain number of subscribers is reached. This continues to be one of Mailchimp’s main strategies, even as its audience and offerings have expanded. 

3. Compose Your Strategy 

Share your vision of success in its realized form. For some businesses, the overall business mission will naturally guide the marketing strategy. Consider all of the steps you have completed and the information you have gathered so far. 

Write down your strategy and include:

• Your vision for the business
• Any issues the strategy needs to address
• The projected result of a successful strategy 

Your strategy might be a sentence or a few paragraphs; keep it succinct. Your marketing strategy postulates success: what must happen for this to be true?

Combine your brand vision, innovative approach in your market, and the intended result.

Example: Ghost is an all-in-one CMS platform that offers a minimalist website, email marketing software, and payment processor, which collects 0% in fees. Its open-source software allows developers to unleash their creativity and businesses to customize the framework. Fully bootstrapped, Ghost is a reliable platform built for longevity. It is the solution of choice for modern enterprises that value content marketing.

How to Use Video

Your brand strategy should inspire you and your employees to bring your company mission to life. Use video to show appreciation for employees and to generate excitement and motivation for upcoming events, projects, and strategy shifts. 

6. Outline Channels & Technology

With the information you have now and your strategy in hand, determine if there are any gaps. Start by listing your marketing channels. Common channels include:

• Website or landing pages
• Newsletter
• Blog
• Social media 
• Paid advertising 
• Webinars
• Demo or Trials
• Opt-in Offers (White Papers, Case Studies, etc)
• Knowledge Base

Perhaps you thought social media was covered; however, after reviewing the market and your competition, you’ve learned that your audience is more likely on TikTok than Facebook. Alternatively, maybe you’ve been paying for advertising but haven’t developed a marketing funnel to attract organic leads and nurture potential customers. 

Additionally, consider how you will distribute your content. Each stage of your sales funnel (discussed in the next section) will require its own distribution plan. As you map your customer journey, determine how and where you will reach people with your content. 

Example: An explainer video might be shared on your website, uploaded to YouTube for paid advertising, and shared across social media. This is your distribution plan for the awareness stage of your sales funnel. Educational videos, on the other hand, might be shared exclusively on your video help site and embedded in your email newsletter for the conversion stage. 

How to Use Video

As you outline your marketing channels, take note of how many videos you are currently using to market your products and services. Consider the videos on your website, social media pages, paid advertising, onboarding process, and more. Review your analytics. Are there any obvious areas where a video would improve engagement or conversion? Start to outline how you might use video to improve your customer experience. 

7. Map Your Customer’s Journey

In most cases, B2C businesses create awareness of their product, potential customers consider it, the company stokes their desire or nurtures the relationship, then a purchase is made. The buyer may need customer support and will hopefully become a return customer, but the funnel is complete. 

The B2B customer journey is different. The research and comparison phase of the B2B journey is crucial, often due to higher prices or more complex offerings. 

The Standard B2C Customer Journey

The Standard B2B Customer Journey

Furthermore, there is an additional stage in B2B marketing that we’re calling Post-Sales Service. This is the company’s user experience from purchase through utilization. 

B2B solutions are rarely one-off purchases. For this reason, companies offer robust customer support, including product customization, onboarding assistance, and exclusive content.

Map Your Customer Journey

For each customer persona you have created, how does that audience segment move through your sales funnel? Look broadly at how people move through each phase of your customer journey. Learn why and how they:

• Discover your business
• Engage to learn more
• Gain trust in your services
• Choose to make a purchase
• Continue to subscribe or buy again

If your analytical data provides an incomplete picture, solicit feedback from current customers in exchange for bonus offerings or discounts. This information is vital to implementing effective marketing tactics that resonate with your ideal audience. 

How to Use Video

Using videos in your sales funnel allows you to collect significant data with analytics. This information can be used to improve your customer’s experience. For example, heat mapping shows what portions of your videos are being watched, re-watched, or skipped. With individual tracking, you can tag a viewer to track how many minutes and what videos they’ve watched. 

8. Plan Your Video-Led Customer Experience 

With all the information you have gathered, plan how you will reach potential customers at each stage of your sales funnel. Here are some examples of content you might create at each stage.

• Awareness: Blog posts, educational videos, social media
• Research & competition: White papers, case studies, comparison guides
• Conversion: Demos, trials, testimonials
• Post-Sales Service: Exclusive video content, email newsletter, success stories
• Loyalty & Retention: Feedback surveys, community groups, loyalty programs

At every stage, use video content to improve the user experience. Creating videos takes time and work — whether producing them in-house, hiring freelancers, or employing a production company. Make a list of content to be produced and prioritize implementation as outlined below.

1. Start with the Basics (Website, Social)

Produce videos that target the awareness stage of the buyer’s journey and set the tone for your brand. An explainer video, for example, showcases the transformation your product or service creates. It can be shared on social media and featured on your website and landing pages. 

2. Guide the Buyer’s Journey 

Evaluate your sales funnel and marketing automation. Create videos that will improve your customer experience. Add video to your email nurturing sequence, create a series of onboarding how-tos, or animate a stellar customer testimonial. Engage, inform, and motivate your audience at every stage of the customer journey. 

3. Add Educational Content

Educational videos explain topics related to your product or industry. They cover a broad subject concisely or answer a specific question in detail. These videos generate new leads and build trust. They add value to potential customers without asking for anything in return. This content is also useful when building an audience on social media as a business.

4. Consider Support & Retention

There are multiple ways video can be used for customer support and retention. Start by creating videos for your most frequently asked support questions. This knowledge base will allow users to self-service, freeing resources up in your business for high-profile customers. 

Things to Consider

Each stage of your customer journey will have different video content and a different means of distribution. For example, how-to videos for trial customers should be privately hosted and embedded within an email or webpage. But a corporate advertisement will be publicly shared across social media. Keep this in mind when outlining your plan of action.  

9. Set Video Production & Marketing Budget

Return to your goals from step one and estimate the cost of each. Project an expected ROI using past campaign data to estimate your expected cost per new lead or conversion. 

If your goal is 100 conversions and past data reveals that each conversion costs $200 to acquire, you can estimate a marketing budget of $20,000 to complete the goal. 

[Conversions] X [Cost Per Conversion] = [Marketing Budget]

To estimate your projected ROI, multiply the number of conversions (100) by your sales price. This will provide you with the projected revenue. 

[Conversions] X [Sales Price] = [Projected Revenue]

Subtract your marketing budget ($20,000) from the projected revenue to get your ROI.

[Projected Revenue] – [Marketing Budget] = [Projected ROI] 

Track your actual ROI over time. Use analytics and marketing automation software to continuously gather data on your marketing campaigns and assess conversion data. 

Before setting a video production budget, consider the other costs associated with your marketing plan. This will ensure you don’t over- or under-spend on video content. 

Things to Consider

Save money in the long term by producing evergreen videos — meaning the content will continue to be accurate and relevant for years. This will allow you to generate higher returns on your investment as well. Consider video longevity when adding humor and style; ensure the choices will allow your videos to remain modern and relevant. 

10. Take Action & Schedule Implementation 

Time to implement your B2B video marketing strategy! Formally compose a plan of action, use work management tools to stay on track, and collaborate with internal team members. 

If time and budget are concerns, implement your B2B video marketing plan in stages starting with the highest-impact content. Talk to your customers, get their feedback, and focus on creating a customer experience that consistently converts.

