When it comes to video marketing, most companies leap into the field with no real strategy – they just throw money at any old clip they find on YouTube and call it a day. Of course, that often leads to a series of frustrating mishaps, from underwhelming views to completely blank screens. The truth is there’s a lot more that can be done with video than slapping together an underwhelming, often times dull, compilation of clips.
If you’re looking to score some video copywriting juice for your business, here’s what you should do:
Understand the Target Audience
The first thing you should do before you pitch for any video project is to understand who the target audience is. This is particularly essential if you’re working with a company that doesn’t have a clear idea of who their customers are – they’ll have you rewrite your entire strategy based on assumptions. For example, if you’re working on a pharmaceutical video for a company that sells vitamins, you might want to redefine your strategy from attracting people who are seeking health supplements to those who are suffering from chronic illnesses. The reason behind this change in strategy is that you don’t want to appeal to the wrong audience – you want the video to be effective no matter who watches it.
Set Realistic Goals
Another important thing to do before you begin your video copywriting journey is to set realistic goals. This entails figuring out how much money you can spend on video content in terms of advertising, royalties, or some combination thereof – it’s important to set aside a portion of your marketing budget for video content since people often times have a hard time believing it is worthwhile to invest in content when their budget is already tight. Once you have your budget figured out, it’s time to plot out your strategy – what content do you need to produce to hit your target audience with the right message?
Produce Short-Form Videos First
One of the best things about today’s video world is that you no longer have to settle for one-hour presentations – thanks to platforms like YouTube.
The fact is short-form videos perform much better than long ones when it comes to engaging an audience and getting them to take action. If your goal is to engage viewers and drive them to take a specific action – like purchasing a product or signing up for a service – then short-form videos are your best bet. They’re also easier to develop and can be more cost-effective.
Plan for Multiple Versions
It’s important to consider all the different platforms your video will appear on – from YouTube to digital marketing agencies’ web portfolios – as well as how each one factors into your overall video marketing strategy.
One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to video content, and that’s something you have to keep in mind when planning your strategy – not just for the one video you’re going to produce, but across the board. Sometimes your video will do better on one platform and at others it might need a different approach to grab attention.
Create a Solid Media Plan
Once you have your target audience and goals in mind, it’s time to create a media plan – a document that lists all the different platforms you’ll use to disseminate your video content. This plan should include everything from video content descriptions, to promo codes and special offers, to publication dates and any other relevant information. It’s important to keep in mind that as you plan, things will change – sometimes significantly – so be sure to re-evaluate this plan often.
Determine the Video’s Production Quality
Once you have your video content planned out, it’s time to consider production quality. The truth is not all videos need to be high-quality – short-form videos can look decent enough to not deter viewers, especially since the majority of videos today are either short-form or mid-form. Of course, this doesn’t mean you have to settle for subpar production values – there are ways to produce a high-quality video without spending a fortune.
Curate Content for International Fans
If you’re worried about attracting international viewers, make sure you distribute your content in a language fans around the world can understand. Of course, this doesn’t mean you need to settle for low-quality films – there are ways to produce a native-speaking quality film for a nominal cost.
Publish Patience
In the video world, speed is often equated to success – that is, the faster you can disseminate your content, the more you’ll be able to gain traction – but publishing speed alone doesn’t guarantee impact. That is, while some videos may only take 20 minutes to produce, it still may not be effective if you put the video online and there’s no opportunity for the viewer to take action.
Therefore, if you’re looking to score some video copywriting success, be sure to publish your videos as quickly as possible – but not so quickly that you neglect to properly research and plan out your content first.
Avoid Clichés
A major pitfall in anyone’s vocabulary is clichés – we all use them without realizing it and often times they work their way into our text even when we don’t mean to. For example, did you know that people often say “on the house” when they really mean “at no cost to you”? Or that some people call an umbrella “a raincoat” even when they’re not sure if it will actually rain?
If you’re writing brand copy for your video – whether you’re a celebrity chef hawking the wares of your restaurant or an entrepreneur showcasing your product – make sure you don’t fall into these clichés. Instead, look for phrases and words that are fresh and have not been overused by marketers to the point of meaning nothing. Of course, this doesn’t mean you need to come up with unique lingo or reinvent the English language – it just means you need to be aware of what’s trendy and what isn’t.
If you want to be sure your video is effective, forget about what’s trendy and use language that’s as close to the audience as possible – if not, you might as well write your blog post and save yourself the time and effort.
Consider Video as Part of Your Content Strategy
If you’re looking to take your video content strategy to the next level, create a cohesive plan involving content from across multiple platforms – like blogging and video.
The fact is when it comes to marketing, video can be a bit of a catch-all solution. More and more companies are discovering the value of video content and are using it as part of their overall multimedia strategy. If your company has never really considered video content to be important, it might be time to re-evaluate your strategy and come up with a plan to make the most of video.