Competitive Videos For Small Businesses - 7 Ways To Boost Your Brand

By now you’ve probably heard all about how video can help your business. You might already be making videos, or at the very least, you know why you should!

If you’re wondering how to use video to market your small or any sized business, Jam Shakeshaft Video is here to help you get started. We’ve rounded up a list of seven different ways your business should be using video, so you can get started on receiving the benefits from professional video content.


INTRODUCTION VIDEOS

Part one of the Curvabilis yoga course held by Megan Marcelle Yoga.

1. Introduce Yourself and Explain What You Do

Some of the best small business videos are a simple hello. Not only are you adding a face to your business, but you can add a video to your homepage or social media platforms simply outlines what you do and what problem you solve for your customers. Even better, keep it under 60 seconds so your message, sale or service is absorbed by the viewer.

You’ll find this is a lot more effective than trying to cram the same explanation, sale or services into the headline and first paragraph of your home page. all while struggling to keep everything above the fold.

The combination of both audio and visual stimulation in short introduction video makes describing complex concepts much easier—and easier to understand to the viewer.

Take advantage of this by adding a few in-depth videos that explain the details of your product features or the different services you offer for viewers to discover once they’re hooked. These can live on a separate section of your website, drawing viewers in for further education to help them decide to buy or commit to a service.


TESTIMONIAL VIDEOS

Johnson & Boon's Legal Guard - Recommendation from Naked Media

2. Highlight Social Proof with Video Testimonials

If you’re doing your job right, your biggest brand advocates should be your customers or clients. Why not get them in front of a camera and share what it is that makes them love your product and your company so much?

First-hand accounts are much more effective for your audience than hearing the same people from your company do the same pitch over and over again. In fact, 46% of adults in the UK say they trust consumer-written online reviews, while only 10% trust ads on websites and 9% have faith in written messages from brands, according to research from Forrester.

Video customer testimonials are way more believable and affective than the standard, one-line blurb.
It’s the difference between this:

“I couldn’t believe what ABC company did for my wedding!” – Sally, NYC

Johnson & Boon's Legal Guard - Recommendation from Naked Media

And this… (the video above) This video provides the connection from meaningless words on a page to something thats heartfelt and meaningful.





EDUCATIONAL VIDEOS

A short, punchy icon animation to fit in time with the voiceover. This animation was to explain why to choose Sykes Holiday cottages in a unique and captive ...

3. Educational videos

Providing education to address a problem/pain point for your target audience is a great way to get noticed. Start with a little keyword research to find high search volume keywords in your niche. There are a variety of content formats to help you create educational videos including live-action videos, whiteboard videos, and webinars.

The key to these videos is that they’re short yet very informative. Whether you are in the business of selling business tools or consumer products related to health and beauty, educational videos are a great way to start building a long-lasting relationship with your audience. Businesses that are cause-related can use educational videos to explain their cause in an interesting way.

A short animated video containing property content and animated facts and figures. This education video is used by Sykes Holiday Cottages at networking events and PR shows.

Educational video content is critical for spreading awareness about your products and services. You should regularly produce quality educational videos. The strategy will fetch you more attention for your brand and a growing subscriber base for your content. They are equally helpful in capturing and nurturing leads.


PROMOTIONAL VIDEOS

A business promotion video for The Mucky Paws Club. Nikki at The Mucky Paws Club is a huge lover of all breeds of dog. Not only does this video portray this,...

4. Business Promotion & Corporate videos

Corporate and business promotion videos serve to showcase your company and its vision to your audience. It is the ‘About Us’ page of your website converted into a live-action video!

A corporate or business advertisment video includes details like:

  1. Strengths of a company and its team

  2. Details about the business infrastructure and quality standards

  3. Awards and achievements

  4. products or services we offer

Corporate videos build trust among your audience and focus more on the corporate brand, its values, and its objectives. These videos can be very influential in converting prospects who are considering a variety of options.

Here is a very cool example of how you can use your corporate video to advertise space, office, or building to rent. Using motion graphics within your corporate videos are a cost-effective way to create impactful business videos (which can be a huge plus).

The Capital is the largest office building in Liverpool extending to over 410,000 sq ft with an occupier mix including UKBA and RSA. Situated within a prime ...

EXPLAINER & DEMO VIDEOS

5. Explainer, informative, installation and demo videos

An essential part of marketing your products and services is to explain their unique value proposition.

91% of consumers have watched an explainer video to learn about a product or service. - Strategic

An explainer video is an animated video that illustrates the core features of your products and services in simple terms. It uses animated characters, text, graphics, and a narrative to tell your product story. Just note: You must use a professional voiceover and music while creating an explainer video.

Explainer videos are extremely beneficial for startup companies and businesses selling complex technology products.

Such videos are helpful in the capture stage of the buyer’s journey. You can put up your explainer video on your landing page along with a relevant Call-to-Action, to collect some qualified leads for your business.


