By Roain McCormick

Published on September 13, 2023

Estimated Reading Time: 14 minutes

In a digital world teeming with content, video marketing has emerged as the most potent tool for forging genuine connections between brands and customers. By 2023, adults are projected to spend an astounding 80 minutes daily immersed in digital video content. As seasoned marketers, we recognize that the landscape is shifting, with the top-of-funnel gradually shrinking. This article will delve into a 7-step guide that not only enhances your social media video marketing strategy but also fosters authentic connections, and explores why the top-of-funnel is undergoing this transformation.

1. The Power of Purpose-Driven Goals

A remarkable video marketing strategy always commences with a crystal-clear sense of purpose. What do you aspire to achieve with your video content? While brand awareness remains a prominent objective, we now have the opportunity to go beyond mere awareness. Modern video marketing can guide customers through the entire buyer’s journey, creating a profound connection along the way.

Consider these five objectives, each aligned with a stage of the marketing funnel:

Awareness: Embrace Conscious Marketing

For many of us in the marketing realm, brand awareness continues to top our list of priorities. Yet, in this era of conscious consumerism, it’s vital to infuse your brand with a purpose that resonates deeply with your audience. Conscious marketing is not a mere trend; it’s a transformation of intent. Your video content should aim to capture the hearts and minds of potential customers, introducing them not only to what you offer but also to the values your brand embodies. In a world of fleeting attention spans, your video content must make an impactful statement quickly.

Consider using thought-provoking educational videos or passionate thought leadership pieces to establish credibility and define your brand identity. In these precious seconds or minutes, convey why your brand exists, what you stand for, and what sets you apart. When customers contemplate a purchase, your brand should be the first that springs to mind.

For certain brands, videos become pivotal in advertising. They may initiate on a product page on the website and then transition into a compelling social ad. This approach is particularly effective for direct-to-consumer brands where product videos are indispensable in helping consumers envision themselves with the product.

In the product video example below, the luggage brand effortlessly illustrates how their Rowledge backpack is versatile for any occasion. The video is not only relatable and succinct but can also be effectively utilized as a Facebook feed post or a promoted social ad.

Consideration: Nurturing Conscious Demand

As consumers transition into the consideration stage, they are already acquainted with your brand and its offerings. However, this is the stage where you can ignite demand for your products or services. Your videos should spotlight your product in action, making it effortless for viewers to visualize themselves using your offerings. How-to guides and tutorials provide a clear path for customers to understand how your product can address their needs.

When your audience witnesses how your product seamlessly integrates into their lives or resolves their problems, they become more inclined to engage with your brand.

But, consider this: customers no longer assess brands solely based on their products or services. In a shift underscored by the Sprout Social Index™, 74% of consumers now place higher importance on a company’s alignment with personal values than they did in 2021.

This is where your video content becomes a vehicle for portraying your brand’s narrative and core values. Establishing an emotional connection with your audience is key to securing their loyalty amidst fierce competition.

Decision: Fostering Authentic Conversion

The decision stage marks the pivotal moment where your objective is to transform prospects into loyal customers. Customer testimonial videos shine brightest in this phase, offering tangible evidence of the real benefits and potential of your products or services.

Consider Instant Pot, known for its iconic pressure cookers and appliances. While you might be aware of their products, you’d be pleasantly surprised to discover their vibrant Facebook community.

Instant Pot’s Community is a treasure trove of videos from both the brand and its members. Amidst product videos, the page primarily focuses on what customers can create using Instant’s home appliances.

Recipe videos, like the one below, allow customers to envision the multitude of recipes that can seamlessly fit into their lives, or rather, their mouths:

What sets this video apart as a strong decision-stage piece is its aspirational yet authentic quality. Instant Pot doesn’t just make promises to potential customers; they demonstrate that they’ve already earned the trust of their customers and made a difference in their lives.

Leverage this type of video content to illustrate to potential customers the real benefits that others have experienced and how they stand to gain from choosing your brand.

Adoption: Empowering through Education

The journey doesn’t end with making a sale. Once a prospect becomes a customer and enters the adoption stage, it’s crucial to educate them on how to make the most of your products and services.

Enter fun and energetic how-to videos, ideal for platforms like YouTube, Facebook, or IGTV. These platforms offer the time and space for customers to dive deeper into learning.

You have several options at your disposal:

– Educational Videos: If your products or services come with numerous features, cater to specific needs, or entail a learning curve, focus on educating your audience. Content centered on hacks, tips, optimization, or special features can demystify complexities and boost customer confidence.

– Webinars: These serve as highly effective mediums for real-time customer engagement, allowing them to ask questions and receive answers in real time.

– Live Streaming: Going live enables you to reach a broader audience. While attracting your most ardent fans and existing followers, live streams emerge as the third most engaging form of in-feed content.

