7 Secrets of Super Successful Video Marketing that Work Like a Charm

What makes us watch a video? Well, usually we get hooked when content is entertaining and ideally also informative. But those two qualities alone don’t make a good video. No, an irresistible video as something else, something that pulls us in, whether it’d be a title or an intriguing thumbnail. This is the power of video marketing, and when done right, can suck in thousands of subscribers/viewers/customers, or get lost in the black hole of the internet.

After all, nobody wants to work their butt off only to have 5-10 people watch their video (and let’s be honest, it’s probably your mom, your girlfriend/boyfriend, and a die-hard fan or two!).

Let’s go through the 7 secrets of super successful video marketing to see the bigger picture (pun intended) and how you can properly incorporate them into your marketing strategy.

1. Know who you’re targeting and which social media platform they’re located in

You can pump thousands of dollars into a video, tweak and re-tweak the editing countless times… But if you’re publishing your video on the wrong social media platform, you simply won’t get the captivating response that you’re hoping for. 

The first step to a super successful video marketing campaign is to know who your target audience is, and which social media platform they prefer to use.

For example, if you’re a real estate agent and want to target millennials, you might want to create YouTube Videos, Instagram Stories, or use Snapchat. According to a 2019 Statista report, millennials and Gen Z internet users preferred to use YouTube, with a whopping 93.5% average between males and females.

Of course, you’ll want to do market research on who your target market is – are they renters or home buyers? What’s the average income? Are they married with children or single? Knowing these key points can take you a step closer to nailing down which social media platform they’re most likely to be found on.

2. Hook them in with your Video Marketing Campaign

We briefly mentioned the sorcery of a clickbait title, but this shouldn’t be your go-to for every video you make. You’ll quickly gain a reputation for being misleading, which is notoriously difficult to shake off. Instead, focus on creating a quality title that accurately reflects what the video is about.

Think about it – if you’re mindlessly scrolling through your Facebook feed and stumble across a a title that reads “You won’t believe what this dog does when he sees his favorite toy!” with an adorable photo of a golden retriever, you’ll probably watch the video more than if the title was “Dog plays fetch”. The first title is known as a hook, because it offers a sneak preview of the content, without giving too much away.

3. Tell a story, not a sales pitch

There’s nothing like a compelling narrative to captivate an audience and have them hooked until the very end. Now, compare that to a 3-minute sales pitch of your newest product – which would you rather watch? If you guessed the former, you’re not alone.

A story will resonate with your audience on a deeper level, which is more likely to result in a purchase or taking the action that you want them to.

For example, let’s say you’re a wedding photographer wanting to book more clients. Instead of making a video discussing your service, try creating a highlight reel of a recent wedding you shot. 

First, this will give potential clients a taste of your work, without being too sales-y. Second, it provides a glimpse into the whole wedding experience right to your client’s fingertips, from the pre-wedding jitters to the father-daughter dance.

Naturally, you’ll want to customize your story to match your brand – but the key is to make it relatable, emotional and engaging, without selling too hard.

4. Adjust your video duration to match the social media platform

According to facebook’s recommendations, the ideal mobile video length for maintaining mobile viewers interest is 15 seconds or less. This time frame is also eligible for instagram stories. A study surveying Tiktok users, meanwhile, found that videos over a minute long caused more stress than shorter videos.

Now you compare these recommended video time lengths to youtube, where the average video is 11.7 minutes. Clearly, what works for one social media platform, might not work as well for another.

However, you always need to take a closer look than just generalizations. Try to find out the best time length for your specific target market on each social media platform to make sure your Video Marketing Campaign succeeds. 

5. Choose an interesting thumbnail

“We had 25.23% more clicks on the video thumbnail version than the image version. Our next test, Test 5, also had a 22.58% increase in clicks from image to video thumbnail.”

This quote was taken from an article discussing the results of a study conducted  by Wistia, who wanted to see if using a video thumbnail would result in more email clicks than using a static image. And as you can see, it did!

You may be thinking, “this is an email marketing campaign, not video marketing”. But the same principles apply – your thumbnail is the first thing that people see, so it needs to pack a punch and be enticing enough to make them want to click.

Like your title, creating a hook with your thumbnail can help. But beware – don’t make false promises with your thumbnail. If your video doesn’t deliver on what was promised in the thumbnail, you’ll lose viewers, and fast.

6. Make sure your video is optimized for SEO

An SEO-optimized video means it’s tailor-made to rank highly in search engine results pages, matching search intent. This is important because it can help you generate leads organically – that is, without using paid advertising.

According to Phi Dang, director of home service company Sidepost, “SEO is all about creating content that is relevant to what people are searching for online with the data to back it up. Yes, you need to be creative, but your creativity needs to be based on data and keywords.” 

Here are a few things you can do to make sure your videos are optimized for SEO:

• -Perform keyword research to identify relevant keywords for your video.
• -Use those keywords in your title, tags, and description.
• -Optimize your thumbnail and title for click-through rate.
• -Choose a reliable, fast video hosting platform.
• -Publish transcripts of your videos.
• -Create an engaging video sitemap.

You don’t need to be an SEO expert to optimize your Video Marketing Campaign- but a little time and effort in this area can go a long way. 

7. Always include a CTA in your Video Marketing Campaign

A CTA, or call to action, is the part of your video where you tell your viewers what you want them to do next. It bridges the gap between watching your video and taking action, turning interested viewers into leads and eventually customers.

According to UK storage company, Henfield Storage, “CTA’s exist in all types of marketing. If you don’t tell the viewer what to do next, they will simply move on without taking any action.” 

You’ll see CTAs in all sorts of video marketing campaigns – from brand awareness videos to highly successful recruitment campaigns looking to engage a wider audience.

And while a CTA can be as simple as “subscribe to our channel” or “like this video”,  it’s important to know that it can be used for different purposes. Ask yourself,  what action do you want your viewers to take after watching your video?

Some ideas for CTAs might be:

• -Visit your website.
• -Sign up for your newsletter.
• -Download a white paper or e-book.
• -Follow you on social media.

Not every CTA has to lead to a sale, but it should always be something that helps you to achieve your wider marketing goals.

Final thoughts on Video Marketing

Video marketing is a powerful tool that should be incorporated into any marketing strategy. And while there’s no one-size-fits-all solution, sticking with a few key principles can help you to create videos that are both effective and engaging.

So what are you waiting for? Just start creating videos! Have fun, experiment, and most importantly, give it a real go. You never know – your next video might just go viral!

Author Bio

Katie Berry is a mom to three teens and wife to a husband of many, many years, but she married young so she still thinks she’s pretty hip. My passion is food; writing about it, creating it, photographing it, and eating it. I guess there is something about the look, taste, and smell of food that evokes strong and beautiful memories for me about my past that draws me back to my kitchen day after day.