Videos are one of the most powerful marketing tools at your disposal. They connect with viewers in a way words don’t. People watch videos on the fly as they commute to work, sit in a waiting room or wait in line. Researchers estimate that viewing one minute of video is equivalent to 1.8 million words.

Small businesses often feel uncertain about delving into the world of online videos. However, by 2021, 82 percent of online traffic will consist of video viewing. Now is the time to jump into video marketing.

Here are some quick video marketing solutions to start with:

1. Choose a Platform

There are many different options when it comes to delivering your online videos. About 96 percent of Americans 18 to 24 use YouTube, so it’s an obvious choice as a potential platform. It’s one of the largest social media sites in existence.

You could also simply stream video from your site, but unless your server is blazing fast and you have unlimited resources, you’re better off embedding a video you’ve uploaded to YouTube, Vimeo or another video streaming site. In addition to saving resources on your website server, you also gain reach to all those people on that particular social media video site.

Even a beginner can shoot a video on their phone and upload to YouTube or Facebook, so you’ll be able to figure out the ins and outs in a single day. Start by studying websites your competitors created. Take notes about what you love and what you hate so you can learn from their successes and their mistakes.

Rhett and Link host a show that is silly and funny, so it makes sense that they’d create some interesting videos for YouTube to draw viewers. They created a song that speaks to their target audience. Similar videos have gone viral. They created one called “T-Shirt Wars” that has nearly 19 million views. The videos are not high budget by any means, but they are entertaining.

2. Interview an Influencer

Is there an influencer in your niche that you’d love to connect with? Offer to interview them via video chat. Most influencers will share the link to the interview on their social media pages, which gives you access to their many followers.

However, make sure there is something in it for the influencer as well. If you want the person to agree to the interview in the first place, you have to make it worth their while. What type of promotion do you plan to do for the video?

Use a tool such as Call Recorder for Skype to record the video interview, even if the person lives miles away from you.

3. Use Pop-Out Videos

Do you want your videos to stand out and gain the focus of visitors? Utilize a pop-out feature so when the user clicks play, the video becomes larger and takes over at least some of the screen. A pop-out places the user’s undivided attention on the video and makes the process interactive for the user. This works well on smaller screens, too, because the video screen is larger and easier to view on a mobile device.

One recent study estimates around 78 percent of digital video viewers use their mobile phones to stream content. Pop-out videos are beneficial to mobile visitors, but also visually pleasing to desktop browsers.

Marco Specialty Steel does a good job integrating a pop-out video that highlights what the company does and its unique selling proposition (USP). The video is on YouTube and embedded on the website, so it streams as soon as you click on it.

4. Get Personal

Personalize your marketing to make it more effective, whether a video or any other type of communication. In one survey, 90 percent of respondents indicated they enjoyed a personalized experience, and 80 percent said it made them more likely to do business with a company.

How do you personalize a video when you don’t know who is watching it? The answer is that you do know who is most likely to watch it. Study your internal data, who visits your site and who views your other videos. Once you have a general picture of the type of person who interacts with your videos, you can create a user persona that represents your target audience.

If you create a personalized video that speaks to the consumer, you’ll gain loyal followers. Be authentic and stay true to the mission of your company.

5. Tell Your Story

You don’t have to come up with a fancy script and pay thousands of dollars to a videographer. Just focus on telling the story behind your brand and what you do. Show potential customers the process behind what you make or let them meet a few of your employees. Show off what is unique about your company. As humans, we crave stories, especially ones that tug at our emotions.

Baked releases videos that show some of its delicious creations, such as the screenshot of a triple-layer chocolate birthday cake crumb-coated with a buttercream frosting. It also released videos of seasonal favorites and featured topics such as a tour of a new store.

Results in a Day

It may take longer than a day to see results from your video marketing efforts, but start by creating a video. Each video you create will get a bit better than the last. Over time, you’ll learn the best way to market videos, how to speak to your audience and the best angles for the camera. The key is to get started and see the traffic on your website surge over time.

Author

Lexie Lu is a designer and writer. She loves researching trends in the web and graphic design industry. She writes weekly on Design Roast and can be followed on Twitter @lexieludesigner.