Things to Consider

Utilize the vault of knowledge we’ve compiled here at SproutVideo to make every stage of the process smoother. Check out these essential planning documents for video production, how to hire videography freelancers, and maximize your video ROI with these tips. 

Examples of B2B Marketing Videos

Hubspot Master Class

Hubspot hosts marketing master classes to educate and inspire. In this master class, Buzzfeed video producer Daysha V. Edewi shares her approach to crafting viral content. 

Snowflake Advertisement

This ad is a perfect example of exaggerating a common pain point for laughs: the only way to end the feuding department’s prank war is to use Snowflake for cloud data management. 

Workday Explainer

Combining animated graphics with a live-action host, this video skillfully presents the key benefits of Workday’s human capital management (HCM) system in under three minutes.

SAP Behind-the-Scenes

During Take Your Child to Work Day, SAP interviewed employees’ kids about what their parents do. The result is a fun peek into the lives of the people who keep SAP running day-to-day.

Volvo Trucks Advertisement

Prepare to lift your jaw off the floor. Volvo Trucks wanted to showcase the stability and precision of its Dynamic Steering, so it enlisted the help of action star Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Ahrefs Educational Content

Educational videos help businesses fully understand and utilize your product or service. This is a great example of an educational video that gets right to the point and solves a problem. 

Zendesk Advertisement

This light-hearted ad likens the relationship of an older married couple to that between a business and its customers. It also manages to explain the value of Zendesk in one minute.

Quick Tips for Your B2B Video Marketing Strategy

• Pick The Right Video: Align your content with your goals. The secret ingredient for success is to speak to your target persona.
• Think Outside The Box: Your video is an opportunity to differentiate yourself from potential competitors. Creativity creates engagement.
• Be Mindful of Customer Time: Make a series if you have a lot to share. Each segment can highlight your business and go into more depth about philosophies or products.
• Curate Supporting Content: Buyers don’t make big decisions or large purchases based on one persuasive video. Create a spectrum of content for your audience.
• Let Your Customers Do The Talking: Client testimonials are seen as more credible and more authentic than any traditional pitch. They also demonstrate real results.
• Encourage Video Sharing: An engaging, creative video is primed for sharing, through social media and old-school word-of-mouth. Also, include a call to action.
• Don’t Fret Over Production Quality: A polished video doesn’t have to make a huge impact on your wallet. These free resources will help you make professional videos.

The post B2B Video Marketing: How to Build A Successful Strategy appeared first on SproutVideo.

These days, customers commonly seek out information to solve their issues, only contacting the company if those answers cannot be found. 

This has prompted businesses to create knowledge centers that support customers’ needs, and video is the ideal medium.

In fact, video can be used for support and retention throughout the customer’s journey. 93% of consumers appreciate it when companies include post-purchase video instructions.

In this article, we will discuss the many use cases of video for customer support and retention, and how to generate customer loyalty with high-quality video support. 

What is Video Customer Support?

Video customer support is when a business uses video to convey helpful or instructional information at any stage of the customer’s journey.

Video might replace or supplement text to create an engaging experience. It can expedite response times and increase communication clarity between the customer and support staff. 

Why You Should Use Video for Customer Support 

Customer service isn’t just about ensuring a smooth sale. Its goal is also to create a frustration-free experience at every point of interaction with your company. The following are five reasons why video is the optimal medium for customer service.

• Streamline Video Support: Video can provide your support team with the ability to quickly receive and share video demonstrations to easily solve customer issues. 
• Create Quality Control: Video can be used to teach new support hires how your company approaches support and what to do in difficult situations.
• Provide Immediate Answers: Customers can become overwhelmed by large text-based knowledge articles. Make it easy to absorb the information with video.
• Reduce Support Tickets: You can continuously improve the knowledge offered at each stage when video customer support is woven into the customer’s journey. In turn, you create a seamless customer experience, reducing the need for people to reach out. 
• Reward Customers: Reward buyers with in-depth and exclusive content. These bonus offerings encourage a community to form around your product or service.

7 Ways to Use Video for Customer Support & Retention

Video Knowledge Base

When using instructional materials, 83% of people prefer watching videos over reading text. Therefore, adding videos to your knowledge base can make it more effective as a whole.

Start by determining what questions your support team answers again and again. Then, create instructional videos that demonstrate how to complete the task or solve the issue. 

Finally, utilize video SEO to make it easy for users to find the answers they need. This will also boost your organic reach. Those searching for specific answers may stumble upon your company and decide to test your products or services against the competition.

This way, your video knowledge base can serve customers at the bottom of your marketing funnel and build awareness for those near the top. 

How to Use Video

• Boost Organic Reach: Improve SEO with a library of direct and helpful how-tos.
• Automate Support: Allow users to immediately find solutions to their problems. 
• Make FAQs Shareable: Create and easily send videos that answer common questions.

Customer Service Training Videos

Video is a highly effective medium for training. When attempting to create a consistently high-quality customer service experience, video training can be used to prepare new hires, infuse their job with purpose, and encourage them to share their insights and ideas. 

In our examples of customer service videos below, former CEO Vineet Nayar outlines his case for putting employees first. He discusses his strategy as a leader and argues that exceptional employee service starts with the company’s actions. This highlights the importance of customer service training materials that reflect modern working culture. 

How to Use Video

• Train New Hires: Create consistently high-quality service with your support model. 
• Lead with Purpose: Inspire employees with the purposeful mission of your business. 
• Create Dialogue: Encourage new hires to share their ideas for how to improve their job. 

Welcome & Onboarding

What does a customer need after making a purchase? Providing set-up instructions, sharing content for deeper learning, and building a community all contribute to your customer service experience. 

How a customer feels post-purchase will determine their likelihood of becoming a repeat buyer or long-term subscriber. Therefore, consider the ways you can continue to create a frustration-free experience as your customers begin to use your products or services. 

A video is an effective tool for onboarding customers because you can directly show them how to use your product or navigate your service. In under a minute, they can jump right in and go. 

How to Use Video

• Guide through Setup: Walk users through the initial steps of using your product.
• Provide Knowledge: Produce how-to videos to help users excel with your product.
• Create Community: Build brand loyalty by fostering community around your products.

Thank You Videos

A business doesn’t function without its customers. Thank you videos take time to acknowledge the community of people who drive the company’s mission forward. Thank you videos can also be used to showcase customer achievements or congratulate someone. 

Sincerity is key. Saying “thank you” conveys a sense of awareness and appreciation that goes beyond the company’s accomplishments. An especially fantastic “thank you,” like the Charity: Water video in our examples below, will go the extra mile.

How to Use Video

• Celebrate Achievements: Send personalized videos to celebrate customer milestones.
• Highlight Contributions: Thank customers for making charitable donations possible. 
• Show Appreciation: Create a general “thank you” for customers and the community.

Exclusive Video Library

Consumers love valuable (and free) bonus content. Have you ever seen someone post on social because a company sent them stickers, a handwritten note, candy, or some other small extra items? That’s all it took for the customer to feel special when the package arrived. 

An exclusive video library with valuable or entertaining content for your audience can create the same sense of excitement and loyalty.

In one example, fans of Warhammer miniatures can pay a minimal membership fee to receive exclusive miniatures, animations, and shows through their app. This is one digital example of giving special access to customers and building a community with video content. 

