Being an expert on content, I frequently critique webinars, videos and websites. I frequently find key aspects that are missing or so muted that they undermine the effectiveness of the original intent. So when two of my friends recently asked me to critique their videos, I was not surprised that their videos were similarly lacking.
One video looked very amateurish and appeared to be shot with a webcam. Although the speaker constantly smiled toward the camera ”“ which can be a positive if not overdone, her message was not clear or focused. The other video from my friend who owns a window and glass door service company was more on point. It focused on some of the common problems doors can have when not installed properly. The problem with her video was its length and that it was only toward the end of the video when she made her main point to her audience.
According to Comscore Video Metrix, U.S. consumers watched nearly 50 billion videos online in January. This astounding number is in addition to 27 billion viewed video advertisements. Furthermore, with Netflix and Youtube being responsible for 50 percent of download bandwidth, the presence of video and webinars in marketing strategies is increasingly important.
So, here are some key considerations to keep in mind when you script your videos and webinars that will improve your number of viewers and results.
– Keep it simple. Think KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid). Can you write your message in one or two sentences? If not, start rethinking it. And when you are happy with it, give it to someone who knows nothing about what you do. If they can understand it, so will your target market.
– Make sure your audience understands the purpose of your video (i.e. your message) in the first 20 seconds of your video. (Okay, you can probably go 30 seconds before they start to leave but why chance it?)
– Talk to your audience. Converse with them. Have a normal conversation with them. Although people who watch webinars and videos want to be entertained, they also want to be treated well. Remember, this is your target audience who deserves the utmost respect ”“ and expects it.
– Sell one thing. It doesn”™t matter if you”™re discussing your services, a product, how to do something or a solution to a problem. Focus on only one element. Otherwise, you will dilute your message and confuse your audience. It”™s much easier and more effective to make multiple videos, instead of one long video. Not only do you keep to the one-message-to-one-video paradigm, but you now have multiple chances to stay in front of your target audience.
– Create a script that you have tested, reworked and practiced (at least five times). Often when people are speaking, they pause or emit the sound “um.” They rarely realize they are doing this, particularly when they are speaking without a script. Similarly, people believe that they know their subject matter sufficiently that they can adlib a video. They probably do know the former but they certainly can”™t do the latter. It usually sounds terrible and their message is muted. Such was the case with one of the videos I mentioned above. Write out your entire script and rewrite it when necessary. And then practice, practice, practice ”“ just like almost every actor.
– Always include a call to action (CTA). Every webinar and video (and arguably a website) should have a CTA. Otherwise, why do any of them? Make sure your CTA is clear and concise. For videos and webinars, you should also include the text within the presentation itself.
Both videos and webinars can be amazingly effective. However, to be successful, they require much thought and planning. With the increasing number of viewers and videos being viewed, just using a webcam or an unnecessarily long video is no longer acceptable.
