Gaining traction in the online marketplace can be a challenge—there’s a whole sea of competing content out there, all vying for your ideal audience’s time and attention. Before you can convince the leads you want to reach out to your business, you have to convince them to stop what they’re doing and spend some time with the content you’ve created.

So how do you create marketing content that stands out in crowded email inboxes and busy social media feeds? Creating interesting, useful content that speaks to your target audience is a key first step, but even that won’t always help you catch potential leads’ attention.

If you really want to boost the engagement your audience has with the content you produce, it’s time to embrace one of the most powerful digital marketing tools at your disposal: video marketing.

Why video marketing?

If you’re taking the time to read this, it probably means your company already has some kind of digital marketing strategy in place—or you’re just getting started and looking to create one.

And that probably means you’ve already encountered (and possibly used) online advertising standbys like blog posts, email drip campaigns, PPC ads, and organic social posts. All of these forms of content can be useful in their own way, but if all of your marketing content is purely text-based, they’ll also all have one key thing in common: they require lots of reading.

Don’t get us wrong, written text is a great way to convey and process information. But there’s also a lot of it online, and in 2022, we all spend a little too much time reading on computer and mobile screens.

Video offers your audience a way to gather key information while also taking a break from all that reading—and an increasing number of the leads you want actually prefer to engage with your content this way.

Just take a look at a few of the following stats:

• The amount of online video people watch has almost doubled since 2018
• 88% of people have been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a video
• 73% report that they prefer to learn about a product or service by watching a short video—compared to only 11% who prefer to read text-based content

The bottom line? Your audience wants the opportunity to engage with your company and your content through video. It’s easier, it’s more convenient, and it makes it more likely that they’ll take the time to learn about what you do.

And if you need any further convincing, you should know that your competitors are already starting to leverage the power of video. 86% of businesses now use video as a marketing tool, and 87% report that video gives them a positive ROI. If you’re not using video as a part of your marketing strategy, you’re letting your competitors snag the slice of your audience that prefers to engage with content through video.

Seven great ways to use video marketing

Video is a flexible marketing tool, and your company can work video content into almost all of the marketing channels you already use. Videos can be included in email campaigns, posted to your site or a corporate YouTube channel, used as a part of presentations at industry conferences and events, or shared through your social media feed.

The specific types of video content that will work best for your company will depend on your industry, your brand, and the products or services you offer, but all of the following can serve as useful additions to your digital marketing strategy.

1. Product demos

Your ideal leads will want to know how your products or services work before they reach out. Videos are an easy and accessible way to showcase your product or services to your audience and encourage leads who are directed to your website to spend a bit more time before they move on.

2. Customer testimonials

Customer and client success stories are one of the best ways to build more trust in your brand.

Before they commit to your product or services, your leads will want to see how your company has helped others with similar issues. Short testimonial videos can showcase exceptional service or a superior product in a way that’s human and relatable.

3. Employee recognition videos

Spotlighting your employees can demonstrate your company culture and brand values to potential leads—and it also makes your employees feel more valued and seen.

Prospects like to be able to see the “face” behind the brand, and employees like to work for companies that will advocate for them, acknowledge them, and help them build their careers. A simple shout-out video can be a win-win for both your team and your marketing efforts.

4. Webinar series

Webinars promote accessible learning opportunities in the format most professionals prefer (you guessed it—video). In fact, 53% of marketers report that webinars are the top-of-funnel format that brings in the most high-quality leads.

Hosting regular webinar series allows you to demonstrate your company’s expertise, engage in thought leadership, and better explain the benefits of your products and services to leads who might be interested but not quite ready to sign on.

You can also record your webinars to serve as gated content on your site or repurpose recordings to share as content through social media or other venues.

5. Company culture spotlights

As we noted above, your leads want to see the more human side of your company. Putting together videos that spotlight your company culture is an excellent way to showcase your brand’s values while also showing your employees as the relatable, talented, three-dimensional people they are.

There are almost infinite possibilities for this kind of post—you can create videos to highlight recent company outings, employees enjoying happy hour together, daily activities inside the office, and more. The important thing is that these videos give your audience a fun glimpse into who you are and what you represent as a company.

6. Company mission and value statements

You probably already have a mission statement or a list of core values somewhere on your site (and woven into your internal company policies). But the chances of your audience actually taking the time to click through to your “Our Mission” page and read the whole thing are slim.

Videos explaining (or demonstrating) your company’s mission and values are an accessible, shareable way to show your audience what you stand for. They also give company executives the chance to address your audience more directly and serve as an ambassador for your brand.

7. Explainer videos

Explainer videos are informative, educational resources that guide members of your audience through issues they may be facing or questions they may have about your product or services.

Explainers are somewhat similar to product demos, but while demos aim to quickly convince a lead that your product or service is worth investing in, an explainer will take a deeper dive to answer their underlying questions and concerns. Typically, a good explainer video will also include eye-catching, fun animations to make the viewing experience more dynamic and visually illustrate key points.

Explainer videos can establish your company as a source of expertise and a helpful resource. They’re a great way to entice your audience to get to know your brand further—and to trust you enough to reach out when they need the products or services you offer.

Extend your marketing reach with video sharing through Clearview Social

As a leading employee advocacy platform, Clearview Social helps businesses reach more qualified leads through social media.

Our platform allows your marketing team to effortlessly queue your content to be shared by your employees—so you can reach more leads and get the most possible value from your content in less time. Employees can schedule your posts to be shared in only one click, making it easy and painless for your whole team to amplify your social marketing efforts.

And to boost the effectiveness of your social campaigns even further, Clearview Social now includes native video sharing. Using our intuitive user interface, you can easily upload videos to be shared on social media, along with whatever text you’d like to include.

To get started with better video marketing today, click the button below.Get A Free Demo