EVENT HIGHLIGHT & MARKETING VIDEOS

The Wirral Life™ Awards 2019 Highlight Video Here are the best parts of the event. a huge congratulations to all the Wirral businesses, both the winners and ...

6. Event videos

Promoting your events on social media is a great way to strengthen your relationship with your fans and followers.

Video of a live event increases brand favorability by 63%. - Twitter

You can get professional videographers to record corporate event videos and then post them up on your social pages. Live streaming on social media is a trend that’s proven to work and requires minimal resources. You can live stream short snippets of your business events as stories on Instagram or as live videos on Facebook and Twitter.

Event promotion videos are very helpful in nurturing your existing leads and building deeper relationships with them. They do this by creating hype around your brand and its newly launched products, and spreading the word! If you are a big brand with a large, geographically dispersed audience, then videos like these are a must!


‘THANK YOU’ VIDEOS

7. ‘Thank You’ Videos

Thanking your customers is a great way to make them feel special.  These type of videos also work equally well in helping you to retain your existing clients and get more business from them. You can use any video format to thank your customers, but creating a very personal video would surely add more value.

Here is an example of a striking ‘Thank you’ video from Talbots, a US-based women’s fashion brand.

In this video, the whole executive team of Talbots comes together to thank their customers. The video gives the audience a sense of being a part of the Talbots community - of women who love to dress well. Videos like these help in bringing out your brand values and making your audience feel connected to those values. All types of B2B and B2C brands can make use of ‘Thank You’ videos for higher customer retention. Make sure you have a large customer base and you’ll definitely benefit from such videos.


If you are considering video to help promote your business, then why not contact Jam Shakeshaft Video today for a creative approach and competitive quote.


How To Market Your Holiday Home Using Video

Struggling to find the answer on how to market your holiday home? Want to know the best way to advertise a holiday let?

Jam Shakeshaft Video has had so many clients in this position before. Just not knowing the best way to advertise a holiday home or cottage and frankly, how to market their holiday homes.

 The answer is quite simple… use video.

Firstly, why use video?

Video marketing is found in almost every business marketing communications (70% of marketers plan to use video marketing this year) and there is a good reason. Simply just having a video on a landing page can increase your booking rates by 80%.


What does this mean for clever holiday homeowners like yourself?

 

We know the pain of having to be part of all these comparison sites. The endless list of sites you have registered on from airbnb.com to booking.com still just doesn’t seem to get you fully booked. Imagine if you could stand out on all your other channels… well keep reading.


1. Get a promotional video

Whether it be us or another video production company you must get a promotional video. With so many channels not just supporting video but having such promising outcomes, there isn’t a better time.

One thing we recommend to all holiday homeowners is that you think of a promotional video as an investment. You’ve heard the term a picture speaks a thousand words… Well, a video speaks a million then gets you bookings. It creates an inclusive experience and really shows your holiday home in the best light. Something pictures don’t do.

Prediction: comparison sites such as booking.com and airbnb.com don’t support video yet however we predict that they’ll be supporting video by the end of 2019. As of now, some booking sites support this. At this moment in time, we recommend leaving a link in the description. 

Here are some promotional videos for holiday homes that Jam Shakeshaft Video has created:

2. Get more video content

 

Even if this is stuff you do yourself. You’ll be surprised what footage you can get from something you have in your pocket. Yes, it may be a bit raw and rough around the edges but we’re in a world of social where footage is expected to be rough. As long as you cover some simple steps to really up your production value.

To really up your production value send it to your video footage to a video production company that has an editing service. It means they’ll clean up your footage so it looks professional. Whether it be by adding an intro or outro or a call to action at the end. We always recommend a call to action at the end like ‘book now’. Or ask for the footage they took when filming for the promotional video. Chances are there is some unused footage that would be beneficial.


3. Share your promotional video content

 

Firstly, share your promotional video. However, you want this to be at the centre of each channel. You want to make your promotional video your cover photo on your Facebook business page. You want it to be the feature video on your youtube channel and not just another video. Put it in your e-mail signature and make sure you can find it on your Google My Business account. This would also be the video you use for any ads you would do across your platforms.


4. Share your other video content

 

Your shorter content should be shared across your channels as posts. This just means they see your holiday home in a different light (and not just seeing the promotional video being posted time and time again). These small videos are touchpoints for your potential bookings and this strategy could be what makes you them extra bookings or even full book.

 After, you’ve got a marketing promotional video that makes your holiday home the most desirable, with additional video content that whets the viewer’s appetite and leaves them wanting more. Before you know it, you’ve got a 2020/2021 video marketing strategy that’s guaranteed to get you bookings for your holiday home. This is the best way to advertise your holiday let.

 

If you’re reading this and want to work with a video production company that’s experienced in your market, that cares about your project and knows how to maximize your bookings with video, we’re more than happy to take a call.