How to Use Video

• Offer Bonus Content: Offer customers video content that provides useful information.
• Secure How-to Content: Securely share in-depth knowledge of your product with users.
• Share Practical Uses: Teach the various functional applications of the product you sell.

Support Demonstration 

When it comes to the daily exchanges of information between customers and support staff, nothing is more frustrating for both parties than illustrating the issue and how to solve it. 

With video, support staff can quickly create a video demonstrating the solution. If the question comes up again, they will already have a video to share. This also makes it easier for customers, who can easily review the steps they need to take. 

Video for customer support is a more cost- and time-effective alternative to offering live video support. Instead, reserve live video support as an offering for high-tier customers. 

How to Use Video

• Review the Problem: Ask customers to include a video screen share of their problem.
• Use Video Demonstration: Quickly make and send password-protected how-to videos.
• Create Support Tiers: Offer live video support or expedited service with the time saved.

Optimize Support with Analytics

An added benefit of using video for customer support is the ability to evaluate the success of that support with data. Video analytics allow you to measure engagement and review the most popular or skipped-over sections of the video.

You can also compare the analytics of support staff videos. If you find that one agent is producing videos that significantly reduce support time while effectively solving problems, they can train other support staff on how to make demonstration videos. 

Additionally, analytics makes it easy to know what videos are continuously being played from your knowledge base. This is a good sign that users want more content about this subject.

Plus with SproutVideo’s individual tracking, you can ensure new hires have fully completed video training.   

How to Use Video

• Optimize with Heat-Mapping: Review what parts of videos are skipped or re-watched.
• Track Engagement: Ensure new hires have completed customer service training. 
• Improve Consistently: Make sure all videos are helping customers as intended. 

Examples of Customer Service Videos in Business

Education & Onboarding

Headspace

Headspace is a mediation app. This calming how-to video helps new users quickly get started. It covers the main offerings and how to navigate within the app.

Canva

Canva creates a lot of short, screen-share-style videos that quickly show users how to complete various tasks within the application. 

Moz

Moz’s Whiteboard Fridays skilfully tackle useful knowledge for people who use SEO tools in around ten minutes. The series is still going with over 400 videos for potential and existing customers. 

Retention & Thank You

John Hopkins University

Based in Baltimore, John Hopkins University shared this “Thank You” video that features members of the community who help make it strong. 

Mailchimp

Mailchimp shares in-depth tutorials to set users up for success and provide an understanding of the many available tools that can be used in business. The information is educational, but customer retention is the result of having a library of useful content.

Charity: Water

When Charity: Water turned five years old, it wanted supporters to feel appreciated. Not only did the staff write letters, send emails, and make calls thanking people — they made hundreds of personalized videos. 

Training & Inspiration

Ross Shafer

Ross Shafer is a TV host, comedian, and motivational speaker. He shares how he was affected by a moment of above-and-beyond customer service at a Marriott hotel. 

Zendesk

Zendesk is in the business of customer service. This video got the attention of customer service workers across industries who dubbed it, “highly relatable.” It’s a great ice-breaker for new support employees who will experience these types of scenarios daily. 

Bob Farrell

Bob Farrell trains people in customer service. But he began as a restaurant owner. In this video, he shares the experience with a customer that led to his motto, “Give ‘em the pickle.”

Vineet Nayar

“Millions of employees walk through our organizations every day not just to get paid but to be inspired by the vision we have for them,” Vineet Nayar is a bestselling author and former CEO of HCL Technologies who shares his “employees first, customers second,” philosophy. 

The ability to put a face to a company cannot be understated. This is perhaps the most underrated benefit of video for customer support and retention: customers get the chance to feel connected to the people within your organization. When these relationships are fostered through support, the natural result is satisfied and returning customers. 

Ready for more? Check out how to structure instructional videos for great pre-production advice. Learn the easy way to write a video script, or review the six components of a successful testimonial video. 

The post 7 Ways to Use Video for Customer Support & Retention appeared first on SproutVideo.

Whether you want to build an employees-only video library or protect your content behind a paywall, video websites offer an affordable and effective solution. 

This article covers making a video website from ideation to launch. With the right platform, you can complete your video website in less than an hour. Let’s begin!

Why Businesses Create Video Websites

Video hosting services with video websites, like SproutVideo, combine all the tools of a video host, website builder, marketing suite, and analytics software in one platform.

Businesses and organizations utilize video websites internally and externally across industries. Use cases include:

• Video Portfolios
• E-learning Platforms
• Membership websites
• Learning and development portals
• Corporate communications
• TV, movie, and ad screenings

Video websites make it easy to create a branded portal for any of your video needs.

Create a Professional Video Website in 10 Steps

1. Determine the Purpose & Goal 

There is a wide range of use cases for video websites. From a videographer who needs a professional portfolio to a non-profit organization that requires single sign-on (SSO), video websites offer a flexible array of purposes and potential goals. 

Before selecting a platform or browsing its themes, refine the purpose of your video website and create at least one major goal. For example:

• A video-based knowledge center with the goal of reducing support tickets by 40%
• Employee onboarding that removes managers from the process and incurs a 95% completion rate with new hires
• A members-only video library for paid subscribers that increases retention by 20%

Determine how you will use the video website, what features you need to market the videos or restrict access, and your desired return on investment.

2. Choose a Video Hosting Platform

The video hosting service you choose for your business will depend on what features you need for your website. A video website service should include:

• Website builder: Customize your site design to better showcase your video content. 
• Hosting: Upload multiple videos directly to your website. 
• Security: Ensure only those with permission are able to access your content. 
• Marketing: Require lead capture to view video or direct visitors with in-player CTAs.
• Monetization: Easily integrate payment buttons with third-party applications.
• Analytics: Get real-time data on who is watching and what they’re re-watching. 

SproutVideo offers these features (website included) for $35 a month. 

Note: Our features provide the ability to secure or market your video content anywhere. If you already have a website, you can embed the video content you’ve uploaded while keeping it private. You can even monetize that video content or create a subscription membership.

3. Select a Theme & Customize 

Who doesn’t love aesthetics? Built-in templates make creating a modern video website for your brand easy. Choose the best theme for your goals, then make it shine with customization options. 

Add your logo, favicon, and brand colors for easy setup. You have the option to create two pages, such as an About or Contact page. You can use these pages to promote any part of your business. 

For limitless possibilities, employ custom CSS or Javascript for advanced customization.

4. Upload Video Content

Determine what video content you will upload to your website. Choose content that aligns with your video website’s purpose and goal. Some questions you might consider include:

• Who is this website for? Who is my target audience?
• What information are they hoping to acquire? 
• How can I organize my content for the user’s experience?

As you upload video content, consider the categories you want to feature on your website. These categories should help visitors easily navigate your various video topics, series, or courses. 

Finally, use bulk uploading to upload all of your videos at once. Simply add your video files to the queue; each file will upload until all the videos are ready to play. Videos can be uploaded from your computer or an input source, such as Dropbox or Google Drive. You can also upload videos with the SproutVideo API or by setting up automation in Zapier.

5. Optimize for SEO

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) allows visitors to organically find your website when searching. Optimization requires positioning your content to fit the way people are looking for it. You can reduce keyword competition by using more specific search queries.

When doing research, notice that the search engine offers queries (known as long-tail keywords) under “People also ask.” These are examples of highly specific keywords that can be used to more easily rank in search and build website authority.

