Video marketing ideas to inspire everyone
We don’t have to tell you again. Video marketing has been changing the game with no sign of letting up. In fact, video ads have proven to be more effective than image ads, and video marketing stats continue to be increasingly impressive. Clearly, businesses can benefit from showcasing unique marketing videos in a number of different ways, thanks to the fact that videos are attention-grabbing, captivating, increase conversion rates, and so much more.
You want to give your business a boost and focus on implementing various types of marketing videos into your existing content marketing strategy. And we understand that (and highly encourage it) completely. That’s why we’re giving you tons of great video marketing ideas and inspiration. But before you can jump into video content creation, you need to ask yourself a couple of questions.
What makes a good marketing video?
A good marketing video is effective if it makes sure to:
- Resonate with the right audience
- Tell a story
- Answer a question
- Solve a problem
- Share something special with the viewer
- Educate the audience
- Include a call to action
Resonate with the right audience
First things first, you’ve got to know your audience. You know your business’s audience better than anyone – but who is the audience of your video? This can be specific, and vary according to each video you create. For example, if you want to make a video that attracts attendees to an event, and one that showcases a new product feature, then these two video audiences will be different.
Tell a story
Videos work so well because they captivate the viewer and take them on a journey. Your videos (even short videos) need to present a beginning, middle, and end that seamlessly move the viewer through the video clips without getting lost.
Answer a question
Take this opportunity to answer frequently asked questions, or touch on a pain point you’ve heard your customers communicate. Not only does it show you’re in touch with your customers, but it helps to reassure them that you are accessible and willing to address questions and concerns.
Solve a problem
Like addressing pain points and answering questions, providing a solution to a problem your audience may face shows you’re a step ahead and you care to help. It also works to build confidence in your product or service.
Share something special with the viewer
Do you have company news? A new product or feature? Maybe an important date to look forward to on the calendar? Let your audience know in your video. Making an announcement in a video builds suspense and excitement around the topic, and feels personal to viewers.
Educate the audience
Explaining something in a video, whether it’s a tutorial or demo, or simply providing some new information is a great way to connect to your audience and leave them feeling empowered.
Include a call to action
Your video won’t be complete without a compelling call to action, or CTA. Lead your audience to a product page or the app store by instructing them to ‘Buy Now,’ or remind them to attend an event or shop a sale.
Nearly any kind of marketing video can and should include the above points. Keep them in mind as you brainstorm topics, start to float ideas, and research the most effective kinds of marketing videos for your brand and audience. This brings us to our next point – planning.
How do you plan a marketing video?
Before the cameras start rolling, consider the following video marketing tips to help you plan a video that will perform well, satisfy your company needs, and be entertaining to your audience at the same time.
- Know your video goals
- Identify your audience
- Know your competition
- Choose the type of marketing video to create
- Storyboard your idea
- Grab the viewer’s attention in the introduction
Know your video goals
What exactly do you want to achieve with your video? It’s not enough to know you want to start utilizing marketing videos – each has to serve a purpose, both for you as a business owner, and for your audience as well.
Identify your audience
You can’t make a video without knowing who it’s for. Just like making sure your video resonates with your audience (in our above list), you need to identify your audience before you can give them what they want. If your video has a clear goal and target audience, it’s bound to be far more effective than if you touch on multiple goals and appeal to more than one group.
Know your competition
Use the brainstorming process to do a bit of research. What sort of videos are your competitors putting out? What popular topics are they covering? Take note of how they approach the video marketing process and see if you can recognize where they’re strong, and where they could use to improve. That’s where you can be a formidable rival.
Choose what type of marketing video to create
There are tons of different marketing videos and interesting angles to provide your audience with useful, unique information. From product videos, explainer videos, tutorial videos, customer testimonials, and more, it helps to choose one type per video you create. We’ll provide some examples of these video types below.
Storyboard your idea
This simply involves laying out each piece of your video to make it easier to organize. It helps save time, and is a great way to share your creative vision. You don’t have to be an advanced artist; you can write out what will happen in each shot, and provide your script where applicable. Everyone involved in your video creation process will have a clear understanding of what will happen in the video, and shooting/producing it will go more smoothly.
Grab the viewer’s attention in the intro
How many times have you started to watch a video and lost interest almost right away? It happens so often, but if when creating your video you get to the interesting bit right off the bat, you have a better chance of grabbing your viewer’s attention and holding it. This will help ensure they watch the whole way through, and follow that golden CTA at the end.
Video marketing examples
If you’re looking for more specific ideas for video marketing, we’ve got a great list that will help you get inspired and easily apply all of the above tips. Be sure to watch more advertising examples to help you begin brainstorming ideas for marketing videos of your own.
