B2B technology marketers, especially those with SaaS and cloud-based software solutions, like to feature “DEMO videos” prominently on their web sites and landing pages. This makes sense if the website visitor is the same person who is going to be forking over the subscription fee. But that person is probably going to need reasons to buy before anything else. If you want to make videos for top of the funnel prospects who are just beginning their search, your initial videos should be anything but an actual demo. This article will provide several examples of technology video “demos” that convert prospects to leads.
For example, in the lean manufacturing video below the challenge action is all about what the software can do, rather how you would do it if you controlled the mouse and keyboard.
Videos you should be providing top of the funnel prospects:
1. B2B content marketing videos that shows how your software or technology solves their challenges.
Tutorial videos can be far from boring if they’re about how to do something your prospects need to do. For example, Ultriva enlivens its product pages with “Demo” buttons in and amongst feature/benefit lists (e.g., “Supplier Scorecard to view performance of each supplier action.”) Each button actually links to the same video explaining the challenges met by the software, and “dramatizing” its use. (“Demo” does sound like less of a hard sell than any other name for a sales video.)
2. B2B content marketing videos that are NOT about how your technology or solution is easy-to-use. The trouble with actual demos, where we watch menu choices being made and items dragged and dropped, is that just about all software works like that. A radically new user interface would probably be a hard sell in the B2B world — it would come with a steeper learning curve and built-in user resistance.
Besides, no viewer expects a “demo” to demo things that the software does not do well, so demos that demonstrate ease-of-use are bound to be unsurprising. And if things are taking place in real time, it won’t take long for boredom to set in.
3. B2B content marketing videos that you can use with sales automation programs to move prospects further down the sales funnel. For example, Brocade follows up a 2-Minute Explainer about its Application Resource Broker plugin with long-ish demo that takes the form of a use case (end-of-quarter spikes in demand) for this product.
Below, you’ll find another example of a “demo” video that Composite Software (part of Cisco) uses in a follow up series to those who want more information after watching their 2-minute explainer. The video combines animation and screens to present a use case that shows the software in action.
4. B2B content marketing videos that clearly show the next step
In the Ultriva lean manufacturing video below, you’ll notice that the company hinted at a pilot program. They showed prospects “what’s next” in its this introductory product “demo”.