To optimize video metadata for search engines, include keywords in the title, description, and URL. You can easily do this within settings for any uploaded video. 

Your video website’s backend affects SEO as well. SproutVideo optimizes your website by automatically updating the video sitemap and including JSON-LD structured data for newly uploaded videos. Put simply, we ensure search engines can easily find your content.

For more information on optimizing videos for SEO, read our guide on video metadata and review these 17 video SEO best practices. 

Note: Never underestimate the importance of video thumbnails. While the title informs both Google and the viewer what your video is about, the thumbnail helps the video stand out among the competition. A great thumbnail can improve ranking if it encourages people to click. 

6. Secure Video Content

There are multiple reasons to secure some or all of your video content. Depending on the purpose of your video website, you might need to prevent those who haven’t paid or those who don’t work within your organization from accessing the content. 

You can restrict access to your videos with login protection, password protection, or single sign-on (SSO). Login and password protection can be used to restrict access to the entire video website or individual videos. This allows you to set up customized access depending on team roles or subscription tiers.

There are also additional security measures you can take, such as IP address or domain restriction and dynamic watermarking. When setting up the privacy of your videos, use our article on secure video sharing to walk through each step and ensure it’s done correctly. 

7. Utilize Marketing Features

If your website will be public facing, there are various tools you can use to market your video content. These include:

• Lead capture: Require viewers to submit their contact information to watch a video.
• In-player CTA: Display a link or text during on-demand videos and live streams.
• Post-play screen: Feature a link, text, or email list sign-up form as the video concludes.
• Email embed codes: Add a video thumbnail that links to a landing page in an email.
• Third-party integration: Connect your video website host and email marketing platform.

Depending on the goal of your video website, determine what tools you will use and create a marketing plan.

If your video website is built for internal or private purposes, you might use the in-player CTA to link other relevant videos or documentation. Additionally, email embed codes can be used for secure internal email communication.

Example: You add a post-play screen to your best-performing video. The post-play screen offers a valuable freebie to viewers in exchange for their email address. Using Zapier, you employ automatic delivery of that freebie by connecting to your email marketing provider. You decide to take this one step further with a welcoming campaign, which triggers when the freebie email is opened. Now you have a marketing funnel! 

8. Test Mobile Video Website 

Once you’ve finished setting up your video website, test it out on different types of devices. Employ friends and family if necessary to get a variety of perspectives.

At a minimum, view your video website on a smartphone and tablet. 

Step into the mindset of someone accessing your website for the first time. Navigate through categories, play a video, and visit pages.

Take note of any changes you want to make as you explore, then update and test your video website again.

Note: All video website themes on the SproutVideo platform are responsive and mobile-friendly.

9. Add a Custom Domain

This step is optional. Your hosted video website account will include a domain name associated with the video host.

However, most businesses and organizations prefer to use a custom domain name from their website hosting provider. For detailed information on how to do this, read our help article. 

10. Get Feedback & Launch!

The last step before launch is one of the most important. Get feedback on your video website before launch. The best feedback you can receive is from those who will use the video website.

Ask your audience or employees to be beta testers. Create a Google Form or other survey and get anonymous feedback on the design, navigation, security, and content.

Consider offering a gift card or other reward for completing the survey. This will provide more high-quality feedback.

Once you’ve considered all perspectives and made any changes, you’re ready to share. Debut your video website and celebrate its launch!

How to Monetize Your Video Website

Sell access to your video website from anywhere. This step can be implemented anytime during setup or after launch. 

First, determine where you will sell access. This could be a website or landing page, social media, an email campaign, or a combination of these. Anywhere you can share a link or embed a button, you can sell access to your video website. 

You will also need login protection through the video hosting platform you chose for your video website. When someone purchases your video, you can automatically send them an email that includes a link to the video and their login information. 

Login-protected videos don’t appear on your video website if someone isn’t logged in. You can set viewer logins to expire after a certain period of time or number of uses. You also have the ability to allow downloads of the video (this is disabled by default).

Additionally, we recommend allowing viewers to manage their own password, which is automatically enabled. This reduces support overhead, as users can change their own passwords should they forget.

For complete setup instructions, read our help article on video website monetization.

Whether for internal communication or as a marketing tool in your business, a video website makes it easy to create the best possible experience for viewers while staying on budget. If you have questions about how to set up a video website, we are happy to help!

The post How to Create a Video Website in 10 Easy Steps appeared first on SproutVideo.

When employees and executives were asked, “What’s the main cause for workplace failures?” 86% said it was a lack of effective collaboration and communication. 

In fact, poor business communication cost corporations (of the 400 surveyed) an average of $62.4 million a year each. Meanwhile, companies with highly effective communication strategies produced 47% higher returns for investors over a five-year period. 

Corporate communications isn’t just authentically marketing your brand or ensuring executives communicate with consideration for public relations (though your strategy will do these things). 

A well-executed strategy will keep a business functioning optimally and provide a plan for how to effectively communicate when a crisis arises. 

We’ll discuss more on why every business needs a communication plan and the plethora of benefits it produces, as well as how to create your business’ communications strategy. 

What is a Corporate Communications Strategy?

A corporate communications strategy is a structured plan to effectively and consistently communicate, both internally (across departments, between executives and employees, with investors) and externally (to customers and the public).

There is no single strategy that works universally across companies. A business should structure its own communications plan to address the unique communication needs of that company. We will discuss how to identify and address these needs below. 

What a Business Risks Without a Communication Strategy

Only 23% of executives feel that employee goals are efficiently aligned with corporate purpose. Simultaneously, 31% of American companies (21% worldwide) admit to not having any formal plan for internal communication. 

Not having a plan at all (think Elon Musk on Twitter) leaves a lot of room for public perception and investor opinion to fluctuate wildly, with no nexus of control from the company itself. 

Research has shown that internal communication has a direct impact on customer perception. 

Companies generally understand the importance of external communications (i.e. marketing) yet tend to undervalue the benefits — to both employees and the success of the organization — of an effective internal communications strategy. 

Additionally, there is always a possibility that internal information will end up being shared externally. Therefore, it is generally wise to assume that all internal communications will eventually be distributed externally. This alone can help protect the company from a lot of potential communication missteps. Ultimately, transparency is the strongest approach. 

Benefits of a Communications Strategy

A well-executed communications strategy has the power to improve a workforce’s quality of life while adding to the corporation’s bottom line. 

We’ve discussed many benefits with regard to higher investment returns, greater nexus of control, and increased ability to function optimally. 

Here’s a list of the various other benefits companies receive through implementing strong communication strategies:

• Employees who work for companies with effective communication plans are 3.5 times more likely to outperform their counterparts.
• Businesses with effective communication have 4.5 times better employee retention than those without it. 
• 85% of employees are most motivated when management regularly updates them on company news.
• Research shows that 70% of corporate errors are due to poor communication.
• Employee engagement has a direct impact on increasing a company’s bottom line.

5 Steps to Develop a Corporate Communications Strategy

1. Identify Stakeholders and Audience

The first step to creating your communications strategy is determining with whom your business needs to communicate. 

Internally, this might include C-suite executives, employees, and investors. Externally this might include the general public, as well as customers. 

You might also consider how to effectively communicate with suppliers, manufacturers, or any other outside organizations that are essential to your business. 

