Myths about Video Marketing

Myths about Video Marketing — and Why You Need to Do It

Video is now the number-one form of visual content. Major social platforms have largely shifted toward video-sharing. Many companies have embraced the change, incorporating video into their communications strategy. Plus, video production is more affordable than ever before. Unfortunately, it is still an investment of time and money and myths about video production have caused some companies to hesitate. Where do you even begin creating video content? How can you ensure a good ROI? Some businesses are understandably reluctant.

Are you eager to start investing in video but struggling to convince your team to get on board? Read on to learn some of the key selling points of video and how to get more buy-in.

First, let’s correct some misconceptions that many decision-makers have about video production and marketing.

Myth #1: It’s expensive.

Video production does take time and money. The better the equipment you have, the better your videos will look. However, many of today’s smartphones can take great video, and editing software is relatively inexpensive. The main investment should be in your strategy and the creative talent.

And that’s true for any sort of marketing. How much does your company currently spend on ad campaigns compared to the leads or customers you get?

You can hire an in-house video specialist or outsource the production and editing. In either case, you’ll gain some enticing content that you can use for a while.

As an added bonus, when you do invest time and money into video production, you can use it across multiple channels to get the most possible traffic out of that one investment. Read more on that here.

Myth #2: It’s only for visual businesses.

Businesses such as restaurants, apparel companies, and so on have certainly made good use of video content. But any company in any industry can tell its story visually. In fact, a video may be an easier, more engaging way for people to get to know your business.

What’s more interesting: a paragraph describing your AI-powered fintech product, or a video illustrating how it works?

Myth #3: It’s not as effective/popular as text-based content.

Humans have always been a highly visual species, and that’s especially true in the digital age. Video content now represents more than 80 percent of all digital traffic. That’s largely because it’s easy to digest and enjoyable to watch.

And actually, it’s more effective than text content. We process visual information 6,000 times faster than text!

How to Convince Your Team to Invest in Video

Even knowing all the benefits of video marketing, it can still be a tough sell. It’s an entirely new endeavor that will take precious time and money. An ill-conceived or badly produced video can be worse than no video at all.

But you don’t need super-high production value to take advantage of video marketing. Here’s how to help your company’s decision-makers overcome those objections.

Start Small.

It’s totally okay to dip in a toe rather than diving in headfirst. Create some small videos to release on social media — you don’t want these to be super long anyway. Also, you can shoot quality videos on an iPhone. You’ll be amazed by how good they can look with decent lighting. At this stage, you can invest in a small tripod and accessory mic for better sound.

Focus on your goals.

The worst thing you can do is create videos for the sake of having videos. Everything should have a clear goal. That will help you get buy-in and ensure that your efforts have a measurable impact.

What’s an upcoming campaign or message that would be better told through video? Can you boost engagement with your audience by sharing some valuable content? It’s often a good idea to create your first video with an evergreen topic so you can see how it performs over time.

Don’t shoot for the moon.

Choose a topic and format that doesn’t draw upon too many of your resources. It’s harder to get buy-in if you want to arrange an on-location desert shoot with drone shots on your first video project. Think local, simple, and story-driven.

Similarly, be sure to allocate the right people and equipment to the project. If you’re not in charge of that, run some numbers before you pitch it to the boss. Make it clear that investing in video won’t dominate everyone’s time and budget. (Also, be sure you have or can hire qualified people to make the videos — not your college intern who has the TikTok account.)

If possible, present a suggested budget and the potential ROI. Have some handy statistics ready to share. Here’s one for you: More than 65% of senior executives visit a business’s website after watching one of their videos.

Wrapping Up

Video marketing doesn’t have to be an elaborate production of James Cameron proportions. It can be a natural, cost-effective extension of your current strategy. And with today’s affordable equipment, it’s a less risky investment — and one that can yield some great engagement and lead generation results.

To get buy-in from both bosses and team members, establish a clear goal for your videos. Start small and attainable so it doesn’t become overwhelming. Be sure everyone knows their roles and the overall purpose of the project. Then: have fun! This is your chance to creatively share your company’s messages and join the video revolution.

Need help getting started? Reach out to AJI Media for video production assistance and video marketing strategies.