My thoughts exactly... on
VIDEO AND AUDIO MARKETING
SONOS Win & Lose
It's okay - even big brands don't always get it right.
But what can we learn from them?
Those sound dudes at SONOS have a new product.
SO, how did SONOS win and lose in launching it?
Well. I got a nice email.
I bought a SONOS product (or two) last year and they cleverly get your email address when you set up their gear.
I'm a prime target.
SO - a win for customer data collection.
What would have been nice is putting a thumbnail with a 'Play' icon on it in the image so that I was tempted to play their video.
Email with a 'play' thumbnails get higher click throughs.
And since, erm, this is a TV product, showing a play icon on a TV would have been a no brainer.
SO - I go to their site and there's a nice big image enticing me to watch the video.
Nicely done. 'See why'... a great piece of copy to pull me in.
It's a nice video! WIN.
What I like is they show the insane detail that goes into creating a product like this.
It shows the care. The science. (The justification for the price tag.)
Because after all... I already know how easy SONOS is to use.
I know how good the sound is.
I don't need those selling points.
This cements a feeling inside me that these guys care and that I'm buying into the brand.
BUT just as I'm having this feeling of 'need' for the product wash over me...
They embedded using YouTube.
And didn't turn off the 'watch this next' button. So I end up with this screen...
Argh! Suddenly I'm snapped out of the reverie of the product and I just want to click things.
I'm lost in the YouTube rabbit hole and not returning to their product's landing page. Crazy!
I've written about this before - it's so easy to avoid.
Like I did when I embedded it at the top of this post.
And if they used a business orientated site like Vimeo or Wistia they could have requested my email at the end if I'm interested... or a button to click ' buy' etc.
This is part of a sales funnel isn't it?
That said, YouTube is still a good place to have it out in the world..
But they LOSE here too with a killer careless mistake.
If I watched this video on YouTube to the end and I'm impressed by the product what will I want to do next?
... Yep. Click a link to find out more about it?
Yet the link in the notes below the video doesn't work!
MAJOR fail.
Especially as a couple of people had flagged this up in the comments and SONOS had ignored it (whilst replying to others).
Neither had they made use of the YouTube 'cards' system of having clickable buttons direct on the video that could have linked to their product page.
Do you want to sell this thing or not?!
Plus, they didn't use any of the video on Twitter...
OR on Facebook (not uploaded natively or posted from YouTube).
SO.. SOrry SONOS.
The video itself is good marketing wise.
But how you put it to use in the world... is another thing.
Sound judgement?
What can you take from this for your business?
Don't get so excited about the video and the 'launch' that you forget about the detail.
That you forget the strategy.
How are you releasing your video into the wild?
How will you turn viewers into buyers?
How will your video play its part within your landing page?
What additional tools in social and on your page can you use to cause people to take action?
As they say in the video 'making simple things is never simple'.
But when it comes to video marketing and sales you don't have to make it harder for yourself either.
SO - what will you do?
(PS. I also learnt today that I've been saying 'SONOS' wrong all along...)
5 Seconds Says It All
Maven sum up their brand and set the mood for purchasing in seconds of landing on their site. How?
I love the use of video on the new website of Belfast based Maven.
They have autoplaying full width video as their header image.
In just 5 seconds they say everything about their homeware brand and create an atmosphere that makes us want to indluge. In other words: buy.
How the video looks on their website - alas, remember, currently autoplay video doesn't work on mobile devices, you get a fallback image instead :(
WHY I LOVE IT
- for their customers lighting a cool, fashionable candle will instill a feeling of relaxation and happiness
- the way the room around it is dressed - the table, chair and blanket (all their products) is a desirable lifestyle their customer wants; who wouldn't want this to be their home?
I've seen lots written recently about the Danish term 'hygge' which basically means living cosily. The Scandavnavian way of life. Of lighting those candles, getting under your blanket and cuddling up by the fire.
It's a lifestyle that Maven sell. This video is hygge.
Remember, when we 'sell' to people one of the best ways to do it is to help them imagine their life with your product in it. How will they feel? How is their life going to be better? Maven do this before you've even started scrolling.
Then when we walk into a real store, the lighting, music, setting... the 'enivronment' is designed to put us in an emotional place where we're inclined to linger and purchase. This video does that in the online sp
See? 5 seconds says it all.
What visual could sum up your business that quickly?
Go on: grab a blanket, coffee, cake, snuggle up and have a think about it.
For more on using full width video on your homepage - check out this post and interview with Minneapolis digital marketing brain Tim Brown.
Premium Products... Premium Videos
Video allows you to say everything your brand stands for within seconds... See how Mühle portray their premium product with premium films.
I'd never heard of Mühle before.