Advocacy: Inspiring Evangelism

As you progress to the advocacy stage, you’re blessed with customers who sing your praises and champion your brand. The beauty of advocacy videos is that they don’t feel like a sales pitch. Instead, they tap into the organic, genuine love that customers have for your brand.

Leverage social listening tools like Sprout Social’s to capitalize on this love. With Listening, you can capture brand mentions from engaged profiles and surface user-generated content.

But advocacy videos aren’t limited to viral content or content solely from your fans. Consider bolstering your employer brand through employee advocacy content. Showcase your colleagues, providing an insider’s view of your company and explaining why they love working there.

2. Building Bridges on the Right Platforms

Every major social media platform has embraced video content. It’s imperative to leverage these platforms to connect with your audience effectively. Begin by focusing on platforms where you already have established audiences. According to the Sprout Social Index™, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok are the top platforms that consumers and brands anticipate using the most in the coming year.

Let’s explore when and why you should emphasize TikTok and YouTube for video marketing:

When to Use TikTok for Video Marketing

TikTok has undoubtedly popularized short-form video and earned its spot as a beloved app. According to the Sprout Social Index™, short-form videos are 2.5 times more engaging than their long-form counterparts. Additionally, short-form video ranks as the most engaging in-feed content, surpassing images and live video.

TikTok’s collaborative features, including Duets, combined with its vibrant culture driven by trends and sounds, offer brands novel avenues for creative video marketing. While TikTok is an exceptional awareness driver, it’s also capable of converting consumers into customers, as evidenced by trends like #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt.

When to Use YouTube for Video Marketing

Boasting over 2.5 billion monthly active users, YouTube remains one of the most favored video platforms among consumers and marketers. Beyond its massive user base, YouTube stands out as one of the world’s most popular search engines, with its videos regularly appearing in Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs).

YouTube is a versatile platform that can address all stages of the marketing funnel, ensuring that your strategy aligns with your goals, regardless of your choice.

Social Media Video Formats and Features

To make the right platform choices, you must comprehend the video dimensions and formats supported by each platform. This knowledge is vital, especially if you plan to repurpose your videos across multiple platforms.

As social platforms continually introduce new features, staying updated on what types of video content each platform supports and when additional editing may be required is crucial.

Here’s a quick reference guide, but be sure to check each platform’s video specifications for detailed information:

Facebook*
– Landscape and portrait feed video
– Facebook Live (live streaming)
– Facebook Stories (disappearing content)

Instagram
– Landscape and portrait feed video
– Live streaming (Instagram Live)
– Instagram Stories (disappearing content)
– Instagram Reels (short-form and long-form content)

YouTube
– Landscape video
– Portrait video (may require pillarboxing for some uploads)
– Live streaming
– YouTube Shorts (portrait, short-form video)

TikTok
– Portrait feed video
– Live streaming
– TikTok Stories (disappearing content)

Twitter (aka x.com)
– Landscape and portrait feed video
– Livestream

LinkedIn
– Landscape feed video
– Livestream

Pinterest
– Portrait feed video
– Idea Pins (a set of images, videos, or text similar to Stories)

Tasty’s social media content serves as an excellent example of how you can tailor your videos for different platforms. Their content varies not only in orientation but also in topics and series, ensuring that audiences discover original content on any Tasty social media page they visit.

3. The Art of Video Selection

Choosing the right video type is akin to selecting the perfect brush for a masterpiece. Not all videos are created equal, but each should harmonize with your brand’s objectives.

As a seasoned marketer, you’ll appreciate that modern consumers yearn for authenticity from brands on social media. According to the Sprout Social Index™, 51% of consumers wish to see brands highlighting their products or services, while 39% seek customer testimonials and demonstrations. An additional 34% desire content that showcases a brand’s personality and feels less produced.

Embracing authenticity is essential. Here are various social media video ideas that can bolster the authenticity your audience craves, while also supporting your brand’s goals:

– Educational Videos: These informative pieces can enhance brand awareness for new customers. They often adopt a more polished tone to establish your brand as an expert. For existing customers, educational videos can focus on guides and tips for maximizing product benefits.

– Explainer Videos: Similar to educational content, explainer videos educate the audience about your brand and its offerings. Use these videos to succinctly explain your company’s mission and how it solves specific problems. End with a compelling call to action to guide viewers along the marketing funnel.

– Behind-the-Scenes Videos: These provide a glimpse into your company’s operations and introduce your employees. Sometimes, they serve to entertain or offer a behind-the-scenes perspective.

– Interviews: Featuring guest speakers, interviews introduce your audience to new influencers while adding authenticity to your brand.

– Entertaining Videos: These encompass humor, adorable pets, and even pranks. Their sole purpose is to entertain the audience while amplifying your brand’s voice and fostering a sense of community among your viewers.

