Top tips for using videos on your website

Video marketing is fast becoming a ‘must have’ for today’s leading edge companies. So it’s probably about time we get over our Britishness and stop shying away from the camera…

Statistics show us that video usage is growing rapidly, and that the average internet user spends 88% more time on websites that have videos. Google measures time on site – and will reward sites that are sticky so it’s definitely worth considering.

Equally it seems that more and more people are happy to click through to a video that is sent in an email – in fact it’s a 96.4% increase in click through rates.  Landing pages that contain video also see an impressive 80% increase in conversions.

As ever quality is key so do seriously consider using a professional to create your video clips, but if that’s out of your budget you can of course create and edit one yourself using a digital video camera or even your Smartphone.

So the next process is deciding what to film?

Here are 3 things you could consider…

  • A brand documentary

Essentially this is your typical ‘About Us’ page – but using video instead of words to introduce your company, products and service, ethos and personality to your potential customers.

  • How-to videos

More and more people are using online tutorials to help them learn new skills so why not think about this approach too? You could use videos to show potential customers how to get the most out of your product or service… how useful would it be to have video to explain how to programme a new radio or an oven timer (ok yes I struggle with these!)

  • Expert Opinions

Replace writing a blog with a video where you give away valuable insights about your produce, service or industry (now why didn’t I think about that before I started writing…)

Once you’ve decided what to film, you’ll need to work out the content. Again do some preparation here and create your story board to keep you focused. Video clips should be short – think 1 or 2 minutes – and try not to be too scripted, not many people enjoy the hard sell or buzzwords. Equally the point of a video is to get your personality across so that you can create a connection that is not as easy to do with the printed word.

Lastly – don’t forget to include a call to action. Get the viewer to take some action at the end of the video (and make sure this action is trackable). It could be a link to a trackable URL or a unique phone number that they can call.

Happy filming!