Theresa Cofield

Video marketing is the practice of using audio and visual recordings to connect with an audience and provide information about your products and services. If done correctly, you can reach a variety of markets and keep your audience engaged. But many companies make mistakes with their video marketing strategy. This article looks at the ten most common mistakes made in video marketing. 1. Making a video without a plan There’s a famous saying that failing to plan is planning to fail – and this is true for video marketing. Don’t just wake up one day and decide to create a video without having a game plan on how to go about it. You should ask yourself the purpose of your video, the message you hope to pass across, and how strategic it is. Don’t start making the video until you have the answer to these questions. Once you do, you’ll be able to map out a plan on what it should contain and how long it should be. Just think of it as visiting online dating sites with images of the type of person you hope to meet in mind. You wouldn’t just want to meet anyone. In the same way, you don’t want your video to be without direction. 2. Making long videos When making videos, time is a crucial element, and you must pay attention to it. For example, until recently, Instagram videos didn’t last longer than a minute. That was all the time that brands marketing on the platform needed, to pass across their message. The first 10 seconds of your video will determine if people will keep watching it or move on to something else. Also, if it lasts too long, they’ll lose interest. The best thing to do is to communicate your message in the shortest possible time. The video should neither be too long or too short; strike a balance between the two. 3. Not branding correctly Here’s what most people don’t know: branding is crucial in video marketing like in other advertising forms. If you don’t brand your videos, no matter how great it is, anyone who sees it will remember the content but not your company’s name. This is because most times, you focus so much on the video coming out beautifully that you forget this detail. To fix this, brand your video with your logo, website URL, or any other form of identification you have. 4. Making it too complex In developing a mind-blowing video strategy, it is easy to lose sight of what’s simple. Without realizing it, you can make the video more complex than it needs to be. You should avoid this at all costs. Making your video too complex means you won’t be able to communicate what you need to. For example, YouTube bumper ads only last for about six seconds and should be as simple as possible. If you’re using this, you can’t add too many intricate details. Thus, focus on communicating something simple about your brand. 5. Not focusing on a single message If your video has several messages, it will look like a scatterbrain without a focus. For example, your video can’t talk about your new product, new office location, and exemplary employees simultaneously. If you try communicating too many things at once, your audience will not learn anything. They will lose interest along the way, and chances are they will not remember anything about the product you plan to sell. The only way to avoid this is to focus on one message at a time. If you want to cover other topics, make a separate video for them. 6. Overblowing production values Your video marketing content and quality need not be an Oscar-worthy production. Sometimes, as seen in most online videos, all you need is a good camera, perfect lighting, and someone to shoot. If you want to make decent videos without being overly bothered about quality, consider investing in lights and a camera. Also, you can opt to hire a professional team to help you shoot your videos if it’s within your budget. Splento.com has simple, fixed pricing at a level that will suit every budget. This includes editing – and delivery within 48 hours! 7. Failing to include a call to action (CTA) A call to action includes words like “Call us today,” “Visit our website,” or “Follow us on our social media outlets.” Your video marketing must have these words at the end to prompt the viewer to take a step. That’s what a call to action is about. It points your audience in the next direction and helps them make a decision faster. Thus, always add a CTA at the end of the video, and ensure it’s clear. 8. Not implementing SEO practices Search engine optimisation (SEO) applies to written content, social media posts, and video marketing. If you produce a video without using proper SEO technique, you will miss out on the opportunity to make your content rank high. But if you do, you can increase views and traffic to your website. Furthermore, having a solid video marketing SEO strategy will help you increase your ROI down the road. To achieve this, use keywords in your video title. Ensure the words are related to the content and the industry you work within. Spend adequate time writing the video description, and insert keywords and name tags. 9. Placing selling points in the wrong place Just as you must place keywords in the right place, you must insert your product or brand’s selling point in the right place. If you put valuable information at the end of your video, chances are your audience will miss it. As mentioned earlier, your viewers will likely not watch the entire video, especially if it is too long. Therefore, insert the selling point within the first 10 to 20 seconds of the clip. You can also take a journalistic approach by placing vital information at the beginning of the video. You can say something along the line of “Getting XYZ will do…” That is enough to get someone interested, and then you can pass along the rest of your message. Remember that if you desire to catch a fish, you must first get it to take the bait. 10. Choosing the wrong video partner Your video partner can either make or mar your video marketing. If the person you work with lacks the required expertise, experience, and knowledge, it will affect your entire strategy. This is because even if your videos are not Oscar-worthy, they must be of high quality. A visually unappealing video will not get views, and without it, no one will listen to your message. In the long run, it will affect your brand and the public’s perception of it. To avoid this, pick the right partner, and ask yourself if you have the time and resources to commit to producing quality videos. If the answer is no, feel free to visit the website mentioned earlier. Video marketing is a powerful advertising strategy if done correctly. It helps your brand perform well and engage better with customers. The only things that can keep this from happening are the mistakes mentioned in this article. You’ll do well to avoid them, and improve on your video marketing strategies. Author Bio. Contact Splento if you are in need of: Event Photography and Videography Professional Headshots eCommerce Photography and Videography