– Testimonial Videos: In marketing, these videos resemble customer showcases and help build social proof for your brand. Videos showcasing how customers use your product or service and their satisfaction with it operate on a connection level. Ideally, potential customers will see themselves in those videos and be inspired to make a purchase.

– Product Videos: These highlight the key features of your brand’s most popular products or services, showing them in action. Demonstrating what

makes your product unique can help customers visualize themselves using your brand.

– Narrative Videos: Tell a compelling story that leaves a lasting impression on viewers. Whether through animation or a documentary-style approach, narrate your brand’s founding story or share how you’ve solved customer problems.

Once you’ve determined which video types align with your brand, proceed to plan the actual content.

4. Crafting a Content Production Blueprint

A well-structured content production plan is your compass through the complex terrain of video creation. Whether you rely on spreadsheets or the trusty pen and paper method, your goal is to define how videos will be created and filmed.

If resources permit, partnering with an agency or production company can alleviate much of the stress associated with planning and approval processes, leaving you to provide guidance.

However, if you’re embarking on an in-house production journey, consider every step required to produce a successful video. This includes but isn’t limited to:

– Identifying necessary equipment and props.
– Crafting a script.
– Editing the script.
– Storyboarding the video.
– Planning the shoot for optimal filming (remember, filming isn’t always linear).
– Identifying and nurturing talent (those featured in the video).
– Choosing filming locations and accounting for natural daylight.
– Determining where to send the footage for editing.
– Specifying who will provide approval sign-offs at each step.

By diligently outlining your content plan, you’ll uncover areas for refinement and spot any missed elements, especially if this is one of your initial endeavors in crafting a comprehensive video content plan.

5. The Artistry of Post-Production

Post-production isn’t merely about stitching scenes together with music; it’s a multifaceted process that adds depth to your video content. The level of post-production work required depends on factors such as your video’s purpose and complexity.

Some videos may only need minimal post-production edits. For instance, when hosting a Facebook Live event, the video is immediately published after it concludes, allowing you to edit the caption and title but little else.

However, uploaded videos typically undergo a more elaborate post-production process. On YouTube, for example, you can add tags, multiple language closed captions, and detailed captions, among other elements. Optimize your content to stand out on YouTube, as it’s a video-centric platform that necessitates careful attention to both visuals and text.

6. Scheduling and Promotion Strategies

Once your video is polished and ready for the world to see, it’s time to schedule and promote it. Certain management platforms, like Sprout, offer comprehensive publishing options for videos, simplifying the process.

For instance, Sprout’s YouTube publishing options include details such as tags, categories, playlists, and privacy settings. As the only social media management software that allows you to schedule TikTok content on the same calendar as your other social posts, Sprout streamlines your video marketing efforts.

Consider videos as an ongoing asset rather than a one-time effort. A single, well-produced video can be repurposed across multiple platforms over an extended period. On platforms like Twitter, you can promote your video multiple times. In the case of live streams, regular promotion is essential to ensure a robust viewership.

One recording session can yield multiple videos. Different clips can serve promotional purposes or be combined to create new, engaging content. Think expansively when crafting your video promotion strategy.

7. The Art of Analysis

In the ever-evolving realm of video marketing, understanding the impact of your efforts is paramount. You can’t truly gauge a video’s performance without delving into the accompanying statistics. Metrics provide insights into views, watch times, shares, likes, comments, and more, allowing you to refine your strategy.

Each social media platform offers its native analytics, offering a unique set of video metrics. These metrics should align with the goals you established at the outset. For instance, if brand awareness was your video’s primary objective, metrics like impressions and video views would be of particular interest.

Consider incorporating a suite of analytics tools to gain a comprehensive perspective. For instance, Sprout offers a range of analytics tools, including TikTok analytics, which enables you to identify your most successful video posts. Unlike TikTok’s native analytics, which retain data for only 60 days, Sprout’s tools provide ongoing access to post performance data. This allows you to track how your TikTok videos perform over time, even when compared to content on other platforms.

Keep in mind that audiences may continue to watch your older videos. With the right keywords and evergreen topics, a video created years ago may remain relevant to your users today.

Now to Embark on Your Video Marketing Journey

There you have it, a comprehensive 7-step guide to not only enhancing your video marketing strategy but also fostering authentic connections with your audience. In an era where authenticity and conscious marketing are the cornerstones of success, leverage the power of video to forge lasting bonds with your customers.

Your brand’s narrative, values, and the impact you make on society are all integral components of your video marketing strategy. With the right approach, you can craft videos that not only elevate your brand but also resonate deeply with your audience. As you journey through this ever-evolving landscape, always remember that video is more than a medium; it’s a bridge that connects you to the hearts and minds of your customers.