How to create compelling product videos
Written by Launa Irvine | February 15 2023
“What it is…” and “how it works…” – that is what most consumers deem essential when they consider buying a new product. This is where a product videos come in. Its main aim is to show off the product.
A compelling product video can help consumers to make an informed decision and will ultimately convince potential customers whether the product is a must in their lives or not.
So, when creating a product video, put yourself in the shoes of the consumer – what sort of information would they want to know? What would appeal to them? Let’s consider a few ideas…
Types of product videos
Product videos can come in a number of types and styles, depending on the specific purpose of the video.
For example, you may simply want to give consumers a brief glimpse of the product (with the aim of making the consumer curious to find out more). This type of product video is glamorous and entices the consumer to find out more. This needs to be a very short video, including a call to action at the end.
A slightly longer type of product video will go into more detail about a certain product. It may explain how it can be useful to the viewer and make their life easier. It may also touch on the usability of a certain product.
Then there are product videos that go into much more detail. These are longer and show step-by-step demonstrations of a product’s operation. If there are different functions, one can make a series of product videos, with each focusing on one aspect.
Now that we have touched on the types of product videos let’s dive deeper into what you can do to make your content stand out.
For example, you may simply want to give consumers a brief glimpse of the product (with the aim of making the consumer curious to find out more). This type of product video is glamorous and entices the consumer to find out more. This needs to be a very short video, including a call to action at the end.
A slightly longer type of product video will go into more detail about a certain product. It may explain how it can be useful to the viewer and make their life easier. It may also touch on the usability of a certain product.
Then there are product videos that go into much more detail. These are longer and show step-by-step demonstrations of a product’s operation. If there are different functions, one can make a series of product videos, with each focusing on one aspect.
Now that we have touched on the types of product videos let’s dive deeper into what you can do to make your content stand out.
How to make your product videos compelling
To make any product video compelling, you need to carefully plan its creation.
Start by deciding what you want to make: a short glamorous “what-it-looks-like” video, a slightly longer “what-it-is” video, or a longer “how-it-works” video.
Once you have determined this, keep the following in mind:
Start by deciding what you want to make: a short glamorous “what-it-looks-like” video, a slightly longer “what-it-is” video, or a longer “how-it-works” video.
Once you have determined this, keep the following in mind:
1. Quality
Make sure you impress with video quality and professionalism – a poor-quality product video will make consumers wonder if that is also a reflection of the product.
Great videos are only great if people can easily see them – make sure that your video is of excellent quality and can be shared effortlessly.
If people like it, they share it! If people think it may be useful to friends and family, they share it! Therefore, your product video must be easy to share. For example, if uploaded to YouTube, make sure that you have enabled the embedding function.
Great videos are only great if people can easily see them – make sure that your video is of excellent quality and can be shared effortlessly.
If people like it, they share it! If people think it may be useful to friends and family, they share it! Therefore, your product video must be easy to share. For example, if uploaded to YouTube, make sure that you have enabled the embedding function.
2. Length
A compelling product video will lose its impact if it is too long! The shorter, the better! (However, as previously mentioned, the type of video plays a role in the length of the video.)
A video that simply aims to show what the product looks like can be as short as 20 seconds, whereas a video that explains more about the product will be up to 90 seconds long. An in-depth demonstration may be longer, but keep it under 5 minutes to hold the viewers’ attention.
A longer product video would be meant for a specific purpose – not as a commercial, but more as a tutorial – thus, they are meant for viewers who purposefully want to know more and are therefore prepared to devote more time to watching the video.
A video that simply aims to show what the product looks like can be as short as 20 seconds, whereas a video that explains more about the product will be up to 90 seconds long. An in-depth demonstration may be longer, but keep it under 5 minutes to hold the viewers’ attention.
A longer product video would be meant for a specific purpose – not as a commercial, but more as a tutorial – thus, they are meant for viewers who purposefully want to know more and are therefore prepared to devote more time to watching the video.
3. Show off
A compelling product video takes care to show off the product in the best light. How it makes life easier, and how it brings joy. It answers questions about the product (unless it is the short teaser-type product video that purposefully intrigues and raises questions.)
