How to Connect to Your Audience
Why video is the all-in-one tool your brand needs
Given that our brains understand visual information at a rate 2x faster than the blink of an eye, it’s no surprise that video creation has become one of the most powerful tools for businesses and organizations. This multifaceted marketing technique combines the benefits of word, sight, and sound to tell a complete story that will stay with your viewers long after a video has ended.
Let’s take a look at three major ways that using video in your marketing strategy can lead to big things for your business.
Humanizing Your Brand
When setting yourself apart from industry competitors, making an impact on your target audience is paramount for success. However, remaining authentic and genuine relies on the ability to humanize your business in a way that is both relatable and desirable when compared to other brands.
This is where video marketing really shines.
Using a blend of footage, images, words, and sounds, video elicits the emotions of your audience and paints a clear picture of who your company is outside of the products or services you provide. When you are able to successfully stimulate the emotions of your viewer, a stronger impact will be made and they will be more likely to retain the information from your video. One of the best ways to accomplish this is with introductory overviews.
HOT TIP — Introduce your company and staff members on an ‘About Us’ page of your company website. lntegrity Title is a great example! Visitors are likely to spend more time on your site, which in turn leads to higher rankings on search engines like Google.
Commonly found on the ‘About Us’ page of a company’s website, introductory overviews tell the story of how the people who work in an organization operate. Interviews with employees that include honest testimony regarding how they feel about their job humanizes a brand while establishing personal connection. Showcasing the company from an inside perspective can help with job recruiting, too.
Take your video a step further by including a few words from the founder or founders of your agency! Behind every smile, laugh, and story, your audience will inadvertently pick up tonal and visual cues that influence their decision.
Remember, an emotional video doesn’t have to be sappy or sad to elicit the emotions of your viewer. Depending on the goal of your company and the message you want to deliver, the tone of a video can be altered into a funny, serious, informal, or formal format. The more unique your video, the more your business can come to life!
HELPFUL HINT:
Plan for one big video and render it into several shorter pieces. This gives you additional marketing content for posting to keep your profiles and website new and exciting!
Engaging Your Audience
Utilizing video does a lot more than leave viewers with a good impression of your business—they’re also an excellent way to increase user engagement and brand loyalty. By capturing both movement and sound, viewers are more likely to watch a video based on curiosity alone.
Even if an individual watches a video for only 3 seconds, brand awareness has an average of increasing by 32%. Furthermore, this same study conducted by Nielson concluded that from the moment a video was viewed, even prior to one second, brand awareness increased and made an impression.
According to Facebook’s video consumption data, 45% people that watch the first 3 seconds of a video will continue to watch it for at least 30 seconds. Talk about an impact!
So, what makes a video engaging?
The first step to creating an engaging video is considering your target audience. Who is it you’re aiming to reach? What is the message you want viewers to take away?
Keeping the answer in mind, begin building a story around this central theme. The key to making anything engaging is in the story you tell and the message it delivers.
Another important part of engaging video content involves visual elements and cues. Keep viewers entertained with your video by including a variety of shots and a splash of sound - like music or natural background noises to maintain visual and auditory interest. Melding sound and sight together will create a distinct memory for the viewer watching.
The best part about video? It’s the gift that keeps on giving! Through factions like social media and even your own website, you and your viewers can easily share your story by the click of a button.
Share Your Story
Did you know that the brain can process visuals 60,000x faster than text? That’s because about 90% of the total information given to your brain is visual!
Biologically, our brains are hardwired to search for stories and plotlines. According to Clare Patey, the Director of the Empathy Museum in London, “stories are the way we understand and make sense of the world.” Using the age-old art of storytelling in videos, you have the power to motivate and change minds.
To ensure that your video is effectively communicating the story you want to tell, you need to consider The Four P’s otherwise known as Plot, Purpose, People, and Place.
Plot
Where are you going? The typical story format includes a beginning, middle, and end. Focusing on what the arc of your video will be paves way for a story structure that viewers can follow and remember.
Purpose
What is the end goal of your video? Are you trying to gain exposure? Is there a product or service you are introducing? By zeroing in on what you want viewers to feel or do after the video has ended, a more specific story will be told.
People
Who are you trying to reach? New clientele? Returning consumers? Spend time narrowing your target audience and cater to their demographic.
Think about what kind of story they will be most interested in hearing.
Another category that falls under this P is who you are putting in front of the camera. To help your video along, the addition of customer testimonials help tell a well-rounded story.
Place
Where will your video debut? Depending on the platform you intend on sharing your video, alternate or additional versions of a video may be necessary. For example, if you are intending to share a video via social media, shorter videos that tell your story quickly may be most effective whereas videos on your website or even YouTube have more leeway in terms of length. This means your story has to fit the designated length of your desired place it will be posted.
Moral of the Story
Visual Storytelling connects your brand to the viewer by engaging and relating with them on a personal level. Why is this? Clare Patey says “When I’m telling you a story and you’re listening to my story, our brain patterns begin to mirror one another. We are connecting, and the empathy is on - not just at an emotional but a physical level.”
At AMS Digital, we understand the power behind telling a good story; not only is it what we do, it’s our art. Whether you know what you want to say or are unsure where to start, we’ll help you develop a worthwhile story that represents you and your company.
Are you ready to see what video can do for you? Contact us to learn more!
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