With an average audience reach of 92%, video content is by far the most consumed form of content on the internet.
Video marketing, or video-based content marketing, is essential for any business or creator. People love watching and engaging with videos more than text-based content or images.
That said, not all types of videos do equally well. In the context of eCommerce businesses, you can’t expect hard-selling ads to perform as well as entertaining short videos.
A successful video marketing campaign combines different types of video content and sees what works best for them. Now, let’s get into our nine tips on leveraging video marketing for eCommerce.
9 tips for leveraging video marketing for eCommerce
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1. Showcase your products
The products should be the heroes of any eCommerce platform, and video gives us the best opportunity to showcase what makes our products better than the rest. Videos let us highlight the features, benefits, or even the process of how to use a product. By creating high-quality product videos, customers can quickly form an emotional connection with the product before they buy it.
Invest in a good videographer to bring the best out of your products in videos. Also, ensure your product videos are optimized for mobile devices since more and more shoppers use their phones to browse and shop. Instead of hard selling your products through videos, show your viewers how the products can improve their lives.
Think outside the box and consider making instructional, interactive, or even 360-degree videos of your products. This will give customers a better understanding of how your products work and what makes them unique. In addition, incorporate video into your product pages on your eCommerce platform for customers to get a better idea of what they’re buying.
2. Create educational content with automatic subtitles
When creating educational and/or instructional videos, many creators undermine the importance of subtitles. In these types of videos, subtitles are essential because they better explain the message. It’s a small addition that can make a huge difference in your video engagement rates.
Use software for automatic subtitle generation to automate the process of adding subtitles to all your educational video content. That way, you can save money and time simultaneously while creating higher-quality videos for your audience. While you can add subtitles to almost all forms of video content, it’s crucial for instructional videos and guides where the viewer has to follow a sequence.
Subtitling is indispensable if you have a global customer base (or want to have one). Fortunately, adding subtitles to videos is easier than ever with SaaS tools tailor-made for subtitling.
3. Repurpose other content types
You can turn a great blog or social media post into a video for higher engagement. You can also use well-written product descriptions and turn them into product videos. Repurposing different content types and turning them into videos has various advantages.
First, you will not run out of content ideas for videos. Second, you don’t need to spend too much time researching new trends for social media. Third, you can make your posts look more visually appealing and engaging with some creative editing.
You can also turn an article into an infographic with some creative design to get more people interested in your content. Then you can use the same content for image-based videos.
There’s a lot you can do with repurposed content if you are creative and willing to think outside the box. Every successful content marketer relies heavily on repurposed content. It’s extremely difficult to publish high-quality content regularly if you’re not repurposing existing content.
4. Publish behind-the-scenes (BTS) content
Everyone loves behind-the-scenes footage, and showing such clips can humanize your brand. Behind-the-scenes footage helps build relationships with the audience and gives them an insight into the personalities behind the brand. Additionally, behind-the-scenes footage can give customers a sense of transparency and make them feel like they are part of the brand.
Showing BTS videos is also a great way to showcase the work ethic and creative process behind the scenes. This gives customers a positive impression of the company and its products. The net impact on your brand awareness is positive, eventually driving sales and engagement.
However, be judicious about what you show and don’t show in BTS videos. Don’t publicize anything that can land you or your brand in trouble. Focus on humanizing the brand and the people who work there.
5. Tell stories with videos
A clear brand message is the most important storytelling component for online brands. A brand’s story should clearly and concisely communicate its message and what makes it unique. Achieving this through video content helps your eCommerce brand stand apart.
Videos should be used to create an emotional connection with viewers that would, in turn, drive sales. Video can also be an effective medium for demonstrating products, teaching viewers about a brand’s values, and delivering content in a visually captivating way. All these elements will help create an unforgettable brand experience for customers.
So find your brand story and start incorporating it into your video content. Consult storytellers and creatives to discover different ways to tell the same story without boring the viewers. A compelling story will take you further than expensive ad campaigns or influencer marketing.
6. Make videos of customer testimonials
Customer testimonials are the most effective way of building trust. 95% of buyers read reviews before trying a new product. With video testimonials, you can add a layer of authenticity to your product reviews by making them more personal and real.
We tend to believe videos more than text. Especially at a time when fake reviews are a real phenomenon, video reviews invoke trust and build credibility. Another way to do this is by collaborating with influencers for real-time and unbiased reviews of your products.
You can also use video testimonials to highlight key features or benefits that aren’t often highlighted in written reviews. Lastly, you can use them to spread your brand’s message to a broader audience, as they are much easier to share than text reviews.
If you’re not making the most of video testimonials and reviews, you are missing out on a lot of benefits. Video reviews should be at the forefront of all eCommerce marketing campaigns.
7. Add call-to-action (CTA) to your videos
A call-to-action tells your viewers what to do if they like the content they just watched. If your videos don’t have a CTA, many potential customers wouldn’t care to go the extra mile and check out your eCommerce website.
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At the end of your video, you should spend a few seconds providing a CTA that encourages viewers to take a specific action. You could ask viewers to visit your website, subscribe to your YouTube channel, or sign up for your mailing list. You could also direct viewers to watch another video or view a related product on your website.
Make sure you spend time crafting effective calls to action. CTAs take very little screen time but provide immense value to a business.
8. Use different social media platforms
eCommerce businesses should always do video marketing on multiple social media platforms. Your target customer base could be segmented into YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. Now, if you only focus on YouTube, you’d miss out on your potential buyers who use Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook. Dive into the world of TikTok learning with our comprehensive guide to courses and classes.
Make sure to customize the videos to the different platforms and keep the core message consistent. You should also optimize the videos to meet the technical requirements of each social media platform. This will enable you to maximize your video marketing efforts and reach more of your target audience.
Choose two to four platforms for your video marketing efforts and give them equal importance. You will eventually discover which platforms work the best, and then you can narrow down your focus.
9. Answer FAQs through videos
Frequently asked questions (FAQs) are common questions that many buyers have regarding a product or service. While you should always have an FAQ section on your website, you can also repurpose its content to make videos.
With FAQ videos, you can show how your product works and explain how it can solve customer problems. You can also use FAQ videos to introduce customers to new features and services. Additionally, you can use customer interviews and case studies to showcase how customers have used the product to solve their problems.
With the right strategy, the FAQ section of your website can become the best source of content ideas for your video marketing efforts.
Remember to be smart about video marketing
Video marketing can be expensive and time-consuming. But when you’re smart about your content strategy, it’s possible to roll out creative videos with ease.
Use smart strategies like repurposing content and answering common questions through videos. Focus on effective content distribution and incorporate storytelling in your videos. When you create a video creation system with these tips in mind, publishing high-quality video content consistently becomes much easier.
