Whether you’re reshaping the future of tech, food, fashion, or any other space, your startup needs passionate supporters and enthusiastic investors.
Sure, your team could spread the word via content promotion strategies like podcasts and blog posts. But video marketing can be so much more effective at every stage of the sales funnel.
After all, video generates 66% more qualified leads per year.
Ready for more sales?
Here are nine ways to grow your startup with video marketing.
1. Product Spotlights
Do you want to introduce your product or show off a main feature? Share short product spotlights to educate prospects.
What Are Product Spotlights?
Spotlights are short videos that focus on a single product or service. If you want to get really specific, you can even center on a single feature.
You can share them in a bunch of useful places:
- Upload them to a sales page
- Share them on social media
- Make them the focus of a blog post
Why They’re Awesome
Product spotlight videos are great for improving brand awareness. They make it easy for customers to associate your startup with a particular product or feature.
These videos can also do double duty as organic or paid content. Since they tend to be short and to the point, they fit seamlessly into digital ad campaigns.
2. Explainer Videos
Showing prospects how your product solves a problem is easier than you may think. Create explainer videos so customers can see why you’re the right choice.
What Are Explainer Videos?
How-to or explainer videos address a common issue your target audience faces. In the process, they position your startup as a solution and show how you can help.
Ideally, your audience is searching for solutions to the issue your videos cover. That’s where good search engine optimization (SEO) comes into play.
If you follow video SEO best practices, your explainers will turn up in relevant searches. You’ll want to:
- Do keyword research and add search terms to video descriptions.
- Hook viewers right away so they want to see more.
- Develop an engaged following and a YouTube channel with authority.
Why They’re Awesome
Explainer videos make excellent evergreen content. You can produce one or two high-quality videos and continue to benefit from them in the long run.
3. Demo Videos
With demo videos, you can give prospects an in-depth walkthrough of your app or tech platform. They’re often the ticket to generating leads and driving sales.
What Are Demo Videos?
Demo videos show how your product works. They give prospects a sense of your product’s capabilities and user experience (UX).
A demo can help prospects think about how to incorporate your platform into their workflow. You can even add interactive elements for more customized insights.
Why They’re Awesome
If you run a tech or software as a service (SaaS) startup, you need a way to get customers to start using your product. Demo videos can do just that by driving conversions like free trials and paid subscriptions.
4. Behind-The-Scenes Snapshots
Are your customers curious about the faces behind your brand? I’ve found behind-the-scenes snapshots critical for creating more personal connections.
What Are Behind-The-Scenes Snapshots?
Behind-the-scenes snapshots let you introduce your team or your facility. They’re best for connecting with serious prospects and cultivating loyal customers.
What’s the appeal?
These videos essentially serve as short documentaries that show your process or your team at work. Viewers get to feel like they know your brand on a deeper level.
Why They’re Awesome
If your startup makes a high-priced product, then you may have to work harder to get customer buy-in. Taking prospects behind the scenes helps build trust and prepares customers to buy.
5. Team Livestreams
Why not connect with customers in the moment rather than via recorded video? Host livestreams so you can interact directly with prospects.
What Are livestreams?
Livestreams are real-time videos that can be completely impromptu or scripted in advance. Even if they’re planned ahead of time, they feel more genuine.
Plus they give you tons of opportunities to answer questions, respond to comments, or connect one-on-one with customers.
Why They’re Awesome
When deciding whether to support a new startup, seeing the team in action can seal the deal. From webinar-style presentations to question-and-answer sessions, I’ve found livestreaming extraordinarily helpful for real-time interaction.
6. Podcast Visualizers
Podcasts are great for getting the word out about your brand. But you can take them a step further by sharing videos of the creation process.
What Are Podcast Visualizers?
Podcast visualizers are videos of your team during the audio recording session. They’re almost identical to the podcast itself—but with video instead of audio only.
That means they’re ideal for prospects who would rather watch a video than listen to a podcast. Plus they can help you get more mileage out of any podcast you join or produce.
Why They’re Awesome
If you are featured on a high-profile podcast, you want it to get as much traction as possible. By sharing a video of the session on your website or on YouTube, you can get more exposure and increase sharing opportunities.
7. User-Generated Content
Sometimes the best video marketing doesn’t come directly from your team. With user-generated content (UGC) you can incorporate influencers into your workflow.
What Is UGC?
UGC refers to videos that customers and influencers produce independently. Typically you’ll find them on social media channels like Instagram or YouTube.
They might show your product in action or feature a rave review. With permission from the original creator, you can use them for your startup’s marketing purposes.
Why It’s Awesome
Your brand’s content might be amazing. But your target audience is 2.4 times more likely to see UGC as more authentic than branded content.
By sharing high-quality UGC, you can add a sense of authenticity to your marketing mix. You can also build relationships with the influencers who create UGC and forge long-term partnerships.
8. Customer Testimonials
For many startups, a friendly recommendation can be the most effective sales tool. With testimonials, you can use customers’ words to drive more business.
What Are Testimonials?
Testimonials are videos of actual customers discussing their experience with your products or services. They let customers talk about your brand in their own words.
Customer testimonials can be incredibly effective:
- More than 90% of consumers check testimonials before making a purchase.
- Marketers consider them one of the two most effective content marketing methods.
Why They’re Awesome
Testimonials serve as social proof, which can influence people’s purchasing decisions in a big way. If prospects see that their peers use your products to solve common problems, they’re more likely to make the same choice.
Which video marketing tactic should you try first? It depends on the age of your startup and the sales funnel stage that needs the most work.
If you’re brand new to the market, consider starting with bottom-of-the-funnel content like demo videos. That way you can get customers in the door before you focus on building your brand.
If your startup already has a solid customer list, consider focusing on brand awareness instead. That way you can generate buzz and get more prospects in your sales pipeline.
Either way, test out a few types of video marketing so you can see what drives optimal results for your startup. Monitor metrics closely to identify what works best—and then scale your video strategy to leverage the benefits.
9. SEO Efforts
Videos help businesses outperform their competition in several other ways. One of them is by improving the SEO performance of the brand as a whole.
How Videos Help With SEO
- Videos Add to the Quality and Depth of the Content: Videos provide the much-needed visual context to the written content on a page. People will flock to a page that provides useful information in an easily understandable and engaging manner. Nowadays, adding just the text content isn’t enough to attract and engage visitors.
- Videos Improve Dwell Time: Website visitors spend more time on the web page that has videos. By increasing the dwell time, videos support the SEO efforts of the site. Search engines consider higher dwell time as the visitor’s upvote (thumbs up) for the web page.
- Videos Support Link Building Efforts: Backlinks are a vital ranking factor. With your video content spread across various social media channels, you can improve the quality and quantity of your backlinks.
Editor’s Note: The article is part of the blog series Grow Your Business, brought to you by the marketing team at UniTel Voice, the virtual phone system priced and designed for startups and small business owners.
