Part of building a video marketing strategy is understanding the many types of video that are trending and choosing which one makes sense for your brand. However, before choosing which type of video to use for your video marketing strategy it's best for your brand to make sure everyone in your team involved in the project understands the goal of the video.
Below some general questions to ask about the goal of the video.
- Will the video drive sells? If so How?
- Will the drive subscriptions to your website or social media platform?
- Is the goal to drive engagement?
- Is the goal to rank on with video seo?
- Attract a new audience? Who? Be specif as much as you can?
- Is it to serve and engage with your existing community, followers, subscribers?
- Is it to collaborate with other influencers?
- Will the video be used for networking?
- Will the video be used to answer a question?
These are just some examples of goals and questions you must consider about what type of video content marketing strategy works better for your video content strategy.
Every decision that needs to take place during the pre-production; production, and post-production has to center around the main goal of the video, and what call to action needs to be present for the audience.
Understanding the goal of the video will also bring clarity to the priorities of the video production for all people involved. Will, the script or talking points used will help achieve the goal? Re-shoots and editorial revision cost time and money. Don't delay the production because of vanity reshoots and editorial revisions.
Sometimes there are multiple people working on a single project and the goal will bring alignment of what decisions should be made. If you are working on the video by yourself it will also bring clarity and accelerate the process vs having paralysis by analysis. Perfectionism can also be the enemy of achieving a goal.
Be clear on the goal of the video. Plan a meeting using zoom or whatever platform or method you prefer for planning and organizing. Google forms is a good way of taking surveys to collect thoughts and opinions.
Now that we got all that of the way let's see the different types of videos for marketing available.
1. Branding Videos
Brand videos are used as a part of a continuous marketing campaign to increase brand awareness and equity in a specific market. Its meant to showcase the identity of the company. It may showcase values, company culture, ideas, and services.
2. Interview Videos
This type of video involves recording interviews with experts, thought leaders, and people who are relatable to your target audience. The video above is an example from the Trust Visuals Youtube Channel. It's casual, meant for educational purposes that include conversations about marketing and SEO. However, it also shows a personal story about overcoming obstacles in life. That way to start these is similar to starting a podcast. Start with your network first and then expand. It's also a great way to grow your network or connect with an influencer for potential influencer marketing collaborations.
3. Event Videos
Event videos are a form of documentation used to feature highlight reels of the event or feature the event in its entirety. Event Videos; are used to record keynotes, panels, and fundraisers, among other live events. They can be used as content by repurposing multiple ways for learning and branding purposes.
4. Case Study and Customer Testimonial Videos
Your potential new clients want to know that your product can (and will) solve their specific problems. Testimonial videos or case studies are great ways to prove results aided by your satisfied, loyal customers. These clients are your number one true fans. These clients are the ones who are so happy that they will spread the word for you. They will go above and beyond because of brand loyalty. The video above is about clients who took time off their day to tell their stories. Make a list of clients that will be delighted to be recorded on camera.
5. Live Videos
Live video gives your viewers a special connection with your brand. They are willing to watch longer videos and engage more with questions or comments. Viewers spend up to 8.1x longer with live videos. Nearly all social media platforms have a live feature. Among them are Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and; not to mention Saas companies that offer the service. Choose according to where your target audience is.
6. Demo Videos
Demo videos are done to show how a product works by demonstrating the features of a product or service in action. Some examples are software demonstrations, video games, tools, electronics, and just about everything where people would be interested in learning how it works.
7. Explainer Videos
Similar to educational videos. This type of video; is used to help your clients understand why they need your product or service. They are traditionally short videos; however, there are always exceptions. Many explainer videos are story-based and use a fictional journey of a client with a problem that the company can solve, ending with the desired outcome. A great majority of explainer videos use animation for the story; again, the use of animations in explainer videos is a choice.
8. Educational or How-To Videos
Tutorial videos are a great way to show how a product or project can achieve the desired outcome for your target audience. Educational videos teach the fundamentals of a concept to understand how and why things work. Both will help your target audience understand your brand or product. This type of content can be a fundamental block on using video for marketing.
9. Short Videos
No matter your thoughts on short videos. They have leveled the playing field with TikTok popularizing the form. The success of TikTok made waves forcing other tech companies to take note and make their versions starting with Instagram reels and then followed by YouTube shorts.
Generally, the style consists of points of view shots and stylized content. This style provides a closer setting to the audience, making them part of the story with the content creator. The short form also forces to grab attention quickly. The first few seconds must grab the immediate attention leaving no time for introductions or other formalities.
