Quick Tips on Creating an Effective Promotional Video
Creating the perfect promo video for your brand, product or service can entice potential customers to take action while keeping existing customers coming back for more. We’re showing you some quick tips on creating an effective promotional video that will drive consumer awareness and generate trust for your brand.
But what exactly is a promotional video? Often referred to as a promo, these videos express the brand, sale, event or some other product or service associated with a business. Promotional videos for business generally use a similar style and tone to a short teaser or trailer such as you would see created for an upcoming move. The ideas is to spark the viewer’s interest in a way that makes them want to get involved.
Examples
Common examples of promo videos include:
- Videos that offer special event promotions to entice visitors to participate in the event.
- A 50% off promotion for lawn and garden equipment over Labor Day weekend.
- A video that shows viewers past events and encourages them to come to an upcoming event.
- A video that shows users the products offered by a store with details on an upcoming sale.
All of these options encourage the viewer to take action but they are not salesy or pushy. They promote a product, service or event in a way that helps potential customers to make a decision to get involved.
Creating Effective Promo Videos for Business Can Increase Interaction
Use promotional business videos to increase interaction between your customers or potential customers and your brand. Promotions work because they offer the viewer something that otherwise increases the happiness of the viewer making them more likely to buy.
Consider limited time discount promotions. You see the promo and think, “WOW, that’s really a great deal.” and then you think, “but time is of the essence–I need to react now.” Why? Because promotional videos that offer timely discounts show customers what they likely would LOVE to purchase at a price that’s hard to pass up but only for a limited time. This creates a strong sense of urgency to take part in the promotion.
Tips for Great Promo Videos
The following quick tips on creating an effective promotional video for your business or brand will help you to get the creative juices flowing:
- Consider the Promo a Teaser. A great promotional video will not give all of the details away but rather tease the audience into feeling as if they MUST seek additional details. Use catchy sound bites and fast cuts in the edit to build attention and keep viewers interested.
- Focus on Details. A great promotional video for your business will provide guests a focused look at who, what, where, when and why they should take part in the promotion.
- Visual Graphics must not be overlooked. Don’t just tell your audience what action you want them to perform, Show them! A visual call to action such as a discount code or a time, date and location for an event will help viewers to remember what you want them to do.
- Adjust video versions for social. All social media platforms are a little bit different. Adjust the video versions to create alternate edits that can be used on social feeds without becoming repetitive.
- Promos do not always have to back up a special deal. You can make promotional videos for your business that highlight special services or tease about unique product offerings just as you would create a promo that teases about a unique event or promotional period. Use your imagination.
Script the Promotional Video Out
Define the concept, what you are promoting and why. Consider the angle, who you are targeting and what pain point you are solving for customers. This is the time to include keywords and key concepts that can be used to attract viewer attention. In your script you should also include any key takeaways that you want viewers to gain from the video.
The script should be a short depiction of what you want the promotion to achieve. The ideal length of a promotion is 30 seconds to one minute at most. Event promotions can go a little longer but ideally remain under 1 minute to keep the viewer’s attention and interest.
Storyboard the Creative Vision
Once you’ve scripted the promo out you can begin to storyboard the vision that you have to be used as an aid for the rest of the cinematic crew. Promo videos often require visual graphics or title cards that should be properly planned for during the creation of the storyboard.
Do your best to map the features that you intend to include in your video promo so that you don’t miss out on any important footage. If you’re planning an event promo and intend to use footage from a previous event, plan ahead on the key elements that you wish to include so that your video will come together more smoothly when the editor begins to work.
The storyboard should also outline the separate versions of the promo so as to showcase the different themes or variations of your original idea that will be used for social media and other promotional efforts. Keep it simple and prepare to shoot all versions at the same time.
Video Production
You’ve scripted the video and created the storyboard, now it’s time to produce your video promotion. Promotional videos are shot on location, in your store, at the office, or at the event. The shooting location will depend largely on the goals of the promotion.
If shooting on location before the event takes place, make sure you take the necessary steps to secure the location in advance in order to produce the film.
Edit, Add Graphics, & Finalize Your Promotional Video
When you have filmed all necessary footage for your promotional video you can prepare for the post production stage that includes editing and putting the final video together for the world to see. As you edit, be sure that you have visual graphics that highlight important details about your promotion such as discount codes, event location, date and time of special events, and deadlines that mark the beginning and end of the sale.
Graphics draw attention to key information pertaining to your promotion. Coordinate with your crew to ensure that graphics are included early in the pre-production and storyboarding process to get the most out of the planning phase.
Promote Your Promo Video
Once the video is complete, it’s time to share it everywhere! Now is your chance to get the promotional video out to a wider audience of potential customers, existing customers and anyone else that might be interested in what you have to offer. Consider the following methods of sharing your business promotional video:
- Post on Social Media. Sharing on your own social channels and having your influencers share on social will help you gain reach for your video.
- Include it in your marketing emails. You’re already sending an email out, why not include the video? Share the details with subscribers through newsletters and email blasts so that they remember the upcoming event or sale.
- Use paid advertising. You can use re-targeting on social media to show your video to followers that may have already recently visited your website. Also promote it to those who opened your promotional email.
- Include the video on your website. This way new and repeat visitors that come to your website can get valuable information on the time-sensitive promotion that you created a video about.
Following these quick tips on creating an effective promotional video you can attract a wider audience to your sale, event or special promo. For help creating a promotional video, contact Beverly Boy Productions.