This step is essential to creating well-defined goals that tackle all aspects of corporate communications. 

2. Gather Feedback from Employees & Customers

Employee feedback is even more important (and challenging) to acquire in the age of work-from-home and hybrid schedules. 

Before developing your communications plan, gather anonymous feedback from employees with regard to internal communication and their vision for the company. This in-depth survey should be conducted in a way that allows employees to feel comfortable sharing their sincere thoughts and opinions. 

A major part of a successful communications strategy is creating an environment of open communication, meaning employees feel empowered to share their ideas and feel secure sharing criticism that could improve their job and the company.

Externally, it’s also important to solicit feedback from customers with a survey. In exchange for their thorough and honest feedback, consider offering an incentive, such as a discount or free month of service. 

This survey should ask customers about their experience receiving communications from your company, which might include what mediums they prefer, the frequency of messaging, the style of communication, what feelings the company’s marketing elicits, why they were persuaded to buy, and more.

3. Create Timely Communication Goals

Executives should outline and compare their future visions of the company. Once each executive has clearly outlined their priorities, the C-suite can align on those priorities and discuss the best method for communicating that vision to the various departments.

Depending on the division of responsibility, this might include collaboration with department teams to evaluate each person’s role and how it fits into the overall vision. This should also include assessing what communications are working well and what needs improvement. 

From this collaboration, management should agree upon a set of communication goals for the year with clearly outlined key metrics to measure progress as the plan is implemented. 

Keep in mind that your goals will need to consider various aspects of the business, including employee satisfaction, brand reach and conversions, investor expectations, potential crisis situations, and more. 

Example of a Corporate Communications Goal

The following goal is one example of how to create a communication goal with metrics that will measure progress and actionable steps for success.

Goal: Improve employee satisfaction and engagement

Metrics for Review:

• Employee retention rates
• Amount of vacation time taken (ensure employees feel comfortable taking time)
• Employee & manager survey responses
• Open rates & watch-times for company-wide communications

Actionable Steps:

• Send out anonymous surveys to employees at beginning and end of year
• Survey managers to better understand challenges and needs
• Host non-work events that build team collaboration and a sense of community
• Executives: model a work-life balance and verbally encourage regular time-off
• Company-sponsored workshop on effective, non-violent communication
• Executives share company updates and successes with personable videos

Create actionable steps with key metrics to evaluate progress. Determine when to evaluate progress and set smaller goals with easy wins to encourage plan adoption. 

Keep in mind that some goals are progressive in nature, such as the one used in the example above. There is no clear end point at which this goal is achieved. Instead, the company should create an information baseline and work to improve upon it regularly. Keep diligent notes of this progress to make it easier to create new communication goals each year.

4. Choose the Business’ Communication Tools

How you communicate to employees and customers can have a big impact on their perception of that communication. For example, employees and customers alike have been shown to retain 95% of the information from a video, compared to 10% when reading text. 

Companies can utilize this information to increase employee engagement with internal communications. In fact, productivity increases up to 25% when companies use social technologies to improve communication and collaboration.

There are a lot of various tools available, and it can be easy to undervalue the time spent finding the best one for your business. 

We’ve tried to expedite this process with our list of the best tools for internal business communication (below). These tools have a massive effect on how well teams are able to collaborate, how productive they can be, and how it feels to interact with the company, or work for it. 

Regardless of what tools you choose to employ, centering humanness will always lead to a more positive perception than the cold-feeling neutrality of technological automation.

5. Delegate Communication Responsibilities

Once an organization has clearly defined its communication goals and the actions it will take to further progress, it’s time to decide who will execute and maintain each aspect of the communication plan. 

Generally, this will be a natural extension of the departments that already manage that part of the business. For example: Marketing will write and publish press releases, while Human Resources sends out employee surveys.

However, there may also be situations in which multiple departments need to collaborate on how to execute the plan. 

When delegating communication responsibilities, collaborate to create clear expectations and realistic timelines. 

An effective communications plan will improve the way employees feel at work. Therefore, it’s important the strategy truly supports employees, rather than simply adding more to their to-do list. The same is true with external communication; the goal is to add value through connection.

Bonus: Create a Plan for Crisis Situations

While you can’t plan for everything, it’s wise to consider a few major potential crisis situations. 

The specifics of these crises depend on your company’s industry. However, at minimum, your plan should include both internal (i.e. data leak) and external (ie. natural disaster) challenges, and outline how to address them both internally to employees and stakeholders, and externally to the public. The crisis communication plan should include, at minimum: 

• How the company will respond
• The channels of approval communications should move through
• A crisis response timeline
• What departments will need to pivot in the event of a crisis
• Funds for allocation or donation in the event of a crisis

The more detailed a crisis communications strategy, the more prepared a company will be when one actually happens. By considering the various things that could go wrong, a company can plan for how to handle challenging situations and prepare accordingly. 

The Best Tools For Internal Business Communication

There are different types of technologies that an organization might use for effective communication and a plethora of softwares available in each category. The best internal communication tools are those that align with the needs of your business.

Social Technologies

Social technologies are the social media platforms of internal communication. These tools allow the members of an organization to communicate instantaneously. They are the most used of all the tools on our list as well. They allow teams to collaborate remotely and effectively, but they also help people feel connected to their team throughout the day. 

• Slack
• Discord (free)
• Workplace from Meta
• Flock
• Microsoft Teams

Productivity & Task Organization 

These are the tools organizations use to plan and assign projects, keep track of progress, and share relevant information and updates. Often, the effectiveness of these tools depends on how well they are customized to the organization’s needs. 

• Monday
• Asana
• Trello
• ClickUp
• Wrike

Video Meetings 

Virtual team meetings have become commonplace for companies around the world. While Zoom is the most well-known video chat software, there are many different tools that offer this feature, including some we’ve already mentioned (Slack, Discord, etc). 

• Google Meet
• Zoom
• Skype
• Jitsi Meet (Free)
• GoTo Meeting

Onboarding & Company Culture 

This miscellaneous category includes any softwares your company might use to create and maintain company culture. 

Onboarding new hires, for example, is an important part of establishing company culture. This information serves as an introduction to your business, informing employees about the organization they’re joining. Companies may use Google Docs for these purposes; however, Notion has become a common tool as well. 

For consistent communication with current employees, consider sending internal newsletters with videos. Tools like Constant Contact allow you to send private employee newsletters, while SproutVideo keeps your internal videos secure. 

• Notion (onboarding & culture docs)
• Confluence (onboarding & culture docs)
• SproutVideo (internal videos)
• Staffbase (internal newsletter)
• Constant Contact (internal newsletter)

Think Outside the (Software Tool) Box

Don’t be afraid to get creative and try something new. There are a lot of ways to increase team collaboration. Consider the ways you might strengthen relationships between employees. Some random and fun ideas include:

• Host a virtual scavenger hunt that requires people to work together.
• Play a collaborative video game that’s freely available, such as Among Us.
• Host an internal podcast and invite employees to speak on the work they are doing.
• Cater a long-distance company picnic with DoorDash. 

These ideas assume that at least some of your organization works remotely. Local and hybrid teams can also benefit from in-person events held during company time.

Corporate Communication Wins & Failures (Examples)

While no two corporate communications strategies are the same, there is a lot to learn from observing how big companies have handled missteps and scandals in the past. 

