Technical subjects can be difficult to explain to the average person. What makes it harder is the fact that you and the people who work for you will always understand these concepts easier and faster than anyone. Technical writers have the unenviable job of explaining complex concepts in terms that match the target audience. Most find that task difficult at best.
So now, you’ve decided to try making explainer videos. There’s a hot button word in there, isn’t there? Some things, especially in the realm of technology, are just never easy to explain. Couple that with the fact that, in an explainer video, you typically have just one minute to get in and out and convey the message adequately. What information should be shared? How should it be presented? Let’s take a look at those questions first, and then I’ll show you how to use the content effectively.
“Your Best Elevator Pitch”
Marketers are familiar with this concept. Find the words and concepts that are going to best make people want to know more. That’s the secret: Engage the viewer long enough for them to want to become more educated about your product or service. The more a prospect understands, the greater the chance that person or person’s business will become a client. The best framework for an explainer looks like this:
Present the Pain Points — What are the problems your product or service can solve?
Introduce the Service or Product — Draw back the curtain on the solution.
“What” not “How” — Make a few simple statements about product capabilities or service features without going to detail about their implementation.
Call to Action — Provide the necessary links and make them easy to find.
Remind and Reassure — Punch the pain point(s) again at the end and remind the viewer that the solution is just a click away.
Effective Marketing Through Explainer Videos
So now that we know the structure of a good explainer video, the next question is how to use it in a profitable way. The standard “upload to YouTube and share the links” approach is rarely, if ever, very effective. It takes the smart use of support content and good communication to set the stage properly. Here are a few scenarios where explainer videos can greatly augment the effectiveness of your messaging when marketing new products or services.
1. Start with a Press Release
Every single time you launch a new hosting product or service, there should be an accompanying press release. Your press releases should always be formatted for maximum distribution. Link to your video twice: Once as an embedded, text-based link in the first couple paragraphs, and once as a standalone link in the last paragraph before your contact information.
Press release writing is a more exact process than other forms of marketing content. Their visibility is predicated on many of the same criteria as standard SEO. Keywords, document structure, and relevance play in considerably. Knowing what the more popular press release sites require in terms of structure and content is crucial for successful propagation. Pay particular attention to PRWeb guidelines — that’s 90 or more percent of what the newswire sites expect.
2. Create Email Blasts
If you already have a clearly defined audience, you can split test different click-through options and see which ones lead to the most views. Try linking directly to your blog, your social channels, or the video page and see which avenue aligns with your audience’s content engagement habits.
3. Create Pinned Posts
Structure your blog so that the article with your latest video shows up on top. You can use your blog to go into a bit more depth, but place the video in the first or second section of your blog post.
People are visually motivated and will be more likely to click through if they aren’t first met with what they consider an excess of texts. If you do a good job of raising interest in the video, they’ll come back and read the rest of the blog.
Also, be sure to embed your videos in your blog posts. Don’t link out. If you embed the video, viewers never have to leave your site to discover the content. This helps your SEO by keeping people on your pages longer.
4. Utilize Social Media
This is where you can reinforce off-page SEO. The amount of time people spend on your social channels is largely inconsequential to the extent that it doesn’t boost your rankings. This is also your opportunity to create backlinks to your website and gain more views.
5. Use Paid Ad-Free Video Hosting
While the allure of free platforms like YouTube is apparent, you will get much further if you can ensure that when people click through, they only see your content. Don’t subject your potential clients to someone else’s ads. YouTube’s algorithms could land them directly in the lap of your competition. Spend the money to host your videos in an ad-free environment for maximum effectiveness.
Getting Your Content Produced
BeezContent is a great agency for all your content needs. We work with a network of talented writers with the skills and experience necessary to produce top-quality content. We offer custom writing services for all forms of marketing content mentioned above and much more.
If you’re finding the task of creating and organizing your content just a bit daunting, talk to us. We’re here to help you develop not just quality content but more powerful marketing strategies that are built upon it, as well. We’re here for all your blog, email, press release, and explainer video script writing needs.