Video ads
Not to be confused with marketing videos, video ads are a type of marketing video that work to advertise something in the name of your brand, business, or product. There’s no real rules or limitations to the theme or tone of a video ad – you just want to make sure it gets the attention of the right audience, and leads them to take action in relation to whatever you are advertising.
Why it works: This Promo.com video ad tells the audience what they need to do for their business and how simple it is to do it. It showcases some of the product as a way to preview it before they use it. It’s colorful, visual, and memorable in under one minute.
Check out these video ad templates to get started making your own.
Bumper ads
Part of the video experience, bumper ads are short six second video ads that appear before the viewer’s chosen YouTube video.
Promo.com has a collection of great bumper ads already measured and clipped to size. See what you think of this one:
Social media videos
Every social media platform allows you the option to post a video that can be seen by your followers. Social posts are a great way to increase brand awareness, engagement, and promote sharing. Take advantage of these platforms as a way to really get your message and name out there. Post marketing videos to your company’s social pages and watch your followers get impressed. Use any of these social media video templates to get inspired:
Facebook video:
YouTube video:
Instagram video:
Instagram Stories video:
Announcements:
Using a video to announce something exciting or new is a great way to stand out and get attention from your audience or customer base. Instead of a press release or other wordy document, an announcement video can be easier to digest, and create buzz faster.
Samsung Galaxy S20:
https://youtu.be/x0Kv_QRWR-I
Why it works: This Samsung announcement is sleek and beautiful. But it also covers all of the new phone features that would otherwise be long and arduous when listed in text format. This video also makes it easy for the viewer to imagine holding and using the phone; the next step is making that purchase!
Apple iPhone 12 Pro:
https://youtu.be/65JrtwtTOdc
Why it works: In classic Apple form, this announcement gets viewers excited for their news and makes it oh so easy to digest.
Product demos or explainer videos:
Explainer videos help the audience understand and get a feel for a product, a certain method, or benefits of a product. Sometimes an audience doesn’t realize the true benefits of a product until they see it explained and displayed in front of them.
Headspace:
Why it works: Headspace provides a calm and happy video that explains just what the product does, as well as how it can improve and benefit your life as a user. The video showcases examples of just how the product can be applicable in multiple areas of your day to day.
Mint:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rK6WLHNYjwM&feature=youtu.be&vq=hd720&rel=0
Why it works: Mint works to reassure users and explain in simple terms how to get started with their product. The visuals are large and unmistakable, with clear direction and insight into how the platform looks.
Company intros:
A type of brand video, an intro video takes the opportunity to, well, introduce the company or product. Doing this in a video leaves more of a lasting impression when compared to an announcement written in a publication or featured on the company website. Company intro videos should be unique and on-brand, really taking this first opportunity to showcase who they are.
Popslate:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zBrzjNbraw&feature=youtu.be&vq=hd720&rel=0
Why it works: This Popslate clip combined text with graphics and video to hold the viewer’s attention. This was all paired with interesting backgrounds and a lot of movement and action. In addition to the product looking cool, the video was memorable.
Founders Brewing Co.:
Why it works: This touching video takes the time to tell the viewer their story, complete with all the struggle and motivation that got them to where they are today. It’s relatable, endearing, and inspiring.
Recruitment videos:
If you’re getting disappointing results in response to your job postings, try turning them into video form. Using recruitment videos in your HR efforts can really make you stand out, and attract a stand-out candidate in return.
Barclays:
Why it works: This creative recruitment video used great imagery and storytelling with a bit of humor to make them stand out to viewers.
Google interns:
Why it works: From getting a feel for the beautiful Google campus, to hearing first-hand from multiple interns and managers, this video paints a full picture of the different backgrounds these interns come from and the different initiatives they take on.
Looking to make your own ? Check out this Promo.com video template perfect for recruitment videos.
Company culture videos:
Showcasing what kind of company you have both inside the office and out, can really make a positive impression on potential employees.
Basecamp:
Why it works: This video really grabs the audience’s attention and makes you wonder how it’s going to turn out. The ending of a happy (and caffeinated) office is a plus. Anyone could imagine themselves being a part of that group.
Bamboo:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WH8uxXXe9o&feature=youtu.be&vq=hd720&rel=0
Why it works: This video does a great job at exploring and encouraging a healthy work/life balance and lets us hear from happy employees about why they feel empowered by it.
Thank you videos:
A handwritten heartfelt thank you note is a thing of the past. Getting real and personal with a meaningful video gives businesses a more human side that audiences don’t always get to see.
TD:
Why it works: Real customers are shown being pleasantly surprised, and sometimes emotionally moved, to receive ‘thank you’s from their bank. That visual is likely to make a far longer impression than a simple thank you note.
Constant Contact:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaugvn1JmMw&feature=youtu.be&vq=hd720&rel=0
Why it works: It feels real. You can see actual company employees from all around the world take the time to face the camera and thank their customers. It can be scary to get on camera, so it feels nice that the footage is so raw.
