Creating a video for the audience to appreciate takes time, resources and talent, but once you finish creating, the biggest piece of the puzzle is still missing: marketing your video. We all know that video content sits very well with audiences, and even though you may be familiar with marketing your blog skills, promoting a video requires a different approach. Let’s have a look at a few wallet-friendly methods on marketing video content.
Create an eye-catching thumbnail
The saying ‘’don’t judge a book by its cover’’ does not apply when promoting a video, because the first thing people see is the cover, and if it does not come across as appealing and interesting, the chances of someone pressing ‘’play’’ are pretty slim, no matter how lovely the title sounds.
The video thumbnail is by far the most important component to drive a visitor to watch your video, so make sure to frame and emphasize the image in your video that gives you the most impact. Of course, it depends on what your video is about, but your goal is to engage, tease and provoke the audience to want to know more. In some cases, it proved to be very successful to have used a smiling person on the cover, because people relate to other people, and positivity is an important factor. Others use flashy images of the content, which intrigues the viewer to see what is going on. Think about what you are selling, and capture the best possible image to pique people’s curiosity.
SEO matters
If you thought, that the search engines do not care about SEO when it comes to video content, you have been mistaken; it is just as important to for your video as it is for any other content. Make sure you give your video a title that is SEO-friendlyusing any appropriate tags and meta-descriptions. Do everything you can to ensure that if people are looking for a video in a subject or topic that your video covers, you have given your video every advantage it needs to come out on the top of thosesearch results.
Social media and blogs
There is no better way to drive people to your video than offering something for free. The best place to do this is on social networks where people are more likely to share and spread the word about your giveaway, in turn leading more people to your landing page, and ultimately driving more people to play your video.If your video is meant for a specific audience, find an appropriate blog or forum and share it there; know where your online market is, and promote it there.
Share button
Videos now make it very easy for others to share it with their followers and friends. So take the time to include the share features with the social media platforms that you think may be relevant.
Posting videos on different platforms, like Facebook or Twitter, require slightly different protocols. Always make sure you include as many options as you can. The more people who want to share your video and actually can, the more your video will be seen, and therefore your videos will start marketing for themselves.
No shame in asking
Asking people to share your video might seem obvious and maybe even a little bit forced, but if you put yourself out there, I am sure your friends will share your content and help you spread the word.Of course, asking the contacts who are likely closely connected to your target market is the strategic place to start, but you never know who is connected to who, and a share can go a long way, so do not limit the people you ask.
Conclusion
Good promotion is critical for getting more people to watch your video content, but remember not to ignore the fundamentals; produce good content, and do this consistently! All the marketing in the world is not going to help you if someone clicks on your video, views it, and ultimately bounces away or goes and does something else because they don’t find it useful or entertaining. The single best way to promote your video content is to create something with value. Do that, and your promotional efforts will become much easier.
