4 Powerful Ways to Use Video for Business
vid·e·o – “the recording, reproducing, or broadcasting of moving visual images.” according to Merriam-Webster and Wikipedia.
But is that all there is to video? There’s so many different ways to use video for business, and even the term itself can mean so many different things to all of us.
If you asked me 5 years ago what video was, my answer would’ve been “the YouTube loops I get stuck in when I’m trying to go to bed”.
Today, video to me is the most effective means of communication for marketers, trainers, human resources, educators, and really just about everybody. Video is a powerpoint deck saved as a .mov file. It’s a library of pictures set to music. It’s video synced with a slide deck. It’s static content transformed into an automated flip-deck. You name it, it seems everything can be made into a video.
The shift towards video is for good reason, too. Video helps lead to a higher R.O.I. on all your efforts. In fact, 52% of marketing professionals agree video is the best type of content to do so. After studying and mapping out the consumer journey, we’ve found that half of the users who are looking to make a purchase watch a product video first, and those shoppers who do view the video are almost 2X more likely to make a purchase. Simply put, video helps provide real results.
And, it’s not just us video creators and distributors feeling this way. The consumer’s themselves are asking for more video. 4X (!) as many customers would rather watch a video about a product than read about it, and 80% of consumers believe that demo videos are helpful to them getting started. The demand is at an all-time high, so supply has to be able to match that.
With so many different ways to use video for business, here’s a short summary of how our clients use this medium to effectively communicate and engage with their clients, employees, and prospects.
4 Ways to Use Video for Business
Not your father’s video – The ease of Live Broadcasting
It’s no secret that live video, either from events, webinars, or just sit-down talks, is as big a part of the video landscape as anything. And as a matter of fact, Cisco believes live internet video will account for 13 percent of the total video traffic over the next four years.
With Facebook Live and others pushing video boundaries, live broadcasting is the premier application of online video. And most importantly, live broadcasting is easy enough to set-up that anybody can get started.
Also, not all live broadcasts have to follow the Facebook Live model. Companies today use live broadcasts to connect with their employees and stakeholders throughout the globe. It’s affordable and an extremely effective way to improve internal communications, and illustrates how mainstream live broadcasting is today.
Is it Live or is it Memorex? The efficiency of Simulated Live Broadcasting
Do you remember when tape recording was the ‘in-thing’? And you couldn’t tell if you were listening to a concert live? That’s simulated live. Simulated live lets you take advantage of live events without the immense pressure of putting on a show. And everyone can benefit from less pressure! Simulated live is what you need.
With simulated live, you can broadcast previously recorded content to your viewers as if it were a true, live event. This is a perfect way for broadcasters to schedule their event calendars in between actual live recordings, while still maintaining the allure of attracting viewers for your one-time live event.
And don’t forget, you can also host these broadcasts on-demand. So, you’ll have the event that keeps on giving for just a fraction of the cost!
Move beyond YouTube for Video Hosting
Perhaps one of the most popular ways to use video for business is traditional video hosting. The most common and simple way to host video is to upload your file to YouTube and share it. But there is so much more you can do.
Video platforms today, like Knovio, provide lots of options to enhance how you host your videos. Features such as custom links, call-to-actions (CTAs), and custom video libraries (think of a microsite) give you the tools to really engage your audiences.
Customizable player templates give you the opportunity to pick and choose how your media is displayed, and what platform features to accompany it. These features can include chapter navigation, downloadable attachments, or Q&A forms to enhance the viewer experience.
And what good is posting a video if you have no clue how well it performed? You need in-depth analytics to provide you with viewer insights, and tracking options to understand video discovery.
YouTube just isn’t enough anymore to truly host your videos. There is so much more to video hosting than you ever knew.
Add Personality with Video-based presentations and Flip-Decks
Selfies are not just the new-age autograph and all of our aunt’s favorite thing to post on Facebook. Selfies, particularly in video form, have become a popular new way to enhance online presentations.
Selfie video-enhanced presentations are a popular use case among our clients for training and on-boarding, sales pitches and follow-up, and product demos. Adding your face and personality alongside a set of slides creates a much more engaging experience for viewers.
If selfies and being on camera isn’t your thing, we understand. That’s where flip decks come into play. Automated or self-paced flip decks give you the power to easily share and track presentations online, while taking the form of a video.
—–
So, what is video to you?
As you can tell, there is so many ways to get started with using video. Whether you’re looking to engage with clients, employees, or prospects, there are so many creative, effective ways to use video for business.
Want to discuss how you can apply these video applications to your business? Let us know, we’d love to help!