Conversions can mean different things to different businesses. It could be a straightforward sale, a download, a subscription or a booking. But whatever form the conversion comes in, video is an effective means of attracting it. Yet there are different ways of achieving this, each of which have advantages and disadvantages. This is primarily about understanding your audience and knowing how to inspire certain actions in them.
Video marketing is a delicate medium which requires study, research, preparation and attentive execution. In order to improve conversion rates, you need to focus on the correct areas, get the content right and address the most appropriate elements in terms of your customer’s needs.
What types of videos are good for conversion rates?
There are several conversion strategies which can be successful with the use of videos. These include:
- ‘How to’ videos – Explainer videos inform potential customers how to use a product or service, and therefore how it will address their problem, ie. their core need. It can simplify a product or service and provide the base information to satisfy a consumer craving, while also developing trust and positioning your brand as an authority in the field.
- Product demonstrations – These go one step further than ‘how to’/explainer videos by actually using a product or service and showing it in action. This cuts out any waffle and any potential for losing the attention of the customer and gets straight to the point. Product unboxing also puts customers at the heart of the action and creates some anticipation.
- FAQ videos – Great for engagement, these videos allow a business to interact with their client base by answering common queries and problems. It shows a human side, a sense of connection and removes doubts and concerns about a product or service.
- Reviews and testimonials – Independent third parties such as customers or industry experts endorsing your product or service can be a powerful influence. It gives the customer confidence and strengthens your brand image, developing trust and reliability.
- Introductory videos – Often located on a Home page or a landing page, a short introduction video builds immediate trust and provides a friendly welcome and a human connection.
What types of videos are bad for conversion rates?
- Long videos – People lose interest, it doesn’t get to the point, it can be seen as too indulgent and it may take too long to load due to the file size.
- Auto-play videos – It is easy to create the wrong impression by auto-playing an unsolicited video a user doesn’t necessarily want to watch. This can also reduce the loading speed of a page, which is bad for SEO.
- Industry jargon – Marketing waffle that includes buzzwords and doesn’t talk to your primary customer base is a big turn-off in terms of conversion rates. You need to connect with the customer not impress them. So talk to them clearly and directly.
How to use video marketing to improve conversion rates
Using innovative video techniques is one of the most effective ways to convert someone from a passive window shopper into a buyer. Relevant and creative video captures the attention regardless of what medium you use – TikTok, YouTube, Instagram or Facebook – and means you are less likely to be ignored or scrolled past. People retain much more of a message if it has been watched, compared to something they have read, and therefore it stands to reason that video done correctly can drive a positive outcome for a business. But you still only get one opportunity, and it is a unique one. Once you have captured attention, you need to use it wisely, as not all videos will lead to conversions, even if they are good quality in other ways. We feel the start of the video is very important here to grab attention – either with interesting headlines or visuals.
- Create a connection
People like to be entertained and inspired or emotionally moved. It creates a connection. So, storytelling is an important tactic and an effective one in converting people. You don’t have to focus 100% on the features of your product or service, instead show what it does and how it can satisfy needs. You can do this by creating a narrative the customer can relate to, and if your story resonates with people, they are more likely to act on the call-to-action you leave at the end.
- Quality not quantity
It is important to tell a story and connect, but this doesn’t have to take ten minutes. It can be done in thirty seconds. Shorter videos are more effective in converting people because we think people have short attention spans online typically and particularly on social media. Anything longer than two minutes we feel is more like a risk and if you can’t get your message across in that time, or much less, then there is a fundamental problem. Your video should be guided by clarity, brevity and relevance, so don’t waste a second and you will engage people more effectively.
- What are your audience’s needs?
Regardless of what your product or service is, there must be a problem or struggle a customer experience that your product or service satisfies or perhaps you are very price competitive for your product or service. These are often called pain points. Your video should start with a demonstration of how you will solve this pain point for the customer. This is called ‘front-loading the value’ and it immediately creates a connection, while the rest of the video can strengthen this. So maybe start with a question: “Do you ever……..?” And then follow with the solution.
- Reviews and testimonials
Third party feedback that is clearly independent and not staged, is very powerful. This creates immediate trust and reassurance and assures a potential customer that you are credible and successful in what you are selling. This is real life evidence of your product or service meeting a pain point, and it’s not just you saying it will, so it’s more believable. But make sure it is authentic and natural and is not scripted. People will instantly see through it.
- Platform optimisation
Many users of major video content platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc can have different expectations in terms of video content, so you shouldn’t assume the same video will perform equally well on different platforms. This could even come down to length and the type of audience a platform typically has. For example, TikTok is all about short-form video reels, while YouTube is also well-known for allowing longer, more instructional videos. Think about including captions of your commentary, many people watch videos in bed late at night with the sound off, or on public transport, and this can still speak to them. So, adjust technical elements for each platform so it loads quickly and correctly, but also think about tone and style for the typical viewer of individual platforms, and this will improve your engagement.
- Monitor performance
You can’t expect to click on ‘upload’, forget about your video and wait for the sales or bookings to roll in. You need to monitor performance and tweak things as needed. There might be elements from the above you can improve, or which you have forgotten. Learn from mistakes you made in the past, or from what worked in the past (such as measuring engagement of likes/views/average time viewed). Then you can refine your video content and find the sweet spot in terms of what resonates best with the right audience. Don’t be afraid to introduce a little trial and error as the most successful creative projects were probably developed in exactly the same way.
- Include a clear call-to-action (CTA)
We strongly recommend making it very easy for the user to understand how they can contact you. This can include:
- A URL link in the post you are putting a video in.
- At the end of the video contact details/website address/phone number to contact you.
Whether you are using YouTube, social media, your website or paid ads, video marketing is a great way to develop trust and show customers real life situations and how your product or service can help them. So, follow these guidelines to help your conversion rates grow.
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