How to Keep Video Marketing Content Relevant
Maintaining ROI with your Video Content Marketing
To simply create a video for a business is not enough; a strategy needs to be put in place in order to ensure videos are getting the most value possible for ongoing returns. As video marketing can be a costly investment, it can be a disappointment to see views slowly decline – but it doesn’t have to be that way!
What can be done when videos aren’t producing the desired results to give a favourable return on investment? What do you don’t to do is just sit there bemoaning the figures! there are a number of things you need too and should be doing. To help you boost your marketing videos and prolong their value we’ve put together some key points that you can action. remember, if videos are just sitting there on YouTube and not generating the desirable results; you need to look at how they are being optimized; without optimization all Google sees is a blank page. To ensure that videos are easily found on YouTube and Google you can use the following advanced video optimization techniques.
Review & Update the titles of Videos
Are the titles of the videos still relevant? Are they catchy & engaging? Do they reflect the current messaging strategy or target words of the business? If they don’t, it means it’s time to change them. The title of the video is one of the most critical factors for search engines to determine what the video is about. 55% of Google universal search results include videos, this is huge opportunity in search factors which shouldn’t be missed out. Video titles also need to be appealing to searchers, so avoiding keywords stuffing and using more descriptive words to entice clicks.
Some popular words to include in video titles to boost interest are:
• Steps
• How to (one of the most searched words)
• Tutorial
• Best
• Funny (We’ve all done it!)
Think: can any of your video titles be rewritten to include these words?
Review and Update Video Descriptions
5,000 characters or roughly 800 words are allowed on YouTube for a video description, so make sure that space is being used advantageously. Important keywords should be at the beginning of the description and include a website or blog link. Hyperlinks are allowed in the description boxes on YouTube, so this can increase referral traffic back to the website and you should be able to monitor this through analytics.
Review & Refresh YouTube Tags
Are there misleading tags working against the video in the search algorithm? Updating the video tags is a good way to refresh the video and increase its visibility in the search. There are 4 main types of video tags that people should be aware of:
• Specific tags
One word keywords that covers the topic. If YouTube gives you suggestions that are what you essentially want, use them, but also use the same words in a generic way.
• Compound tags
Multiple-word tags. Copy the video title and use it as a tag, leave out conjunctions and prepositions (such as: ‘of’, ‘in’, ‘and’, etc.), because YouTube ignores these types of words.
• Generic tags
Words like how-to, tutorial and vlog. YouTube offers suggestions, use them.
• Misspellings
If keywords include commonly misspelled words, include these in the tags on purpose to capture searchers typing it in the search bar. This is an increasingly important area since people frequently mistype information.
Optimize Posting Times
To boost declining video views is to look at the social media metrics to analyse what days and times videos are being posted. Optimal times when audiences are online might be being missed. Identify different patterns in the times of the day and day of the weeks when most of the audience appears to be online and interacting with content – these are the times that videos should be researched. One the peak times for researching on line is Sunday afternoon or evening!
CoSchedule recently complied research from over 6 of the top marketing blogs on the best time to post on social media and broke it up into palatable advice.
• Facebook: 1-4pm, late into the week and weekends.
• Twitter: 12-3pm, with a peak best time of 5pm. During work week is best.
• LinkedIn: Midweek from 5-6pm.
• Google+: Beginning of the workday morning is optimal.
• Pinterest: Saturdays are the best bet-and later at night.
• Instagram: Mondays get more attention
Understand Where the Audience is (and Follow Them!)
For some people and companies the ‘If you build it, they will come’ may work but for most, video content can quickly disappear into the vast world of online videos. If this is happening re-evaluate where the target audience is and how to get the videos posted discovered more easily. That is put them where the audience is looking.
A first step that could be taken is to identify how viewers are finding the videos. Look at the referral traffic numbers of the specific video. Which source is gaining the views? Which are driving the longer watching times?
Keep a Close Eye on Competitors
Where do the competitors see the most interaction with their videos? Which social media networks? Where is their largest following? Researching what the competitors do helps with the re-evaluation of where the videos should be placed.
Reach Out to Customers or Users
Instead of guessing and placing video content on every social network, ask people who use the product or service where they spend their time online. Brainstorm how to get the videos in front of the audiences using their suggestions. Remember it’s not what you would do but what your audience does do that matters.
Join Industry-Related Groups
Be where the customers are. Search for groups related to the company’s brand and monitor these communities to see how they interact and the type of information they like, share and value. Use this information to decide whether a promotional video would be appropriate to share. There may be a way to edit the videos to create more relevant clips that raise profile and direct viewers back to you as a thought leader or industry expert.