Whether it was an honest mistake or a full-blown coverup, we’ll look at some of the biggest corporate communication failures, as well as some of the smartest communication strategies that corporations have used to bolster their public image and improve employee satisfaction.  

Top Corporate Communication Fails 

Volkswagen Emissions Scandal

One corporate failure that had a lasting impact on public perception is the 2016 VW scandal. Not only did the company attempt to thwart regulators on clean air regulations, it went to great lengths to cover it up — and did so successfully for at least a decade. 

The scandal cost the company $15 billion in settlement claims. 

But one might argue that the true cost for the corporation is a loss of public trust. The way a company chooses to disclose (or actively hide) a difficult truth often affects the public’s perception more than the truth itself. It begs the question, “What else are they hiding?”

Pepsi’s Commercial with Kendall Jenner

In 2017, Pepsi shared its tone-deaf advertisement that featured Kendall Jenner as a protester, solving police brutality by presenting a can of soda to officers. 

Public outcry was swift. Pepsi took the ad down. But the damage was done.

While the ad left people wondering how a company could have created such an obviously terrible ad, it became clear that Pepsi failed to both conduct market research and listen to (or center) the voices of activists working to tackle the problem. 

Produced in-house, the Pepsi commercial highlighted the importance of creating a corporate communications strategy (and environment) that supports the input and leadership of people of color, as well as other marginalized groups. 

Better.com’s Unfortunate Zoom Meeting 

A month before Christmas in 2021, the mortgage company, Better.com laid off 900 employees in a Zoom meeting. After rambling about his “not great news,” the CEO, Vishal Garg blankly stated, “If you’re on this call, you are part of the unlucky group that is being laid off.” 

The story and video of the meeting was quickly picked up by both journalism and gossip websites. Garg’s tone was reported as being, “unapologetic,” with his early statements showcasing a man more concerned about not crying, rather than how it would affect the 900 people on the call. 

He later accused those employees of stealing from the company by being unproductive and held an additional Zoom meeting to warn the remaining employees that their productivity was being watched. The company responded by putting Garg on a hiatus from his CEO position, to which he returned at the end of January in 2022. 

This company’s communication scandal is such a trainwreck that it’s hard to evaluate what could have been done differently, since the answer is everything.

McDonald’s Szechuan Sauce Debacle

It all started with an episode of Rick & Morty. One of the main characters, Rick just wants a taste of the McDonald’s Szechuan Sauce that was released during theater promotions for Mulan in 1998 (which is arguably problematic on its own).

This Rick & Morty episode brought back nostalgic desires for fans of the show, and the hype eventually led McDonald’s to bring the sauce back for a limited time. 

However, the company massively underestimated fan response. With additional supply chain issues adding to the disaster, this winning promotion led to a lot of irritated customers — with the sauce skyrocketing to ridiculous amounts ($1000 for one sauce) on the secondary market. 

The company has released the sauce twice since, but it wasn’t able to take advantage of the potential benefits created by that initial hype. This is a great example of poor communication between a company and its suppliers, as well as the company and its customers. McDonalds failed to recognize the immensity of a fanbase and plan accordingly. 

Winning Communication Strategies

GE’s Interview with LinkedIn 

In 2016, General Electric recognized it needed to modernize their culture and corporate communications strategy. To communicate this internal shift to the public, Jeff Immelt (CEO of GE) sat down for a video interview with the Senior Editor of Linkedin. 

Why Linkedin and not a major news publication?

GE knew the audience they wanted to reach would be on LinkedIn. By strategically using social media to share this external communication, GE was able to share its message with existing employees and prospective recruits — all the while building a reputation of transparency.

IHOP’s Name Change  

In 2018, IHOP announced it would be changing its name to IHOb. The announcement was a promotional tactic to create buzz for the chain’s burger menu. 

But everyone lost their mind over it. Customers were in an uproar, fully believing that the chain was actually planning to change their name. 

Instead of backtracking or explaining the joke, IHOP leaned into the chaos of it all with an official IHOb twitter account dedicated to promoting the burgers. 

Soon, everyone was jumping on the bandwagon, with celebrities making jokes and other companies creating funny jabs, such as Wendy’s tweet, “Not really afraid of burgers from a place that decided pancakes are too hard.”

The marketing campaign was a massive success. The company sold four times as many burgers as it previously had, with same-store sales growing 1.2 percent in the third quarter alone. At the height of the hoopla, IHOP sold 500,000 burgers a week. 

While this marketing strategy was a risk, it also created a lot of laughter. Ultimately, the brand was able to effectively promote their burgers with a campaign that feels light-hearted and silly.

Netflix Launches in France

Netflix was weary of launching in France in 2014. The audience was skeptical and the corporation would need to be highly relevant. Recognizing the risk, Netflix hired an advertising company to thoroughly dive into the French mindset.

The company launched a GIF-based campaign across advertising screens in the country with highly contextualized ads. For example: if it was raining, the advertisement would feature a character from a Netflix movie or TV show in the rain. 

The company tripled its brand awareness in three months, and Netflix was able to successfully enter the country’s market. 

This communications strategy, in particular, highlights the importance of thorough research. The advertising agency did the research necessary to understand the challenges Netflix faced when appealing to the French. This led to the campaign being both effective and successful.

Steve Jobs’ Internal Launch of ‘Think Different’ 

When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997, he made a point to communicate both with the customers and the departments to determine what was working and what projects deserved their focus. The result was his decision to cut 70% of the company’s product line.

After two months, Steve Jobs held an internal company meeting where he laid out his vision for the future of the company. In it, he describes the engineers reactions, 

“I came out of the meeting with people that had just gotten their projects canceled. And they were three feet off the ground with excitement, because they finally understood where in the heck we were going. And they were really excited about the strategy.” 

This single statement showcases how internal communication that values and involves the input of its team creates high-powered companies with naturally motivated employees who feel purposeful. He goes on to discuss his approach to marketing that Apple is still known for today.

The post The Complete Guide to Building a Corporate Communications Strategy appeared first on SproutVideo.

Whether it’s a tear-jerker or a fall-off-the-sofa funny advertisement, there’s something wonderfully evocative about festive ads. We’ll look at the very best holiday marketing videos throughout time, consider why they went viral or became a classic, and discuss tips that you can use to create a great holiday marketing strategy. Prepare your tear ducts. 

Top Holiday Marketing Videos of All Time

10. Christmas Advert (Apple, 2019)

For many people, the holiday season is a reminder of family members who have passed on, underlining the joyous festivities with grief. In this video, we follow a family getting together for Christmas. It’s soon revealed that this is the first year since Nana died. Feeling their grandfather’s sadness, the children have a creative idea for his holiday gift. 

Why It Works: Apple is great at creating holiday videos with a lot of product placement that (barely) manages to not feel pushy. We are accustomed to Apple products speckling the background of our lives, and Apple uses this to their advantage. Therefore, it’s easy to forget this is an advertisement and become engrossed in the family’s story, one that is widely relatable. Consider how you might position your products in the greater context of your holiday marketing video without directly promoting it. 

9. Crazy Target Lady (Target, 2010)

In 2010, Target hired comedian Maria Bamford and released a whole series of short commercials promoting its two-day Black Friday sale. These videos were inescapable for anyone who had cable that year, and you’ll likely remember at least one of the silly sketches. 

