The most engaging video content, those most likely to go viral are not polished presentations they are real videos, of real people, show casing real life (or of cats chasing a piece of string). When a presentation is polished and smooth it is a commercial, something that talks at you, why would you inflict that upon your connections? People buy from people by creating real videos you are far more likely to get that real engagement, so be yourself, ensure your personality shines through. Keep it real!

Facebook said since the launch of the ability to add videos, it had four times the uptake than when they launched the ability to post pictures, way back when! The engagement on these videos during 2014 went through the roof. Video is now a key feature of Twitter who recently launched an addition to the mobile APP which allows you to add video direct from your phone, LinkedIn has given users the ability to add video to their LinkedIn profile for quite a while and Google+ has been intrinsically linked to Youtube pretty much since acquiring the site. Video is most definitely here to stay and will have a huge impact on your digital marketing.

Video Keeping It Real

One of the kernels of knowledge I digested at the recent Facebook Bootcamp event was about video keeping it real. In 2014 video literally exploded on Facebook. We now have the ability to post videos directly to our pages or status and for the most part these videos auto play, so viewers are watching whilst they scroll. One of the biggest impact on real video in 2014 was the ALS ice bucket challenge. (if you have been a hermit for the last year you can read more about the ICE Bucket Challenge here). We all enjoyed watching a number of our friends and favourite celebs getting wet. There were those who went ‘big time’: a lady on a horse took a bit of a tumble, a JCB machine tipped a huge container of water over one unlucky chap and my personal favourite was Sir Patrick Stewart, whose classy version of the Ice Bucket Challenge and subsequent undisclosed donation made me smile. There was one thing all of these had in common, they were real!

Would you rather see a person talking all about a product or service or would you rather be shown how it works?

Rather than think about the message you want to get across, consider your viewers. Put yourself in their shoes, what would catch their eye, what would make them smile, what one thing would they want to see… rarely is it a person talking to the camera saying ‘buy from me’. Think about your viewers – think about ‘who cares’. We are all thinking the same thing: is this relevant to me? What’s in it for me? Who cares?

I recently reviewed a series of short videos a local mechanic did at his garage, one of these showed the hidden dangers of potholes and the damage it did to a customers tyre, this video has been on Youtube for a couple of months and has received 50 views, another local garage has decided to professionally film a series of testimonials, these have been live on Youtube for a year, there are 3 of them, one has had 11 views and the other two only 4 views each. What’s the difference… the first mechanic was a real situation, showing a real event. Keep it real!

Video keeping it real – what would engage your viewers?

I am not suggesting your videos shouldn’t have structure, of course they should. The Last Hurdle are not videographers, but we do work closely with a number of professional film companies and photographers, utilising their services when we look to add video marketing into our client’s digital marketing mix or when we want to capture and occasion. Natural, real videos takes just as much effort, if not more! They need to be structured, planned ahead of the shoot and we need to really get to the core of what the viewers will respond to. If you had a videographer or photographer at your wedding you will know what I mean, you meet up before the big day, usually a couple of times, for the professional to go through what parts of the day you want to capture, what is important to you, this is no different except we are considering what others will want to see.