Inspirational videos
Everyone can use a little motivation at times. Companies are using videos more and more to support and inspire their employees, as well as themselves.
#kidpresident:
Why it works: Inspirational words are coming from a cute kid who seems genuinely pumped up to give you a little kick in the right direction.
Steve Jobs:
Why it works: Steve Jobs has a reputation of being an innovative genius. Here we get to see someone ask him for his single most valuable piece of advice for daring entrepreneurs. The response is surprisingly straightforward, meaningful, and attainable.
Customer testimonials:
Customer testimonials feature a happy customer explaining their personal story and positive experience with a product or company. This type of marketing video is a great way to showcase customer satisfaction with your product or service, and create impactful brand awareness. Because the praise comes directly from the customer, it really resonates with the audience and can turn them into potential customers.
Salesforce:
Why it works: This customer video testimonial taps into emotion in a really touching way. The customer went on a difficult journey to get to where she is today, and the product played an important role in that transformation.
Unboxing or product reveal:
A product reveal can be exciting and stressful for a company. Doing it in a video can help make it all feel a bit lighter, help its shareability, and make a lasting impact during a time when it counts.
Dollar Shave Club:
Why it works: This video surprised its audience with humor, straightforwardness, and a bit of in-your-face confidence that made it stand out. A viral hit, this company was catapulted out of humble beginnings.
Case studies:
Case study videos are meant to help viewers see and understand how a company addressed a topic or issue in the past, and how and what they learned from it. The results help to establish the company’s value to their audience.
Coca Cola:
Why it works: This video really encourages viewer engagement with its use of text and graphics on-screen. Pairing those visuals with the speaker in the video helps to keep the audience’s attention.
Answer FAQs:
If you’re finding that many customers or users are asking the same or similar questions, a video could be the perfect place to address them. It can be difficult for people to navigate through your site looking for FAQs and answers to go with them; a video format helps consolidate and display an easy-to-digest solution.
BUMI:
Why it works: This is a great example of a less mainstream business tackling a common question they get asked frequently. The video provides a ton of useful information when answering the question and takes care to reassure the user at each step along the way.
Share survey results:
Displaying the results of an interesting survey in a video is a great way to help your audience relate to each other. You can simultaneously post the survey results on social media and link to your video to encourage and drive traffic.
SGS:
Why it works: Survey results can be a bit dry. This video used appealing visuals, music, and a positive theme (employee satisfaction) to garner interest.
Infographic videos:
Using infographics to illustrate a point or promote something is a good way to stand out. Most videos are not composed of infographic footage, so making one is interesting and unique. This type of video also easily lends itself to capturing attention, as it pairs narration with infographics and educational imagery for an end product that is easily absorbed and consumed.
TEC Eurolab:
Why it works: Not only is the content detailed and interesting, the video tells a story about the company and what they stand for through the use of infographics.
Animated videos:
Much like infographic videos, animated videos are a fun and interesting way to provide information in a succinct and explanatory way.
Qlip:
Why it works: Qlip tells a story, much like a children’s book, with lots of bright and friendly animations while holding our attention and informing us.
Promote an event:
Getting people to attend an event requires getting them excited about it! An event video is a great way to let them preview what can be expected, see why it would be beneficial for them to attend, and help them imagine themselves there having a good time.
INBOUND by Hubspot:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks20uY5DmbY&feature=youtu.be&vq=hd720&rel=0
Why it works: This is a huge annual event so the online video for it was equally exciting and inspirational. It showcases stunning visuals, and lets us hear firsthand from enthusiastic attendees.
Customize this event video for yourself:
Holiday videos and greetings:
A holiday is a great time to send or post a video. Take advantage of the season and express your thanks, send well wishes, or promote a sale. Everyone’s in the mood to receive holiday greetings, and video makes it even better.
Carlyle Group:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnA0Uo8IrsU&feature=youtu.be&vq=hd720&rel=0
Why it works: The investment group who brought us Beats Headphones pokes fun at the unlikely pairing, and demonstrates the product in a light and fun holiday greeting.
Look to these video templates for your holiday greetings this year:
Include videos in marketing emails:
This is less of a video example and more of a strong suggestion! By including videos in the marketing emails you send to customers, both existing and potential, you are flirting with higher open and click through rates. In fact, Salesforce reports that simply including the word “video” in the subject line of an email increases open rates by 19 percent, increases click-through rates by 65 percent, and decreases unsubscribes by 26 percent. That sounds like a good enough reason to include video in your emails to us.
Now that you’re armed with all the inspiration and tips needed to make a great marketing video, whether to circulate in an email, post on your website, or publish as social media videos on all of your channels, we’d say you’re in great shape.
Incorporate any of the above video types and tips into your video marketing strategy and get started making your marketing videos with Promo.com today!