I was searching for a gift on Amazon.
One of their products appeared with quite a hefty price tag.
Were they really worth that? Who were they?
I hit Google.
Within seconds of landing on the Mühle site I was immersed in their video. Amazing. Seconds later I knew everything their brand stood for.
I could feel the history.
The quality.
I knew they were a premium brand...
I've not shaved since 1997.
This was definitely a gift...
This is an industry where the Dollar Shave Club video exists.
And so, the Mühle brand needs to stand apart.
Show what they are.
Who they are.
Who we are if we buy their products.
WHAT I LOVE
- the high quality of the filming reflects instantly on the brand and product
- subtitled, so the German authentic voices remain, again aligned with quality
- the passion
- the close ups of the product, it reminds of the Apple Watch videos, classy product porn
- the craftmanship, the hand-made, artisan nature
- the care
- the team of old and new
- the story, the family history
- when we buy something special, we want to feel part of something special, this delivers that
TUTORIALS
But that's not the only video content on their site.
I love the shaving tips videos.
Let's face it, classic shaving isn't something many of us were taught.
If we're going to buy this premium brand we're going to want to do it right.
These feel different to the homepage films.
They show that this brand may be old...
but it's not old fashioned.
WHAT I LOVE
- they make the brand cool
- they're genuinely useful
- they're still very premium in their production, but it's a much cooler viewing experience
- they're search friendly, hosted on YouTube, so people might find the brand looking for 'traditional shave' how-to advice
WHAT COULD THEY DO BETTER?
Hey, I love where they're going with video, but they could make the most of what they have
- they're not using any of this video content natively on their Facebook page
- they could use nice edits of their arty videos on their Instagram account as well
- their site is in German, English and French... and yet the French site gets the same English subtitled films; can't imagine that'll go down well with the French audience, so come on... get a French subtitled video up there!
- the videos could have more prominence (though, remarkably, their site isn't mobile responsive yet, so maybe it's in the works)
- they could use video on their individual product pages (check out my post on the power of product videos)
- they could take some of their amazing footage and tell their story using full width autoplay background video, so it hits us immediately (check out my post on this technique - it works really well with such artisan companies)
WHAT COULD YOU DO?
The key thing to realise here is the power of video to communicate pretty much everything a brand stands for within seconds of a potential customer landing on their site.
I'm not saying you should make epic films. It might not be right for your brand.
For Mühle it's a perfect way to show why their premium product deserves a premium price.
How do you communicate your brand's values?
Coveragebook have it covered
When your product solves a pain point... use it to emotionally connect with your audience with video.
When your product or service exists to solve a problem, make sure you use video to visually and emotionally get that point across.
Here's what Coveragebook are doing so well.
What I love about this...
- the tweet is being promoted to anyone following people to do with PR
- the tweet itself is encouraging you to share it with friends in PR to help them out, notice that? It's not hard-sell at all
- the video doesn't launch into how lovely their software is straight away... instead it draws out just how insanely painful the current way of doing things is
- instead of making this short and punchy they really have let the process play out; if you're not interested you'll soon skip on and that's fine, BUT if this pain point resonates with you, you'll carry through to the Coveragebook solution and you'll be sold
- break it down: we get one minute of pain, then they say 'check this out, it'll blow your mind'... well, you're not going to stop watching then are you?
- the same video is used on their homepage and the call-to-action at the end is directly in the player itself, when you click it you get a sign up page for their free trial
- the video on on their home page is hosted using Wistia, so other than the call-to-action they'll get a stack of useful marketing metrics that they can make the most of
- and check out that call-to-action itself (below) - all of their language is on brand, it's so friendly, cheeky, subversive - disrupting the norm just like their product
In fact my only beef would be that there seems to be an aching void of white near the end of video that lingers for 20 seconds or so (or, there is as a I write this). Which kind of feels a bit sloppy when you're trying to impress people. BUT if people were suitably impressed hopefully they'll already be clicking through to your site by this point or signing up for a free trial.
BUT that's not the only way these guys are using video
They make it really easy to get up and running with their product with a range of video walkthroughs (below) that take you through the product in a friendly, visual way.
How does this relate to your business?
- how can you show the pain points and the solutions?
- think 'how will the viewer feel' when they're watching? How will they connect?
- how can you use twitter (or Facebook) to reach an audience that could be interested?
- what else can you get across in a video that will be helpful? Can you make How-to's? or FAQs?
Using Video To Promote Your Webinar
How email marketing company Emma use video to personally invite you to a webinar.
There are a LOT of webinars requests sitting in people's inboxes these days.
How to stand out?
Use video.
Above: the landing page (their video doesn't play full screen, I just didn't want you to squint)
This is the Landing Page I, well, landed on after clicking through from an inbox invite from email marketing company Emma.
