I recently came across the blog post below written by Roberto Blake, a savvy video marketer I follow. I think Roberto makes some very good points, well worth the few minutes it takes to read the post. ~ Kenneth Greenberg

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1. Precisely Define the Goals of Your Video Content

Before you ever hit the record button, you need to have a clear internal thought process for what this video should accomplish. You should know what the viewer gets out of watching it, and also what you would like to get out of it as a creator. While sales seem like the obvious answer, that goal should be reserved for creating an advertisement. If your video is an ad, then, by all means, use sales as the success metric. If your video is part of your marketing efforts, you have to understand that it may not convert directly, but position you to convert by being part of a sales funnel.

A particular video or series of videos may be to get people to call your service number to get a quote or an estimate, in which case the video is for lead generation, not sales. The video may be making your audience aware of a free offering/lead magnet if they join your mailing list, which is far cheaper than purchasing an unqualified list for thousands of dollars. Map your content to clearly define goals, develop a content strategy, and content calendar. Do not make videos for the sake of making videos, or to grow a large subscriber count, or “go viral.”

2. Identify Your Value for the Audience and Deliver on It Quickly

A viewer should not be 10 seconds into your video and still wonder what it’s about and whether you can deliver on the promise. Be direct and clear in how you communicate to the audience and what the bottom line is for them. Even this article didn’t take very long to make its value proposition clear and move directly into delivering on it. Think about the audience first and foremost, and then you have permission to ask for what you want. Make it very clear in the title of your videos, the description, thumbnails, and the overall content what’s in it for them.

Most marketers will tell you that if you post a video on YouTube, the first line should have a link to your website or offering. That advice is intended for business people, and completely short-sighted. For one thing, it doesn’t help YouTube understand what your video is about; it just tells YouTube that you want to get people off of their website and on to your own as quickly as possible. That is not the largest incentive for YouTube to promote video content. It also doesn’t help the search engine or a person looking at the description identify your video as relevant. Make sure you are focused on being clear more than you are on closing. I know it’s painful, but it is what is going to work.

3. Tie Your Video Content to Your Website and Blog

There is an appropriate way to get viewers from your video content to your website, articles, or blog post. To get people to click through to your website, they need a compelling reason, not just a link that enables them to do it. In your video, you can mention a resource or more information that would be valuable to them and direct them to click on a link or go to a URL. This is what is known as a “Call to Action,” which most of you are familiar with, but this is how it works in the context of video marketing. It is an audio or visual call out that takes place organically within the content.

In the case of YouTube, if you’ve connected your website with your YouTube account you can use annotations and info cards that are interactive on-screen components that a viewer can click on to be directed to your website. Info cards work across all devices, including mobile, whereas annotations only work on desktops and laptops.

4. Use Video to Promote a Lead Magnet and Grow Your List

Email lists are expensive to build and maintain. However, video marketing can help make list building practical and affordable for you, while at the same time engaging your audience. You can actually promote your existing lead magnets and enhance them with video content, all while costing you nothing but time. For example, if you have a free e-book that you offer to your list, you can highlight some content from that in a video and let people know that if they join the mailing list, they can get more tips from the free e-book. Even just a video that makes your audience aware of the free e-book and the subject it covers is enough to grow your list. The beauty of a video like this on YouTube is that it exist indefinitely and helps grow your list regularly as long as the content remains valuable and relevant.

5. Provide Instructional Content Around Your Product and Service Without Selling

Not selling directly is a painful position for most people, but consider how you would feel as a customer. The odds are that even as you read this, you have AdBlock enabled, or just finished fast forwarding through commercials on your DVR earlier. If you can provide information about your product or service, from the perspective of the problem it solves, or the enjoyment it creates, you won’t have to ask for the sale; the audience will ask you how they can buy it.

In building my most recent desktop computer, I researched parts watching various experts demonstrate how to install the components or explaining their buying decision. As a result, I purchased these expensive technical components, happily using their affiliate links. They represented the products accurately and provided the proper information and reassurance. Thus, they earned my trust and won a sale.

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is a Designer and Marketer with a background in Advertising and Brand Development. He works primarily with businesses, entrepreneurs, and creative services professionals to help them engage with the audiences that matter most to them through effective marketing and media.