This video highlights the way advertising has shifted over the years as well. It’s significantly younger than the classic commercials on our list that rely heavily on nostalgia, and much older than the story-based, viral videos we’ve become accustomed to brands releasing. Yet, it’s just as effective (especially in 2010).

Why It Works: Much of the success of the video is down to the character played by comedian Maria Bamford. She’s a ‘love her or loathe her’ character. But whatever your opinion, she’s certainly memorable! Target featured Bamford in more than ten holiday commercials; meaning, viewers knew it was a Target ad as soon as they saw her. From this we can conclude that using a character who appears in each of your videos is an effective way to immediately connect viewers to your brand.

8. Kindness, The Greatest Gift (Amazon, 2021)

This tear-jerker acknowledges the rise of anxiety, particularly in young adults, as a result of the pandemic. We follow a student as she navigates life in a big city alone…until a bond with a neighbor begins to take root, and then is strengthened by an act of kindness.

Why It Works: Few companies have chosen to address the collective grief the world is still grappling with from the pandemic. This ad doesn’t shy away from that. Instead, it focuses on the immense feelings of isolation that were overwhelmingly present as we entered the 2021 holiday season. As a result, there is something here for everyone. 

The takeaway? Involving current events in your story that are broadly relatable is one way to create a meaningful connection with viewers. Keep in mind that current events tend to have a certain weight behind them, so approach this type of video carefully and sincerely. 

7. Northern Lights (Coca Cola, 1993)

One of the sure signs that the festive season is upon us is the annual Coca-Cola holiday video. But how on earth do you choose the best one? Choosing our favorite resulted in a lot of debate in the office! In the end, the 1993 Northern Lights video won, thanks to the legacy that it inspired — though it’s fair to question what that legacy will ultimately be.

The mark of a truly innovative video is one that’s not just an immediate hit but has a lasting impact on the videos that follow it. In fact, this groundbreaking commercial influenced the technology that was used in subsequent commercials and movies.

Why It Works: The standout message is not that cute animals are popular with viewers (which is true!), but that taking a risk can pay off. This can involve using exciting new technology that you might not be familiar with, or sharing a bold message that’s a little different to everything else out there. The holiday season is the perfect time to get creative. 

6. Reindeer Games (Microsoft, 2018)

As the video opens, we see a boy running down the street calling to every child on the block, “He’s gonna do it!” A crowd of children gather and join him as the kids race down the street. They burst through a front door to cheer on their friend, Owen, who is using an Adaptive Controller to win the video game. They all do a celebratory dance when he does. 

Why It Works: The Adaptive Controller allows people with various disabilities to enjoy the full gaming experience. This is one of the few ads we’ve included that promotes a specific product and it does so brilliantly. The product is inclusive, created specifically for gamers with disabilities. The entire neighborhood of children is excited to see their friend win, and the sense of belonging is felt from start to finish. Promoting your values as a company is one of the strongest ways to align with those who will appreciate what you have to offer.

5. Share Your Gifts (Apple, 2018)

With its annual holiday ads, it may not come as a surprise to see two Apple videos on our list. The two ads could not be more different, however. In ‘Share Your Gifts’ we follow Sophie — an incredibly creative girl who enjoys writing and hanging out with her dog. Throughout the video (full version above), we see her struggle to share her creativity with others. That is until her dog opens the window and lets her work fly into the bustling town square. 

Why It Works: A lot of love was put into this video and it shows. The production (see the behind the scenes video), music, and combination of real sets with animation tell a wordless story that, once again, showcases the main character using Apple products while centering her journey. 

It leaves the viewer feeling inspired and encouraged, making this ad feel like a message meant for the viewer that goes beyond the products being sold. This video, ultimately, showcases a company indirectly promoting the use of their products by encouraging their users, which can be applied to various different brands across industries.

4. “They Do Exist!” (M&M’s, 1996)

I have no doubt you’ve seen this M&M’s holiday commercial once upon a time. As the red and yellow M&Ms sneak into the classically Christmas decorated living room, they startle Santa who is laying out presents. Both declare that the other does exist, then Santa faints. 

In this video, the use of symbolism associated with the season creates a decidedly holiday atmosphere, letting the viewer immediately know this is a Christmas commercial. If you want to create a marketing video that evokes an immediate response in this way, be sure to use imagery the audience expects — which can vary greatly depending on the community or culture and its traditions.

Why It Works: There are lots of festive videos that tap into nostalgia. But, this classic ad stands out because it injects fun into the message. Moreover, the humorous spot is consistent with the brand. Which is especially impressive because humor is difficult. It can so easily fall flat, confuse, or even offend. When using humor, make sure everyone else gets the joke too. 

3. Christmas Miracle: Uniting Through Traditions (WestJet, 2019)

This unique holiday ad went viral in 2019. In the ad, WestJet surprises three different groups of people with unexpected visits from loved ones who live far away. As a Canadian airline, the theme of travel is easily on-brand while revolving the story around the joy of reunion. 

Why It Works: The internet loves a positive social experiment and this fits the bill perfectly. Travel is a core component of the video, yet it focuses on why we generally travel during the holidays: to visit those we love. If your team is feeling stuck on how to craft a marketing story, consider how your brand can make someone else’s holiday brighter.

2. Let It Snow (Campbell’s Soup, 1994)

This classic holiday commercial is one you may remember seeing on TV in the 1990s and 2000s. A snowman outside in the cold goes in for soup. At the table, the snowman begins to eat and melt, revealing a young boy. The narrator chimes in, “nothing melts away the cold like a delicious bowl of hot Campbell’s soup.” 

Why It Works: The brand solved the question of how to promote an ‘everyday’ product and make it appealing during a time when many people allow themselves a degree of excess. The marketing team behind the video looked at the properties of their product —  the comforting, warming attributes of soup — and worked out how these could fit in with the season and the message they wanted to share (eat our soup, it’s tasty!). 

There’s a place for every product over the festive period, and it doesn’t have to be costly or ostentatious either. A successful video comes from highlighting what makes a product special, important, and sincere. 

1. The Beginner (John Lewis & Partners, 2022)

The most recent holiday marketing video to go viral is also our favorite on the list. It’s one of the rare videos that succeeds at selling a brand without outwardly selling any products. The video opens with a couple clearly excited and preparing for something. The husband is slowly (emphasis on slowly) but surely learning how to skateboard. The ending is a heart-warming surprise, promoting a specific cause. 

Created by John Lewis & Partners, the UK brand sells everything from clothing and homegoods to sports gear and insurance. However, the company releases a story-based video ad every holiday season, with fans who now await the new video each year. Another viral hit from John Lewis & Partners features Elton John and moves chronologically backwards through his life, to the day he received a piano as a Christmas present when he was child. 

Why It Works: With over 3.5 million views at the time of writing, this advertisement not only feels wonderful to watch, it created a lot of positive public perception of the brand. Instead of carefully crafting a video to remind viewers to buy their products, the company chose to uplift a cause and create indirect buzz around their brand. As a holiday video marketing strategy, this approach embraces the parts of the holiday season that can’t be bought…and will likely sell a whole lot of products in doing so. 

How to Create a Great Holiday Marketing Video

We’ve featured some of the most memorable and viral holiday marketing advertisements. But a phenomenal marketing video doesn’t need to be from a big brand or have a large budget to be impactful. These tips will help you craft a video marketing strategy for the holiday season that connects with your audience.

