Video has become a central component of many marketing programs, yielding impressive results. However, some may have only used it sporadically and still have unanswered questions, while others may be overwhelmed by the multitude of options available.
It’s not surprising, considering that video has become the universal language of visual storytelling. In the United States alone, 85% of internet users watch online video content on a monthly basis across different devices. Moreover, 87% of marketers utilize video as a tool for marketing purposes.
The podcast and blog posts have previously covered Video Storytelling, but now it’s time to provide a concise cheat sheet that brings clarity and introduces new video types. So, fasten your seatbelt as we embark on this journey.
Set a Goal
First and foremost, one must determine the purpose of the video and the desired outcome. What are you trying to achieve? Is it raising awareness, generating leads, educating customers, or inspiring advocates? Each goal necessitates a different type of video and various success metrics.
Once the business goal is selected, it’s important to establish success targets. For example, an awareness video might require a specific number of views and engagement. Additionally, the chosen goal will determine the target audience. In the case of an awareness video, the audience would consist of prospects or strangers at the initial stage of the buyer’s journey.
If the objective is to acquire leads, the targets would revolve around capturing a certain number of email addresses through video links to landing pages. This can be further divided into Marketing Qualified Leads and Sales Qualified Leads, depending on the level of interest shown by the captured addresses.
Select Your Target Audience
Now that the target audience is defined, it’s crucial to thoroughly research and understand their characteristics. Building a clear buyer persona that captures the essence of their inner world is paramount. The better you know your audience, the more impactful your video story will be. Your story should serve as a mirror, emotionally moving your audience to take action by aligning with their personal stories.
Brainstorm Your Story
With a defined purpose for the video and extensive knowledge about the target audience, it’s time to brainstorm a relevant story tailored to a specific platform. Based on the audience research, identify the most pressing pain points they face within the context of your product. Study how competitors address these pain points and seek out a fresh perspective. Once a focal point is established, consult the ten story types previously outlined for initial inspiration.
Select a Video Format
Having a clear topic in mind that you want to cover in your video, it’s essential to consider the specific video format you wish to employ. Apart from the formats mentioned in previous links, there are additional options to explore:
- Live streaming on social media platforms such as LinkedIn Live, Facebook Live, and Instagram Live;
- Private options like Zoom, Google Hangouts, or Skype.
Social media options enable you to engage with your audience at a specific moment in time, allowing for interaction through chat. Popular formats include Ask Me Anything, interviews, personal branding, X Tips in Y Days, coaching, and more. Additionally, there are other formats like video listicles, personalized video emails, tutorials, company explainers, brand videos, event videos, product tour videos, 360 or VR videos, AR videos, brand documentaries, how-to videos, branded animated video series, case studies, and more.
Learn more about starting your live stream storytelling strategy.
Script Your Video
With the video format selected, it’s time to script the video experience. Depending on the chosen format and platform for publication (e.g., YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, or your website), plan the video content accordingly. For interviews, consider the opening, soundtrack, questions for guests, ad breaks, and conclusion. For narrative videos, storyboard the sequence of events during the setting, conflict, and resolution segments. This is also an opportune moment to optimize your video for SEO by incorporating relevant keywords, titles, descriptions, video thumbnails, and tags that align with your target audience’s search queries.
- Choose a single emotion to focus on throughout your video story, ensuring that the first few seconds captivate the audience. The initial impression is crucial in shaping their perception of you and your story.
- The recommended video length varies depending on the format. For LinkedIn personal branding videos, 30 seconds is ideal, while interviews may require at least 30 minutes to provide depth and value.
- Since the video serves as a means to achieve business results, include a clear call-to-action within the video or description box.
- Compile a list of the necessary video shooting and lighting equipment, as well as online tools you’ll need.
To promote this blog post, a video clip was created using the Clips mobile app (available only for iPhone) on YouTube. For beginners, a smartphone will suffice, but for LinkedIn personal branding videos, consider using subtitle mobile apps like Clips or Cliptomatic to capture attention even without sound.
Create Your Video
With everything in place, it’s time to shoot your video. Whether you decide to do it yourself or enlist the help of a professional, keep in mind these best practices that apply to any video format:
- Be yourself: Authenticity is key, so be true to your personality and feel comfortable in front of the camera. Embrace any mishaps during the shoot;
- Vulnerability: Don’t strive for perfection; instead, show some vulnerability or imperfection. This will humanize your video and build trust with your audience;
- Focus on the customer: Position your buyer persona as the hero in your story, rather than focusing excessively on your brand or product;
- Clear value: Deliver something new, inspiring, surprising, or enriching that will benefit your audience;
- Keep it simple: Avoid overwhelming your video with excessive information or special effects. A simple storyline and a clear message are often sufficient;
- Entertainment value: Make your video entertaining to engage your audience and ensure they perceive it as enjoyable content rather than a sales pitch. This will encourage them to lower their guard and fully immerse themselves in your story;
- Mobile responsive: According to a recent Facebook survey, people are 1.5 times more likely to watch videos on smartphones than on computers. Utilize mobile-responsive video players such as YouTube, Vimeo, or Brightcove.
Edit Your Video
After shooting your video, it’s time to edit it to make it more digestible for your viewers. There are various cloud-based and desktop applications available for video editing, such as Canva, YouTube Editor, InVideo, Adobe Spark, iMovie for Mac, VSDC Free Video Editor for Windows, Apple’s Final Cut, Adobe Premiere, and many dedicated mobile apps like Clips mentioned above.
Don’t forget to add a suitable soundtrack that aligns with your theme or emotion. Voiceovers and graphic overlays can also enhance your video by reinforcing your branding and highlighting specific details.
In conclusion
To summarize, here are the steps to help you craft a compelling video story:
- Set a goal;
- Select your target audience;
- Brainstorm your story;
- Select a video format;
- Script your video;
- Create your video;
- Edit your video;
- Publish your video while considering the platform’s unique user experience.
Video is an exciting and versatile tool, akin to a paintbrush, allowing you to create visual stories tailored to your specific buyer persona, their stage in the buyer’s journey, and the culture of the chosen platform. Personalization and context are vital elements for video success.