I know you’ve heard it, “Video is the next big thing” and “Video converts”… Marketers hear this all day long, and it’s true. Videos are a great way to reach your audience and resonate on a personal level. In our current world, we are so removed from actual interactions day-to-day. However, video allows for a personal experience and interaction from the comfort of your desktop. In order to start doing this right now, I did a little test on how to kickstart a video campaign myself, resulting in this blog.
As an association professional reading this blog, you are likely providing courses or certification programs for your members. So the question holds, how can associations use video in their efforts to promote educational products? And, most importantly, how can they do this right now?
The problem with video as a marketing tool is that it puts us on the spot and makes us vulnerable. Video can be a scary thing, especially if you’re the one in it. This leads to the mentality that you need to hire an agency, and that the costs will be too high to actually implement. When in reality, you and I can produce and share videos with a few simple tools that we likely already have access to.
Basic Tools Needed for Video Creation
- Camera (phone or webcam)
- Audio Recording/Microphone (phone or webcam)
- Well lit space (office, conference room)
Simplest Process for Quick and Easy Videos
Once you have the tools above, follow the below process to kickstart your first video campaign.
Step 1: Follow marketing best practices
- Decide on the message you are trying to communicate
- What are you trying to accomplish?
- Know your audience
- Who are you speaking to?
- Where are they in the buying cycle? Member? Non-Member?
- How engaged are they?
- # courses already taken?
- Know your goals to measure ROI
- # of course sales?
- # of course enrollments
Step 2: Write a script
- Outline your content
- Read it out loud and add your own personality
Step 3: Keep it short
Wistia recommends videos between 2-3 minutes long to hold attention. Keep in mind your audience (marketing best practice #2) and where they are in the buying cycle. If they are researching learning materials for a certification, they have to make a decision on where to spend their money and will be willing to watch a longer video. In contrast, if your audience is at the top of the funnel, their attention span may not last more than three minutes.
Step 4: Include a call to action
It’s important to keep your call to action in mind throughout this process. Knowing what you want to accomplish will help you keep the video succinct and hold your audience’s attention. Assuming you will be promoting this video via your social channels, a call to action is important for capturing your viewers and providing them with a next step.
Step 5: Promotion Strategy
Promote your video just as you would a blog post. Use your social channels, newsletter, and email marketing. Try to treat it like any other content piece. That way, you can accurately compare how your video performed with your audience.
One of the most important things to remember is that you can not accomplish everything with one video. Be specific in the items above, know your goals with this content piece and stay on track. Often times, marketers try to do too much and become overwhelmed with the project. The hardest part is to get started, so I encourage you to take a blog post you’ve already written and start recording!
Connect with Amber on LinkedIn to discuss more ideas for marketing your eLearning courses!