Key tip: Don’t compare your commercial to corporations. Instead, focus on showcasing the important qualities of your products and the values of your brand. 

1. Center the Viewer’s Experience

Whether the commercial was funny, nostalgic, or heart-warming, all of the videos we featured centered the viewer’s experience. In other words, none of the videos directly sell a product. Some create a certain atmosphere, others rely on humor we can all appreciate, and many modern commercials touch on universal themes that are widely relatable and emotional. 

Whatever approach your holiday video takes, remember who it’s for and what it intends to convey. Unlike traditional advertising that showcases the reasons a customer should buy a product, holiday marketing is about creating an emotional connection. Even when the theme is sad, holiday ads are generally uplifting or jubilant as they conclude.

2. Include a Call-to-Action

As I’m sure you noticed, this list features mega brands with large marketing budgets. Aside from the Target ad (which had a very clear call-to-action), most of the videos focus on creating brand awareness, reminding customers of their existence during the holiday season. For medium and small businesses, create specific goals for your marketing video and ensure it aligns with the desired results. 

The Microsoft video, for example, promoted a niche product. But moreover, it buoyed public perception of the brand during a season that is focused on goodwill and kindness. The brand’s goal was likely not to sell a million Adaptive Controllers; rather to spread awareness of the product and convince consumers that Microsoft is a good company to buy from. 

For holiday marketing videos in particular, your call-to-action does not need to be direct.  For example, the Target ad directly promoted a 2-day sale, while the Apple commercial ended with, “share your gifts.” This is a very generally uplifting statement that implies you would create and share those talents with Apple products. 

3. Tell the Story of Why

Whether you want to pull on people’s heartstrings, make them laugh out loud, or sink into the fun of nostalgia, use your product or brand’s ‘why’ to determine what kind of story you should tell. For example, in the videos we featured above, every single ad focuses on why their existence matters to the viewer in some way: 

• The Coca-Cola ad showcases the comradery of witnessing a beautiful view with friends and family (and who doesn’t want a refreshing drink for the occasion). 
• The Apple ads promote the ways that people use technology and how that impacts their life and those around them.
• Even the series of Target ads with Maria Bamford pokes relatable fun at holiday sales while promoting one (at a store that will make your holiday shopping easier, of course)!

Consider your values as a brand, who your products matter to, and why your company exists. There’s a relatable story there that will warm hearts or make others giggle. 

If you’re inspired by these holiday marketing videos, there’s no time like the present to get started. Even if you’re working by yourself, you can achieve a professional result for your holiday video. For more helpful information, check out How to Produce High-Quality Videos on Your Own — perfect for solopreneurs and companies with a small team — and Create an Entertaining Holiday Video in Less Than a Week.

The post 10 Best Holiday Marketing Videos (and Why They Went Viral) appeared first on SproutVideo.

Video provides online users with an in-person experience. Without the ability to pick an item up, customers seek other ways to build a connection with the product they’re considering buying. From ad campaigns and landing pages, to social media and product pages, 86% of companies use video marketing to promote their brand across mediums. Here’s how to gain these benefits for your e-commerce business. 

Benefits of Video Marketing for E-Commerce Businesses

Video has a unique ability to engender trust and connection, as well as consistently deliver positive ROI for 87% of businesses — up from 33% in 2016. Users now expect multimedia content from large and small businesses alike. When an e-commerce brand demonstrates the use, details, or features of a product in a video, the business immediately feels modern, reliable, and sincere. Here are seven more benefits of video for e-commerce:

1. Build Connection with Storytelling

The vast majority of purchases are emotional. Even when we need to buy an item, how we decide what item to buy, and from which brand, is often influenced by our own perspective and interests. Therefore, one of the most powerful ways to connect with your target audience is through storytelling — and it doesn’t require a plot or even dialogue. 

Take this pearl-beaded dress, the Maya, for example. The static image is stunning: it highlights the quality of the materials, the sheerness of the sleeves, and detailed embellishments. The video, however, elicits its elegance. The viewer is able to imagine themself feeling like a million dollars as they walk into the event wearing the sparkliest number in the building. 

The online buying experience is one we can all relate to; a product image inspires interest and creates awareness. But a product video provides immersion, highlights why a product exists, and has the ability to generate emotion within the viewer.

2. Increase Search Engine Visibility and Traffic

Videos encourage website visitors to explore. This is especially significant when you consider that the average user spends 88% more time on a webpage with video. 

Capturing visitors’ attention is beneficial to generating leads and conversions. However, it also signals to search engines that users are receiving the information they were looking for, thereby improving your website’s overall authority and ranking. 

In general, videos strengthen a website’s SEO strategy; pages with rich content (such as videos and images) rank more easily with search engines. The video metadata increases keyword density, further verifying to Google that the webpage has high relevance to the search query. In fact, a website using video is 53 times more likely to rank on the first page of Google. 

3. Improve Lead Generation Across Channels and Devices

Video has the power to attract customers at every stage of the buying journey. Over half of social media users engage with a brand after viewing a video on Instagram, Twitter, and similar platforms. More important still, 75% of engagement with an e-commerce brand happens on mobile devices. Videos are easy to watch and passively understand. To put it simply, video marketing is a lead generation powerhouse.

4. Deliver A Satisfying User Experience 

E-commerce brands consistently use different tools and applications to improve the buying experience and encourage larger sales. For online retailers, it’s especially important that users are able to gather a complete picture of what they’re buying. 

Magic Zoom Plus, for example, is a powerful product image and video preview module for e-commerce sites. Not only does it support zoom-on-hover and 360-view options, users can also quickly and easily add videos to their product image galleries when it’s integrated with SproutVideo. This provides buyers with everything they need to investigate the quality and see every detail of the products you’re selling. 

With the addition of video, a business is able to create a complete online retail experience, setting the customer up for a successful purchase and overall satisfaction with the product. 

5. Produce Higher Sales Conversions

Landing pages that include video increase conversions up to 86%. Therefore, video alone has immense potential to connect with the interests of your audience, lending to increased sales. 

6. Build Trust and Brand Authority 

50% of online consumers will search for a product video before making an online purchase. There’s no reason to rely on online reviewers to set the tone for how your products are featured. 

Companies continuously find new ways to stand out from the noise. It’s no longer uncommon for a particularly creative advertisement to go viral, pushing a small brand into the spotlight. 

High-quality videos are easier and more cost effective to produce than ever before. But they still elevate brands and encourage a sense of familiarity and loyalty with consumers. 

Video allows a company to showcase professionalism and transparency while stoking the consumer’s interest and desire in the purchase. The more a brand exudes authority, the less visitors will feel the need to seek out resources to affirm its reputation.

7. Meet Expectations and Increase Retention

Implementing video decreases product support claims for nearly half of businesses. In other words, video helps customers use products without additional help and increases their satisfaction with the items they receive. Businesses have also credited video with improving their customer return rate, with some able to produce rates three times the industry standard. 

Regardless of the message, marketers turn to video to reach wide audiences and engage target consumers. For e-commerce brands in particular, video marketing has the ability to garner trust and inspire a sense of belonging, generating the loyal connection all brands aspire to create.

Check out our other articles about video marketing and subscribe to our blog to have helpful content delivered directly to your inbox.

The post 7 Powerful Benefits of Video Marketing for E-Commerce appeared first on SproutVideo.