It really grabbed my attention.
In such a short amount of time, without reading any page copy I'd found out when it was, what the content would be and felt that it was a friendly, slick company I'd enjoy spending time with and learning from.
After all, when we sign up to a webinar we're signing up to spend 30-60 minutes with the webinar host, so it makes total sense to have that individual personally invite us!
Let us see and hear from them.
Let them tell us what we can expect and why we should care to join.
Psycologically you're far less likely to stand up a real person than just a url and diary appointment. If they followed this up with a video reminder an hour before saying 'hey - can't wait to see you at 12...' for example, you'd almost feel guilty to miss the party.
Use it as part of an email campaign, use it on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram...
AND it finishes with the cute call to action prompting us to sign up now.
It's a really smart tactic. Are you running webinars? Could you do this?
Of course you could.
If you're planning webinars far enough ahead you can easily record a batch of videos in one go.
You put so much effort into prepping and promoting a webinar, this small addition will really reap the benefits. Stand out from the inbox.
PS. I hugely recommend signing up to Emma's mailout: it's full of such great stuff.
Find Your Story - IAG Cargo
When your product might seem a bit dull, your stories are key. See how IAG Cargo use lion cubs and David Beckham to pull us in.
The team at IAG Cargo haven't thought outside the box with video marketing.
They've thought inside it.
You see, the cargo air-freight industry in itself is dull. Even the cargo industry can see that.
BUT… the real story is in the cargo itself.
What is in that box?
With both of these videos they draw us in. We see the care taken each step of the way.
We see the precious cargo itself, we see the humans who take such care and pride in their jobs.
The underlying message is ‘the leading x company trusts IAG Cargo with x… so why wouldn’t you?’
You’re unlikely to remember a video, let alone share it unless there’s an emotional connection to it. David Beckham? Animals? We’re not jut filling boxes, but ticking all of them.
The actual branding of IAG Cargo (and their airlines) is very subtle, this still feels like we could be watching a documentary on TV.
Look at the titles and thumbnails of the videos. These are very clickable.
The stories lend their light, intrigue, inspiration and positivity onto the brand itself.
When your product's a bit dull. Let your stories shine.
Think about it for your business. What are your stories?
Full Screen Homepage Video
When relaunching their website, this printing company really pushed the boat out with how they used video. See for yourself.
Okay.
I never do this.
But instead of embedding a video and talking about it, I really need you to go and see it in action.
So, go to the new Ashley House website.
Oh and do it on a desktop/laptop - not your mobile - for the best effect.
Go on! Off you go. Don't worry about me, I'll be eating this hot cross bun.
Come back when you're ready.
If I wasn't clear enough... the above embed video is NOT the full video.
You need to watch it on their website. Jeez.
WHY IT'S GREAT
So here's the thing.
Ashley House are a printing company.
They really care about the craft of printing.
Beautiful stuff. Digital. Lithographic. Stunning.
Independently owned.
Technologically advanced. Environmentally friendly.
Did they shoot a video telling us this?
Did they let us meet their team?
Did they show us some of their fine printing work?
No. They put a fox in a boat.
And it works!
From the first moment of this short animation we're on board and we go with the flow.
It's fun and full of character.
And if they care this much about what the opening experience of their website feels like, think how much they must care about everything else?
The full screen video technique removes all other distraction; we can dive in totally.
Because of the genius way the web developer and animators have crafted this sequence, no matter how 'wide' you have your web browser, the animation still works. As the action moves from left to right it reveals more, so it scales perfectly for a browser.
Then that lingering loop with the sound effects is just long enough for us to understand it's over, without it having an ugly abrupt final 'stop' to snap us out of the spell. Instead we scroll down and are hit with striking portfolio images: now we understand they must be good at what they do.
The experience (and it is exactly that) leaves us smiling. We immediately have a positive connection to the company. It doesn't go into the detail nor history of the brand but instead entertains. But subtley, the care in crafting that particular style of animation seeps into us too. It's refreshing and inspiring to see.
Crafted. Digital. Passion. Unique.
The words they use in the voiceover align with the visuals to underline both in our brains.
(Sailor) hats off to those in charge at Ashley House for being brave enough to NOT do the obvious.
It's a shame on a mobile browser we just see the video without the immersive experience we get on desktop. But the way such things are evolving it's surely only a matter of time until it'll work there as well. The mobile experience is still good, it just doesn't absorb you in quite the same way.
Why a boat? Well they're based in Exmouth, which is on a river, near the sea... so the whole 'welcome on board' and 'plain sailing' metaphor connects nicely in their area.
Why a fox? Well, clearly the penguin was too busy working already.
Here's to thinking differently.