10. Animated Videos
Animation is a great way to explain technical and complex ideas or messages in a short story which is a great way to connect with your audience. With animation, there are no limits since it doesn’t need to be realistic or accurate. Creativity can be on full display here, adding fun and delivering delightful imagery. It’s a great way to show off your brand personality.
Animated videos are also a great solution to keeping your content up to date. If you want to adapt or update your video content to appeal to a different demographic or if you wish to change the message, narrative, or visuals, then animation is much easier and more cost-effective to edit rather than reshooting an entire video.
11. Investor Pitch Videos
An investor's pitch can be greatly enhanced with video. It's another tool that can be used for the approach of convincing investors, One of the reasons that have made video so popular on the internet it's for the ability to pass on information faster and more efficiently than any other medium.
Since videos are so effective at grabbing attention even they accomplish this particular goal in a few seconds. According to HubSpot, people are 64% more likely to be convinced into buying a product after watching a video. Pretty much the same goes for investor videos.
12. 360° & Virtual Reality Videos
Currently, Virtual Reality is the one with the most growth opportunity. VR is also the object of my entertaining affections. With 360° videos, viewers feel they are present and within the action as if they were physically standing within the content. VR allows viewers to experience a location or event, such as being inside the ISS SPACE STATION or touring Europe. VR videos also let viewers navigate and control their experiences. The most popular devices are The Meta Quest 2, followed by Valve Index and HTC Vive. Companies are making a massive investment bet on virtual reality, and they are competing for dominance in the metaverse. There is high demand for 360 content creators and not enough content creators.
13. Augmented Reality (AR) Videos
Augmented reality or AR is an interactive experience of the environment in which the surroundings that reside in the real world are enhanced by computer-generated layers. Those layers could be animations, 3D models, or any combination of images, text, sound, and video that together create an immersive experience for the user. It's expected also that augmented reality will be part of the metaverse. Snapchat uses this feature and you may also have seen it on Pokemon Go. AR is not as immersive as VR; however, it's best to view it as a bridge between reality and the digital world.
14. Personalized Messages
Video can be used to initiate or continue a conversation or respond to someone via email or text. Similar to voice messages or text messages. It adds an element of personalization and direct communication with a single user. It's a great way to close deals or to your appreciation.
15. Email Campaign Videos
Email Videos are designed for email campaigns. They are used to enhance the email message and create more engagement. They can be used for bonus content, but they can be the center of an email campaign
16. Public Relations Video Campaign
Video can increase audience trust in a brand, but it is also the first thing nearly 93 percent of consumers seek when they want to learn more about a company and what it can offer. Video can help PR and communications professionals achieve almost any goal they set for themselves. You may think of video as a tool for public relations; viewers love it, it helps your brand get discovered faster and more successfully, plus it's wonderful for engaging with others.
17. Podcast Videos
Podcast videos have also grown in popularity, adding another layer to the explosion of content produced in podcast form. Sometimes the video podcast is more popular than the audio form. According to the Reuters Institute in its 2021 Digital News Report: YouTube is currently the number one podcasting platform in the United States. The video platform is responsible for 26% of podcast consumption in U.S. markets, compared to Apple Podcast’s 22% of listeners and Spotify’s 17%.
18. Entertainment Videos.
The heart of content marketing is to provide value with information instead of blasting ads to clients to gain their trust. Video Content Marketing is the same concept. Video content marketing; can be directly tied to the product or service a brand wants to provide. However, designing a video for entertainment purposes; can also lead to customer loyalty. The popular YouTube channel Legal Eagle, hosted by Devin J. Stone, makes fun analyses of current legal cases or fictional ones by showing reaction episodes of legal issues on TV shows and movies. Guess which Lawyer people who watch the show would want on their side if they ever ran into legal troubles? Your video content marketing does not have to be connected directly to what you sell. You can be an accountant and create golf videos to attract clients who love golf.
19. Lead Generation Videos.
.These videos are designed to be a marketing funnel for sales. It can be a single video or a series of videos included in a marketing campaign leading most of the time to a significantly higher item or service sales. On some unique platforms, you can insert contact forms directly into your video. This is a great solution because it is immediate and straightforward. You won't lose potential customers when they browse your website or channel. You can use Vimeo for this kind of feature.
20. Video Courses
Video courses consist of a series of videos rather than a single video like How-to and tutorial videos. They can be a form of content marketing and be given away; for free. They are structured and organized by topics and subtopics. You can access a free video course here to learn more about how to shoot videos using your smartphone.
