How to Make the Most of my Explainer Video
Behold your newly minted explainer video, that everyone in the office is loving! But what will you do with it next? And how can you make sure as many people get to clamp eyes on it and respond to its powerful call-to-action? This blog post will help you explore all the different ways to ensure your video has maximum visibility.
On Your Website:
It goes without saying that placing your video on your website is a great way to immediately capture a visitor’s attention. There’s a plethora of stats that show people engage better with videos so how do you make the most of the powerful tool you now have at your fingertips?
Visibility is key, so if the video encapsulates your organisation in some way then why not put it above the fold of the homepage? If there is already a nice image in place there, it might be worth considering a homepage carousel, so that the video can rotate with other content, giving you the flexibility to showcase multiple videos or images in a visually appealing and interactive manner above the fold of a homepage. By rotating through various content pieces, carousels highlight a variety of information about what your organisation offers, from upcoming events to key messaging.
In order to embed a video onto your website, you first need to host it on a hosting platform. Here’s the lowdown on what the leading video hosting platforms have to offer.
YouTube – is widely used and free, but it lacks customisation and may display ads.
Vimeo – a favourite in the creative community thanks to high-quality playback, but it has limited free storage.
Wistia – is business-focused with a customisable player and lead generation tools.
Brightcove – is scalable and secure but has higher pricing.
SproutVideo – is small business friendly with customisable branding and detailed analytics.
Just copy-paste the embed code onto your site, and voila!
Now that the video is embedded on your website, it’s time to look towards all the other ways you can maximise engagement, and there are a variety of platforms to choose from!
YouTube:
YouTube isn’t just a black-hole of cat videos and X-Factor bloopers, it’s the world’s second-biggest search engine. Uploading your explainer video here with a striking thumbnail, a solid title and a good description is a great way for the video to gain traction and amplify your website’s discoverability across the vast dominion that is Google.
A captivating thumbnail is your video’s first impression – make it count! It’s the visual appetiser that entices viewers to watch the whole video, so pick a still that tells a story.
When crafting engaging YouTube descriptions, it’s best to keep things concise to maintain viewer interest. Relevant keywords and buzzwords maximise your search engine rankings. Teaser descriptions for upcoming content can build anticipation and help set an expectation of regular uploads and special features. You can also foster community engagement by inviting viewer interaction in descriptions.
Social Platforms:
Synthesising the power of social media and the compelling nature of video content, sharing your explainer video across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Instagram is a great way to maximise engagement and enhance brand visibility.
For your website, embedded videos are recommended, but for social media, native videos perform significantly better. This simply requires you to upload your video file to your post, in the same way you would add an image. The format means that the video will start playing automatically as the viewer scrolls, eliminating the need for manual clicking and ensuring a seamless experience for your audience.
Targeted viewers:
Views from your target audiences are not just valuable; they are essential for driving meaningful engagement and conversations. By researching and using relevant hashtags that resonate with your target audience, you can extend the reach of your video beyond your immediate followers and tap into broader conversations within your industry or niche. These hashtags act as digital signposts, guiding interested users directly to your content when they search for related topics or browse through trending feeds.
Similarly, sharp descriptions optimised for search engines enhance visibility of your video across various online channels. Crafting concise yet compelling descriptions that incorporate relevant keywords and phrases improves your video’s chances of ranking higher in search engine results pages. This optimisation ensures that when users query relevant terms on platforms like Google or YouTube, your video appears prominently among search results, driving organic traffic to your content.
Promoted Posts:
Promoted posts can be a great way to reach a broader audience and generate meaningful engagement. Even a modest budget can lead to substantial outcomes in terms of increased visibility, brand awareness and conversions. Leveraging advanced targeting options on X, LinkedIn or Facebook can also allow you to select specific audiences based on factors like industry, job title, company size and more. This ensures your promotion reaches the right professionals, increasing the likelihood of engagement and conversions within your target market.
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An explainer video holds immense potential to captivate audiences and it is within your power to unlock this. By strategically placing it on your website, leveraging the power of social media and targeting specific viewers, you can amplify its reach and impact!