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This came in from a discussion started by fellow producer Robert Weiss on our Web Video Marketing Council Group
on Linked In.
The informative article was originally posted on the ReelSEO website.
Like Robert, we have seen these common misconceptions time and again from larger clients down to small businesses.
on Linked In.
The informative article was originally posted on the ReelSEO website.
Like Robert, we have seen these common misconceptions time and again from larger clients down to small businesses.
1) If You YouTube It, They Will Come
This
is a very popular pitfall with flawed video strategies, the
‘strategy’ here being if you put your video on YouTube, people will
automatically flock to it and you’ll have a million views in no time.
This strategy is perpetuated by some of the YouTube statistics
that get thrown around, the classic being ‘4 billion hours of video are
viewed each month’. What this strategy fails to account for are the
statistics on the other side of YouTube about how much content is being
posted to YouTube (72 hours of video uploaded every minute).
Expecting
your video on YouTube to generate views by itself is like expecting a
needle to be found in a haystack, not once, but thousands (if not
millions depending on expectations) of times in a haystack that gets
bigger with every passing minute. Unless you are incredibly lucky
(we’re talking won the lotto more than once lucky), this just doesn’t
happen.
There are several steps to avoid this strategy pitfall and the most important is having realistic expectations.
This is not to say that you can’t expect six or seven digit view
numbers, but it is realizing that the likelihood of reaching that level
of viewership is directly proportional to the amount of resources you
are willing to invest. ‘Viral’ videos almost never happen completely
organically, especially when they are branded or commercial videos;
there’s a lot of work and sometimes money involved to ‘seed’ or
strategically promote the video to spark the initial rise of a ‘viral’
video that a lot of people don’t realize. If you want your video to be
successful on YouTube, you have to be prepared to put the leg work in and promote that video both on and off of YouTube.
2) One and Done
Another mistake in video strategy is creating and promoting just one video
or one video at a time. This is something that is easy to fall into;
with everything going on with your brand or at your company it can often
be hard to see past the present challenge, but to think one video is
enough or to treat your video content as a series of individual projects
is a huge mistake. Let’s say, for example, you create one video and it
is a huge success; it generates a lot of attention and buzz for your
company, you get a nice bump in traffic to your Web site or YouTube
channel and everyone is happy. Then, after month, a week or even a few
days, the traffic dies off and you’re back to where you started. Now
what? Did you spend all the time, money and resources to get your
content noticed for just a few minutes in the limelight?
For some,
maybe the answer is yes, but for smart marketers looking to maximize
ROI and get the most bang for their buck the answer should be a
resounding NO. They want sustained traffic increases, consistent
community engagement and measurable long term results. To achieve this
through video, the answer is serialized video content.
Creating recurring video episodes with consistent branding, themes and
creative execution should be part of all successful video campaigns. In
addition to building a permanent community for your videos, there are
often significant cost and time savings on creative and production when
videos are planned in bulk.
3) Everyone Likes Infomercials!
This flawed video strategy stems from the belief that people will not only watch, but actively seek out video advertisements on the internet. I can’t say that this never happens, there are some situations where it does (mainly with clever and entertaining commercials, think Super Bowl ads) but those are the exception and not the rule. Your average person will not hop on YouTube and say to themselves, “Gee, you know what I’d really love to watch? Infomercials!”
The key to avoid this faulty video strategy is matching your video content with the appropriate distribution method. If your video is an advertisement, you need to treat it as an advertisement
and secure viewing for it by paid placements. If you are attempting to
distribute the video organically you need video content that users WILL
seek out, content that in some way is valuable to the viewer. The sky
is the limit on what this content could be, but a classic example in the
commercial world is a series of how-to videos that showcase your
expertise in your subject matter and answer questions your target
audience is likely to have.
4) Strategy?
The last and most prevalent pitfall with video strategy is to not have one at all. A strategy for your video content is crucial to the success of your video marketing.
When you have the end goal for your videos in sight at the beginning
of the project, it enhances your ability to tailor everything about
them, from the creative concept to the optimization to the distribution
and promotion, to ensure you will hit your mark.
