As a business owner, you have always to stay above the learning curve regarding what you do in your adverting and marketing strategies. As technology changes, your target audience follows that trend, and they demand more and more from the content you provide.
Multiple platforms for mobile devices has created the need for increasing vigilance on the part of businesses to meet the changing needs.
Web content must always be interesting and engaging on your site, your blog, and your sales page, to engage an ever-changing audience. At times, it seems that businesses are in the entertainment business, rather than the publishing business when it comes to online content.
To help with this process, let’s take a look at how businesses and brands of all sizes need to start putting more consideration into their content marketing efforts, while also not settling for just text and image based content.
Is having a website enough?
When the web first started and businesses first made their presence online, having a website was enough. It was enough then because there were very few businesses that had websites. The competition was low. And people were easy to please. Now it’s not a question of if you are online… but how and where you are being seen. This is especially true for small business just getting online.
Creating Brand Evangelists
But today business owners must appeal to the customer where they are and provide the type of engaging content that they not only will connect with, but want to share with others. When you create content that people want to share, it is like arming your business with hundreds of individual sales representatives, and you don’t have to pay them a cent! This can all be done with a good video.
What is the appeal of video and animation?
One might wonder what the big deal is about the video. After all, we see numerous programs and commercials every day on network TV. Wouldn’t it seem that people would grow tired of a video? Amazingly, the amount of time people watch and engage with YouTube and other video platform sites has increased, the amount of time they spend with TV video has decreased.
Network TV Ratings are Dropping
According to this article by Variety magazine, on-demand viewing on mobile and other devices has created a sharp decline in TV viewing in recent months. Netflix is believed to be the cause of a 50% decrease in network TV viewing. Mainstream TV is in trouble. The TV audiences have moved online with their mobile devices. They are still hungry for content, but they are not looking for it in the same places that they did a decade or more ago.
The Play’s the Thing
People like the animated video because it appeals to their need for fun. Animations are cute. They are engaging. They draw us into the action. And they tell a story. Just like in ancient times when Shakespeare was creating “Hamlet,” the play’s the thing. People love a good show. They always have. And animated video appeals to the need to see a drama unfold.
You Don’t Have to Be Shakespeare
Even though the excitement for drama may have begun long ago, you don’t have to be Shakespeare to cash in on the results. Businesses of all sizes today are learning how to tap into the power of video marketing for their online ad strategies to create interest and fun around their brands.
Here are seven quick and easy ways you can bring your content to life with online video.
1. Tell a story. As we said before about animated video, people love a story. If you create an explainer video with your content, you will engage customers at a new and exciting level and create a story they will want to listen to over and over again and share with their friends.
2. Insert humor. Humor never gets old. In our day of endless tragedy in the media that we hear every day, people need a break from it. They need to smile and laugh. Coca-Cola’s “Smiles” campaign went viral, and they received millions of views shortly after launching that ad campaign. Was it any more sensational than their previous ad campaigns? Maybe not. But it made people laugh and smile. And that’s what they need.
3. Use whiteboard animations. Whiteboard animations are growing increasing popular in sales presentations today due to their ability to take the visitor through a presentation in the same way a live salesperson would if they were standing there before you. Don’t forget to ask a professional animation specialist how to get in on this video trend with your message and watch your revenue hit the ceiling.
4. Put the video on your blog. People love blogs because it tends to take the corporate out of the office and give them a personal touch. Sometimes the CEO or business manager does not write the blog, but when they do, there is a mass appeal to visitors. It gives the business owner a way to make a personal connection with their intended audience, share any updates on the company with people who visit the blog, and offer them a chance to respond. If you put an animated video on the blog, it will increase engagement even further and will serve as an excellent SEO enhancer by increasing your search results in Google.
5. Use video as a way to announce new releases. You can increase the hype of an upcoming product release with video as well. Using compelling animations through characters or whiteboard animations, you can quickly explain new additions your company is working on or talk to your current customers in video emails. Research shows that video emails increase click-through rates as much as 200-300%.
6. Use quick links to new video content on social media. Twitter now offers a way to do video ads within their platform. Like Facebook, you can incorporate video in your ads or posts to increase engagement and conversion rates. It would be wise to try this. But you need first to get the advice of a professional before launching an ad campaign so you will know how best to use your budget to get the most from your budget.
7. Create a caricature of yourself and put yourself in an animation. This will create a higher interest level in your business by putting yourself up front and center with your customers without using talking head. Animations are much more efficient than talking head video. By using animations and creating a caricature of yourself in the video, you can talk to and engage customers without actually having to be on camera.
These seven tips are relatively easy to apply, but some take more research and preparation than others do. The best thing you can do when planning your digital ad strategy is to analyze what you have in place now and how you can best utilize the power of video to help your brand. To see some examples of video animation work we’ve done for other clients, be sure to look through our video portfolio area.
How to Start Bringing Your Own Content to Life
The experts at InfographicDesignTeam.com know the business of animated video and bringing your best content and data to life. We can create original infographics, video animation and even make a caricature of you for the video. No matter we are creating for you and your brand, it will be engaging content that will drive traffic and keep people sharing your content and coming back for more.
So think about the web content that you currently have and how it could be made better and more efficient by using online video. The internet has become the new “network TV” that people watch when they want and where they want. With no time restrictions on time slots of when your material will run, you can set up a video cash machine that runs 24/7, 365 days per year. But you need some help to do it.
Contact us today to get started. Bring your content to life and engage customers like never before with animated video.
