If you are interested in increasing your engagement with your customers and receiving more social shares, it may be time to consider starting a vlog.
As video marketing is on the rise, vlogging is an affordable option for startups and small business to join the bandwagon without stretching the budgets too thin. Besides, it’s an excellent way to communicate with customers directly about your products and services, while enhancing your brand identity as well.
Vlogging is also an excellent way to bump your conversion rate, as up to 64 percent customers admitted that they are more likely to trust a video than they are a text post and are more likely to make a purchase after watching a video.
So if you believe vlogging can be a game changed for your business too, keep reading. Here are 5 practical tips that will help you succeed.
1. Begin With Short Video Posts
Your initial vlog posts should be short, two to four minutes long at the maximum. There are a few reasons for this. The first is that people are more likely to click on a shorter video. This is especially true when you are starting out and are not recognized by the public as an established vlogger. In addition to this, short videos force you to be concise and to focus on a single point a.k.a. one call-to-action. Finally, this length is ideal for product descriptions, brief walk throughs, explanations of various policies/features, etc.
2. Always Include a Clear Call to Action
Before you end each video, include a clear call to action. This could be an invitation to subscribe to your YouTube channel, a request to leave comments, or an invitation to visit your website in order to get a special discount, check out the product and so on.
You’ve just spent the last few minutes interacting with potential customers. This is the perfect time to invite them to interact with you as well.
3. Invest in Decent Equipment
Production quality matters. There’s no need to spend thousands on superb professional equipment pro ad studios use, however take your time when choosing a vlogging camera and make sure you get the best one for your budget.
Next, buy a decent tripod so your video isn’t shaky, and prepare to experiment with shooting locations to capture the best sound and video. You may even want to invest some money in a light kit, which will provide lighting for a few hundred shoots. Your camera may have a built in microphone, however it might be a better idea to spend extra on something that’s a little higher in quality.
4. Don’t Limit Your Distribution Options
YouTube is obviously the most popular option for sharing videos, but it’s not the only one. Diversify your distribution by using video sharing platforms like Vimeo and uploading a video directly to Facebook. Then, don’t forget to embed or link the video on your website, or to promote it on your various social media accounts.
If you already have an email distribution list, don’t forget to send out a teaser to your subscribers as well. The more likes/views/comments and shares your video will get, the higher it will rank in YouTube (and Google) search for relevant keywords.
5. Optimize the Titles of Your Video Posts For Search
Think of the titles for your videos like you would think of the headlines of your other blog posts. They should be powerful, searchable, and contain relevant keywords.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when you create your titles:
- Use one or two emotionally charged words
- Include a number if it is relevant
- Use a keyword or phrase that you want to be ranked for
- Keep the title around 6 words
