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This past February, 179 million U.S. internet users watched almost 38 billion online videos.
That’s a lot of zeroes to go around, which is probably why 76% of marketers are planning to increase their video strategies this year.
Last week, we talked about how video can help increase engagement on Facebook.
This week, let’s take a look at how small businesses and organizations can make a video, promote it, and … dare I say it, go viral.
1. Don’t get caught in the quality trap
At the Nonprofit Technology Conference last week, Danny Alpert and Michael Hoffman of See3 discussed how to get started with video. One of the first rules?
“Don’t feel boxed in by quality,” Danny explained.
Take a look at Funny Cats in Water, which has 18 million views. This is not a professional production – the clips here are shot with digital cameras, flip cameras, and smartphones.
YouTube has established a new norm of quality: sleek video almost always takes a backseat to compelling content, whether it makes viewers laugh or cry or both. Which brings us to the next point…
2. Know your audience
When marketers want something to “go viral,” they often don’t think about why people will watch the video… or who will watch it.
“We often plan for videos in a vacuum,” Danny said. He added that “the general population does not exist. That’s a fallacy.”
To frame your video, you need to think about who will watch and what they will get from it.
How long do you watch a YouTube clip before finding something else interesting? 30 seconds?
You have half that time to engage the viewer.
3. Keep it simple
Danny told the audience that keeping a video simple means keeping it focused. “Every video doesn’t have to tell the whole story.”
Stay relentlessly focused on that one topic for the whole video.
4. Step out of the limelight
It may be tempting to put your organization in the center stage of a video. After all, it’s your video.
Michael warned against that instinct. “Be the moon, not the sun,” he advised.
The video should reflect the impact of products and services through the sun – and the sun is your customer.
5. Include a call to action
Danny insisted that not having a call to action in a video is “a cardinal sin.”
Viewers should be encouraged to do something after watching, because otherwise they may forget about the clip as soon as they watch the next one.
If that’s the case, why did you bother making a video at all?
Linking to social media can be a natural next step, particularly if you’ve created a theme that carries over to Facebook, whether that’s an initiative, a special deal, or an event.
6. …and share the video!
YouTube is a go-to destination for videos, but it’s not necessarily a place where your video will be trumpeted as The Next Big Thing.
Don’t forget to promote your video to existing places where you connect with customers. This is where both email marketing and social media come into play.
If you have Social Campaigns, you can like-gate a video and make it exclusive for fans of your Facebook Page.
If not, you can showcase your videos through emails, like Stephen Quick of Splintered Studios. Stephen embeds YouTube videos in some newsletters, and sometimes shows off a virtual gallery at the bottom his emails.
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