Everybody knows that video content sells. It’s currently the most powerful medium, which is why so many big companies are doubling down and focusing on it. Facebook wants the majority of content to be in motion-picture format by the middle of the decade. And by 2030, the dopamine-depleting corporate giant wants us all to live in a real-time digital universe.
In this post, we take a look at how regular brands can jump on the bandwagon and start levering videos on their home pages. Here are some of the benefits that it could bring you:
Reason #1: It’s Fun
Making a video isn’t boring. In fact, it can be a great way to bring your entire team together and involve everyone in a team effort.
Setting up camera equipment, developing a script, and then showing everyone the results can be a rewarding experience. People feel more involved in the company, and get to enjoy an exciting task that’s different from the usual emailing and plugging numbers into spreadsheets.
Reason #2: It Improves Your Ranking
Posting a video on your home page is one of the best ways to improve your ranking. In fact, research by digital marketing professionals suggests that it could be up to 47 times as potent as writing a conventional post.
Google and other search engines are clear on why this is the case: video is more engaging for their users. They would prefer to forward people to sites that present them with engaging videos instead of walls of text.
Just make sure that you surround the video with related copy. This way, it has a higher chance of being indexed and included in Google’s ranking calculations.
Reason #3: It’s Easier To Share
The best kind of marketing is the type that your customers do for you. Word-of-mouth advertising is multiple times more effective than billboard branding.
Most home pages aren’t particularly shareable. Users don’t want to recommend walls of text and marketing jargon to their friends.
However, if your homepage contains a video, it changes the dynamic. All of a sudden, people want to share the page because it contains consumable content they know that their friends will love. It’s the digital equivalent of word-of-mouth advertising.
To make your video as shareable as possible, host it via a trusted third-party platform. This way, mobile users can just click options next to the video and use standard sharing functions, as they would on conventional social media channels.
Reason #4: It Stimulates Your Audience
Most branding adopts a basic approach to human psychology. The idea is simply to get people to remember what they’ve seen, create positive brand associations in their minds, and encourage purchases.
And it works well. The only problem is this: it’s not particularly stimulating and everyone does it. There’s no real brand differentiation possible.
However, as Kartoffel Films points out in an article entitled, Video Marketing In 2022: The Ultimate Guide, video formats are different. Here brands really can stimulate their audiences in ways that aren’t possible through conventional marketing methods.
Take advertisements, for instance. It’s hard to tug on a person’s emotional heartstrings through a banner ad. However, it is much easier to do in a video where you can tell a story.
The same goes for educating your audience. Banner ads, PPC, and billboards hardly get you anywhere and don’t allow for nuance. That’s not the case, though, with video. Here you really can dive into topics and leave your audiences feeling richer for visiting your home page.
Reason #5: It Offers A Better Return On Investment
Many digital marketing methods are famous for their appalling return on investment. PPC ads might only generate $2 for every $1 you invest. That’s simply not good enough for most firms.
Putting a video on your homepage, though, may offer higher returns, particularly if your firm already has significant organic traffic volume. Your website will offer users videos insights that rivals with standard homepages simply don’t.
Reason #6: It’s The Best Way To Engage People
Even if a user clicks through to your site, that doesn’t automatically mean they’re engaged. They might have a passing interest in what you sell, but that’s as far as it goes. They’re curious, but not looking to take their relationship with you further.
That’s where video content can help. It lets you explain your position and niche more succinctly, allowing you to convey your real value proposition. Once visitors understand the real benefits of buying from you, they are much more likely to go to you than your competitors.
Remember, the vast majority of customers don’t want to read. They will if they have to, but why not save them the trouble by posting a video? This way, you’re less reliant on unread and jargon-filled copy.
Reason #7: It Keeps Visitors On Your Website Longer
Google recently ditched dwell time from Google Analytics, but that doesn’t mean it’s unimportant. It still matters a great deal, but why?
It’s all to do with consumer psychology. Those who remain on your website for longer become more familiar with your brand and more trusting of it. The more you can convince them that you have something real and deep to offer, the more likely they are to stay.
According to research, consumers will watch around two minutes of video about a product that interests them. Around a third will watch more than three minutes, suggesting that the ideal product video length is approximately 1 to 3 minutes, depending on your clientele.
If you can keep visitors on your website longer, it gives them more time to contemplate the benefits of consuming your products and services. Eventually, they will try to convince themselves that it is worth parting with their money and take the plunge.
Reason #8: It’s Better For Mobile Users
Mobile users hate going to business home pages. They’re awkward, the font is small, and the menus are hard to navigate, even if they are adapted to mobile.
Video, on the other hand, is a different story. It’s incredibly easy to consume on mobile devices, thanks to how they’re set up. And because of their demographic, mobile users tend to prefer them, making them doubly effective.
Reason #9: It Improves Conversion Rate
The primary purpose of a business website is to convert visitors into sales. The more people you can get to buy your products, the more successful and secure your company will become.
Getting visitors to make purchases after landing on traditional home pages is challenging. They face a menu of options and don’t always know which direction to go in. Many wind up clicking back to search, looking for another site with easier navigation options.
With video, though, you can change how visitors interact with your homepage. Instead of being a large menu that directs users to individual sales funnels, it becomes an information desk, giving users instructions on where to go and what to do next. This way, they can find the funnel that’s right for them, instead of winding up at a dead end.
Reason #10: It Creates A Better First Impression
In business, first impressions matter. If users suspect you of shady dealing because you won’t show your face, they’ll click back and go hunting for a more transparent company.
But when you add a video, you give them everything they want up front. They naturally trust you more because they can see your face. And they feel more personally connected to you.
Reason #11: It Lets You Educate People
Companies that can educate their audiences are automatically at an advantage over those that don’t. If you can enrich the lives of your audience through the power of information, they will be far more likely to come to you and use your services in the future.
How you educate your audience via homepage videos is entirely up to you. You may want to engage in long-form videos that explain a concept in more detail, or shorter videos that just scratch the surface of an issue.
When you educate people, it encourages them to keep coming back to your brand and website. They are also much more likely to use your services because they have faith that you are an authority and that your work can help them.
Reason #12: Your Competitors Aren’t Doing It
Differentiating yourself in the digital space is incredibly challenging. These days, everyone has marketing gurus and website designers working for them. Everything looks so professional.
However, most firms still aren’t using videos to entire their customers, particularly on their home pages. When you do this, it immediately sets you apart from the competition, setting you up for major wins.
Conclusion
We’re sure you get the picture by now: posting video content on your homepage comes with a host of advantages and very few downsides. Yet, despite all this, not all businesses are doing it. They’re still laying out their home pages in the same way they did twenty years ago, even though sales funnel concepts have moved on tremendously.
Buck the trend and add a video to your home page. Then track the difference it makes to sales, brand recognition, and website dwell time.
