Why do you need a video strategy?

Getting your business or brand’s message seen in the modern age of digital marketing can be a daunting task. There have never been so many tools and platforms for engaging with your audience or customers but there has also never been so much noise and competition drowning out that message.

Doubtlessly if you are looking to promote a product, brand, cause or idea you will have already figured out that video is by far the most popular medium for an audience to consume information. A cursory look at any of the social media platforms that dominate our lives will reveal that these platforms massively prioritise video over other forms of content.

The sheer number of platforms and the waves of video content out there make having a solid, coherent video strategy the most important step in your video marketing journey before you’ve even recorded a single second of content.

An important thing to note is that “video production” itself is not a singular, one-size-fits-all process. Video is a hugely varied form of media that takes many forms, some are much more time, money and resource intensive than others. A 30 second commercial for Television broadcast requires a vastly different production process to a series of instructional videos or an influencer lead video post for social media.

A common misconception is that, at any one time, there will be one particular video type or platform that is the “most effective” or yields the “biggest audience”. The truth is that the pros and cons of certain video approaches and platforms are constantly shifting.

A small engaged audience is more valuable than a big unengaged audience.

An even bigger truth is that you shouldn’t be looking for “the biggest audience”.  A huge audience can be almost useless if it’s not an engaged or relevant audience for your message. The key to successful video marketing is engaging the right audience. Both the type of video and the platform it is on should (and do) serve that purpose.

Each type of video production has its own ‘path’ of sorts that ultimately leads your message toward a particular type of audience or engagement. Some of these paths diverge massively, leading to very different destinations. The audience you want to reach should be dictating the destination you're aiming for and therefore which production path(s) you take.

This is why having a video strategy in place is your first and most important step. It acts as your roadmap to success. It stops you from heading in the wrong direction and delivering your message to an irrelevant, unengaged audience.

Knowing your audience, and the platforms they use, is essential to your video strategy.

So, what does a video strategy look like?

A video strategy’s overall aim is to figure out the destination you are heading for and plot out a roadmap to it.

It begins by answering some basic questions such as:

What is the message you are trying to convey via video marketing?

Whatever video production path you take, you should start with a clear message you want to convey. Knowing the message you are trying to communicate will help you identify what success looks like with your final content.

Who is your audience?

Who are you trying to reach with your message? Are you looking to connect with new customers or is this aimed at an audience already familiar with your brand/business? What demographic are you trying to reach? 

What platform(s) best suit both your message and its intended audience?

Whilst most audiences will have been exposed to many types of video marketing, different demographics have very strong preferences for which platform and video type they primarily consume. Different platforms prioritise certain types of video content. 

You should bear in mind that the type of message you have chosen to convey may lend itself to a particular type of video production and whether this suits the platform your audience prefers.

What schedule of release will you require for each platform?

Another consideration is that different types of video content / platform will require varying levels of time and resource commitment to reach your intended audience. This might include regular posting of content over an extended period. Planning ahead and allocating time and resources appropriately is key if your video marketing strategy requires scheduled content.

How much time and resources do you have to put into following your chosen video production path?

Beyond the sheer amount of video content a certain platform choice might dictate, you should also be clear on whether the type of video content you plan on making matches what you typically see on the platform your audience prefers.

Also whether it is cheap or expensive to produce. It’s not realistic that a small in-house team will be able to shoot and produce a broadcast-quality TV commercial for instance. Certain types of video production will be more expensive to produce because they require a crew, production company or specialist equipment.

Having the foundational elements of a video strategy in place will ultimately make what production path you should take much clearer. Once you have answered the above questions you should be able to draw up an effective strategy as a road map for success.

If you are ready to start talking through what a video strategy for your business or brand marketing message might look like, then get in contact.