There are just countless ways a business can use a video production company to promote brand awareness, boost sales, or improve internal operations. But the endless possibilities might also be intimidating for companies that don’t use video yet. Well fear no more, ReelSEO put out a nice, little video starter guide that lists a bunch of different ways a company can use video.
1. Repurposed Television Commercial
A lot of companies start out slowly with online video, simply taking a previously-filmed television commercial and placing it online. This is done by large and small brands alike, and is often seen as a way to extend the marketing power of the dollars spent creating the ad. Since the ad is already fully produced, it costs nothing to upload it, and every view received is icing on the cake.
2. Viral Video
A logical follow-up to our first example is the web-intended viral video–an ad or other video production company created solely for the purpose of getting views online, often through word-of-mouth. You see this all the time. It definitely costs more money to create ads for online consumption that are separate from your traditional television ads. But more and more brands are figuring out ways to avoid breaking the budget when creating web-original videos.
3. Branded Web Series
A trend I happen to like a lot is the branded web series. This is when a company eschews traditional advertising techniques (and even traditional viral video techniques) to create original webisodes. Then, through product placement or overt plot points, the brand’s messaging is conveyed to the audience.
4. Product Placement
A form of video marketing that’s gaining lots of traction lately, and which Grant wrote about recently, is product placement. It involves placing a brand’s logo or product prominently in the popular entertainment videos of others. So… rather than creating video production company from scratch, it’s like hopping on the bandwagon of another popular entity by associating your brand with it.
5. Demonstration/Product Videos
A lot of online retailers are finding success with product demonstration videos, which have been shown to increase conversions. Once you’ve got the customer on your website, viral marketing ceases to be important… what you need at that point is to make the sale. Product demonstration videos can do that in ways mere text never could. Visual evidence of a properly functioning product puts consumers at ease and helps settle their internal debate about whether or not to buy.
6. Testimonials
No one is a better cheerleader for your business than customers who are happy. The happiest among them will often be willing to help you spread the word by recording video production company testimonials. Text testimonials are great, but they’re just text… they could have been written by anyone. With video, the average consumer can usually spot the difference between a paid actor and a real customer… and the real customer’s first-hand experience with your company carries more weight than you might think.
7. Fan Videos & Mentions
For the rabid fans of particular brands, testimonials aren’t enough. These super fans go one step further, creating videos about or mentioning the brand they love. This is free publicity for the company, earned simply by going above and beyond in meeting that customer’s needs.
8. Video Display Ads
Many companies prefer to create short video ads that run as display ads on popular websites. It’s a more reliable way to ensure viewers–since a viral video attempt has no assurance of getting views, but top publishing sites can usually promise certain pageview numbers.
9. Non-Video Ads Placed On Video Pages
Sometimes you can leverage video to your advantage by non-video means. Specifically, you can place an ad on a video network, like Adsense on YouTube videos. Brands can also place a static display ad on a page that carries video, sometimes to the point of sponsoring the entire page. There are very affordable ad networks that even small businesses can use to get their message in front of a larger audience.
10. Special Messages
Sometimes a piece of news or a current event warrants special messages from brands. A good example is the apology video from BLANK airlines. They’d screwed up some flights, and felt that the best way to begin building back the customers’ trust was to admit a mistake and apologize… which they did through online video.
11. Contests
A popular and very inexpensive technique for using video is to sponsor a contest. Ask your customers to create videos for you, with the best one winning a prize. The end result, even if there are only a few entries, is free publicity for your brand or business — every set of eyes that the submitted videos find is one you basically didn’t have to pay for.
12. Internal Communications/Business Processes
As IBM and Microsoft have shown us recently, many companies have begun replacing traditional office tasks with video. It’s fast, easily distributed, and provides better context than text alone can. So from staff meetings to client pitches, video is creeping further and further into the workplace, streamlining processes, increasing productivity, and improving communications.
To find out how we can help you with your next video production company project, call or email us today!
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