Ultimately, a compelling product video will prompt the viewer to say, “I get it; I like it; I want it! – I am going to get one!”
Ultimately, a compelling product video will prompt the viewer to say, “I get it; I like it; I want it! – I am going to get one!”
More ideas for product videos
Let’s look at a few examples of potential compelling product videos:
1. Introduce the product from behind the scenes
To know more about the product also means to know more about its background and maybe to even know more about the people behind the product as well as people who use it.
Give a brief tour of the factory to show where the product comes from. Let those who produce the product show and tell about the product.
Give a brief tour of the factory to show where the product comes from. Let those who produce the product show and tell about the product.
2. Use fellow consumers in your product videos
Let those who use it demonstrate how the product works. When a fellow consumer explains how to use a product, it makes the narrative personal – like a friend telling you how something works!
They can be specific in saying how the product benefitted them or highlight an aspect of its use that they find particularly great.
They can be specific in saying how the product benefitted them or highlight an aspect of its use that they find particularly great.
3. Give additional information in your product videos
Consider additional information: Is charitable giving linked to the product? Is it a fair trade product? This is the type of information that can briefly be included in a compelling product video.
4. Focus on the product benefits
Another take on a compelling product video is to focus on the benefits of the product. A compelling product video shows customers how the product will benefit them or add value to their lives. For example, walk consumers through how different people, like family members, may benefit from it.
Another way to look at it is: the compelling product video shows how the product solves a problem or how to use it. Making a product video in the form of a demo or an explainer video thus works very effectively.
Our example below shows how an animated explainer video can be used as a product video that shows how the product makes life easier.
Another way to look at it is: the compelling product video shows how the product solves a problem or how to use it. Making a product video in the form of a demo or an explainer video thus works very effectively.
Our example below shows how an animated explainer video can be used as a product video that shows how the product makes life easier.
5. Tell a story with your product videos
Our explainer video (above) makes use of storytelling to explain how the product can make life easier. A video that informs and tells a story at the same time is often more compelling than just an informative video.
Why? Because the story also entertains! The ultimate aim is to inform, but if one can entertain too it is an added bonus! So, consider how you can turn your product video into a story to make it more compelling.
If the purpose of the product video was purely to show how to use the product, a demonstration would, of course, have been more suitable. So, before making the video, one needs to have a clear goal as to what one aims to achieve: to show the benefits of the product, to show how it works, to show where it comes from, or to show additional functions of the product, etc. Or, is the aim to only give the viewer a small glimpse to trigger their curiosity about the product?
Here is our shortlist of useful product video ideas:
Why? Because the story also entertains! The ultimate aim is to inform, but if one can entertain too it is an added bonus! So, consider how you can turn your product video into a story to make it more compelling.
If the purpose of the product video was purely to show how to use the product, a demonstration would, of course, have been more suitable. So, before making the video, one needs to have a clear goal as to what one aims to achieve: to show the benefits of the product, to show how it works, to show where it comes from, or to show additional functions of the product, etc. Or, is the aim to only give the viewer a small glimpse to trigger their curiosity about the product?
Here is our shortlist of useful product video ideas:
- highlight one spectacular feature of the product
- show how the product is used/show what it can do
- explain how the product works
- give a short demonstration
- give step-by-step instructions
- tell a story that shows how the product is used
- tell a story about how the product solves a problem
- tell the story behind your product
- give production information like when, where, how it is produced, and by whom
A compelling product video showcases your product to viewers. A final tip: make sure to have a call-to-action at the end of the video.
It can be as easy as on-screen text in the last frame to give contact details: a phone number, an email address, or a website.
Nothing is more frustrating than watching a video about a great product you feel you really want and then finding out that you need to do further research to find where to buy the product…
Make it easy for the consumer to contact you!
It can be as easy as on-screen text in the last frame to give contact details: a phone number, an email address, or a website.
Nothing is more frustrating than watching a video about a great product you feel you really want and then finding out that you need to do further research to find where to buy the product…
Make it easy for the consumer to contact you!
