Posted by When you think of today’s digitally dependent generation, endlessly scrolling through social feeds and jumping from one platform to the next, it’s no surprise that attention spans aren’t what they used to be.
The reality is people don’t consume information the way they used to, and as a brand, it’s important to know how to gain (and keep) their interest.
Why Video Storytelling Works
Most brands have either thought about or currently are using video in their marketing strategies. But while all types of video can be beneficial to simplifying your message and appealing to a wider audience, storytelling, in particular, can be highly effective.
Below are some reasons why video storytelling can be so impactful:
Human Psychology
When you think about it, stories are an important part of our social development and gaining a better understanding of who we are as humans. Narratives are a powerful way to describe specific scenes while educating or entertaining us. Think of the movies you watch or the books you love — all of them involve walking the audience through an engaging storyline.
When human psychology is applied in marketing strategies, stories can be a great way to create an emotional connection with the messaging you’re giving. This will ultimately make your videos more relatable to viewers and much more likely to be remembered.
Activates a Variety of Senses
The great thing about video storytelling is that it adds additional context to the images you use on websites or marketing materials. Although images can help an audience better visualize the products or services you’re offering, storytelling while using these images adds a whole other layer of engagement.
By combining moving images with specifically chosen soundscapes, voice narration, and on-screen text activates multiple human senses at once. This enables increased activity in the minds of the viewers which helps to support better comprehension of the information they’re taking in.
Better Shareability
Considering the amount of content circulating through an individual’s social feeds, getting attention to your brand isn’t always easy. However, interesting videos that are both short and eye-catching can be a great way to increase the shareability of your content.
People love sharing fun videos with others. If you create something that’s worth being watched more than once or provides really helpful information, there is a higher likelihood that it will be shared across social networks and reach a much wider audience than if you were having to target them specifically.
Types of Storytelling Videos
The great thing about using videos to market your products or services is that there are a variety of ways you can do so. Whether you’re looking for a more personal tone or a professional one, you can create different types of videos that speak to diverse audiences.
Below are some of the most common types of storytelling videos you can use:
Explainer Videos
Depending on the niche your brand is in, it may be harder to convey your messaging clearly when you also need to educate your audience about certain industry jargon or complex issues for which you’re trying to present a solution. This is where explainer videos can be a great option to market.
Explainer videos are typically short, animated videos that take more complicated points and make them easier to digest for a wider audience. Using this format, you’re able to break down certain elements into bite-sized information chunks, potentially creating a series of videos that can work well together to explain a topic.
The great thing about explainer videos is that they provide simple step-by-step learning that can be applied in a variety of business use cases. You could create a series of videos used when onboarding new customers to a subscription service or even marketing new features of existing products that you want to highlight.
However you choose to use an explainer video in your marketing, the key is to make it short and sweet while not distracting from the core messaging.
Testimonials
Although you may have a great product that you know is worth the value you place on it, this value can still be highly subjective when introduced to a new audience. This is why it’s important for you to leverage any praise you’ve received from your customers that you can showcase.
It’s easy to customize your website or videos to make it look like your product has all the answers to potential customers’ problems. However, today’s consumers are highly aware of when they feel like they’re being “sold” on an idea, rather than see real tangible value they can use.
This is why testimonials are such a great addition to your marketing strategies. Giving customers unbiased reviews of how your products or services solve real-world problems helps build confidence in others.
Customers will often trust other customers first when it comes to whether or not to make an investment in a product or service, which is why influencer marketing has become so popular in recent years.
Behind-the-Scenes
One of the most effective marketing strategies you can apply is to personalize your brand. This isn’t always easy to do, however, since most people are trained to be relatively cautious when trusting new companies.
A great way you can personalize your brand is by pulling back the curtain and creating videos that educate your audience about who you are and how you operate. This can help to place your brand in a more relatable scenario, helping others to see the creativity and authenticity that drives your business forward.
These videos are a great way to showcase testimonials from actual employees or highlight your company culture. While these features may not directly market a specific product or service, they help to build a foundation of trust in your viewers. They can also help to connect their purchases to a broader purpose, helping them to feel like they’re playing a part in supporting the brand’s mission and helping it to succeed.
Product Demonstrations
Another great way to use video to offer more value to your viewers is by creating a series of product demonstrations. Product demonstrations help you to take a product off a shelf and put it directly into the virtual hands of your audience.
Product demonstration videos help viewers see exactly how a product works or how it can be used in real-world scenarios. This can be highly effective when both identifying for your customers “why” they should purchase the product and “how” they can get the most value from it.
Product demonstration videos are also a great format to use when showcasing new updates to a previous line of products. You can help highlight changes from one version to the next while answering any common questions your users may often have.
Effective Video Storytelling Techniques
Before you start planning your next marketing video, it’s important to follow a few basic best practices to make sure you’re getting the best return on your investment.
Below are some video storytelling techniques you can apply:
Keep It Short and Sweet
You have a limited amount of time to gain the attention of an audience while only having 30 seconds to a minute long to keep it. This means that you’ll want to make sure your videos have a strong hook within the first few seconds and not be very long.
A good rule of thumb is to try to keep all of your videos less than two minutes long. Anything longer than this will more than likely result in you wasting your resources. If you have a larger topic to cover, it’s better to create a series of smaller videos rather than one longer one.
Optimize for Mobile Devices
More people use their mobile devices to browse the Internet than desktop computers. Because of this, it’s important that all of your videos are optimized to be responsive and play properly on smaller screens.
You may want to consider using vertical video editing formats that help to take up more real estate on smartphone screens. This can be particularly important when trying to make your videos shareable on platforms like Instagram and TikTok. You’ll also want to avoid using smaller text elements since these will be difficult for many viewers to read on a smaller screen.
Subtitles and Captions
Accessibility is another important thing you should keep in mind when creating your videos. Subtitles and captions will make sure your video’s messaging can be received by those who are deaf or simply have their devices on mute.
The great thing about subtitles is that most video-sharing platforms have technology embedded to automatically apply captions to your videos. However, not all platforms do this accurately, and it’s important to verify translation accuracy before distributing your content.
Distribute and Promote
Once you’ve created your videos, you’ll want to make sure they’re getting in front of the right audience. This will involve evaluating various distribution channels and choosing the ones that are applicable to the messaging you are giving.
While social media is typically the primary source of video distribution, you can also explore using your website or email marketing campaigns to get more views. You can also encourage additional engagement by using paid video advertisements on popular video distribution networks like YouTube or Vimeo.
Start Connecting With a Larger Audience
Video storytelling can be a powerful way to get your message out to a broader audience while increasing the likelihood of them engaging with your brand. By following the techniques discussed, you can make sure you’re seeing the best returns on your marketing initiatives while bringing in more leads and closing more sales.