What kind of video marketing strategy do you need?
I’ve never liked the term video marketing. It’s not so much the ambiguity — we can all agree that “video marketing” and “marketing [of] video” are not the same thing. What bothers me is that “video marketing” implies that a video marketing strategy exists in isolation from the rest of your online marketing strategy. IBM recently published a […]
How should a B2B marketing video feel?
“Feelings” in a marketing video? Nearly every B2B marketing video, including many we’ve made, begins by describing the buyer’s problem to be solved, and then goes on to extol the seller’s solution. The underlying feeling, if there is one, usually begins with unhappiness about the status quo. But most people are not eager to risk changing the status […]
Video as customer experience: watching with customer’s eyes
Is watchability the best frame of reference for B2B marketing videos? B2B buyers click on a marketing video expecting to get something out of it, and willing to pay for it in the currency of the Internet: their attention. To gauge video as customer experience, consider whether customers will come away feeling that they got what they paid […]
Make chatbot-ready videos for account-based marketing
Did you know that Facebook thinks most online interactions between businesses and their customers will soon be mediated by chatbots? Chatbots can deliver an immediate personalized response — which is what customers want. Microsoft has the same idea. The underlying design of Microsoft Windows going forward will be “Conversation as a Platform,” and chatbots will be in […]
Try a conversational approach to technology marketing video.
Are your buyers “consuming” your technology marketing video content in order to learn about your solutions and what’s on the horizon for your industry? Without contacting sales? That’s the assumption underlying most inbound and content marketing. It’s strange, then, that most content marketing discussions and surveys treat video as tactic. Discussions usually mention video categories (e.g., “explainer […]
Take advantage of these 2017 B2B Video Marketing Trends
In a recent post I wrote about three B2B Video Marketing Trends I’ll be watching for in 2017. More conversational. Less advertorial. More formats More app-like Actually, I’ll be doing more than watching. I’ll be working with clients to find ways to take advantage of these B2B video marketing trends. All three lead toward more engagement […]
B2B video marketing trends 2017
My favorite video marketing advice for the New Year is this: “Video Will Account for 79% of Global Internet Traffic by 2020 (So Increase Your Video Marketing Budget NOW).” Cisco is the source of the percentage forecast. Tubular Insights (formerly ReelSEO) is the source of the conclusion inferred from it — and I hope marketing managers can convince […]
Can technology marketing videos have empathy?
There’s little doubt that video as a medium can have empathy. Reality TV shows may increase empathy and bring out the best in us. But let’s consider the kind of videos I know best, technology marketing videos. These are mostly short, high-level solution overviews for lead generation or account management. What is empathy in marketing? The production of […]
Make a better tech marketing explainer video. Start with a diagram.
In a previous blog post, I recommended diagramming the structure of your tech marketing explainer video using a tool built into Microsoft Office. That was about putting across all the essential messages. Another good way to come up with a story about a technology solution is to find the diagram that tells the story and extract what you need. […]
Tell B2B video viewers you take them seriously
Malcolm Gladwell has said that, for him, the key to a good live presentation is to keep in mind that the audience wants to be taken seriously. This struck me as pertinent to the development and production of B2B video for inbound marketing and sales engagement. We imagine the audience browsing our collection of marketing content like bees collecting nectar. […]
