The Psychology of the Perfect Marketing Video
Creating a video (or video series) to help market your business or service is a no-brainer. For one, a great video can be leveraged and repurposed on many different marketing channels including your website and social media profiles. It's an easy, shareable way to communicate your company's core message.
But how do you get people to watch your video? And what does it take to stand out from the crowd? In this blog, we’ll take a look at the psychology of video marketing to help you create the perfect marketing video your audience will love.
1. Avoid the Goldfish Effect - Hook Them From the Very Start!
Have you heard of the goldfish effect? According to studies, the average attention span was 12 seconds in 2000. By 2013, that had dropped to eight seconds. That's eight seconds of total concentration and processing power before the brain moves on to the next task. Compare that to the average attention span of a goldfish, which is nine seconds. That's right, folks. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, we have shorter attention spans than goldfish.
Additionally, your brain filters out predictable or irrelevant information, so above all you've got to make sure your video doesn't fall into either of those categories. You’ll need to break through the noise with information that’s new, exciting, and different.
So what’s the first key takeaway for creating the perfect marketing video? Capture your audience’s attention within the first 8 seconds of your marketing video and make sure your content is extremely interesting, captivating and even a little unpredictable.
2. Keep It Short and Simple
Most researchers agree that marketing videos should definitely be less than two minutes long and you’re probably better off aiming for 60-90 seconds.
Why is this? Well, from a psychology standpoint, our brains shut down in the face of complex or new information. Rather than overload your audience with stats, figures and features, focus on making your video content easy to understand and fun to watch.
Less is more. Your audience prefers short, digestible pieces of content to complex, feature-laden videos.
3. Tap Into the Power of Story
Can you believe this statistic? Stories are 22 times more memorable than facts alone.
The reason is because stories tap into more parts of the brain than facts alone. Facts and stats only activate the language center brain, whereas storytelling lights up the whole brain. Especially interesting is the fact that storytelling activates cortisol (which helps with attention) and oxytocin (which helps with empathy) - two brain chemicals that are critical to decision-making.
So what does that mean for your marketing video? Stories sell! Instead of telling your potential customers all about what makes your service or company special, tell them a compelling and brief story and they’ll remember you for it.
4. Make Them Laugh or Cry
A key factor of any successful marketing video is emotion and mood. Studies show that a positive mood impacts buying decisions (Scheibehenne). What’s even more critical is that fMRI scans have shown that customers will buy based on emotion - not information alone. An emotional response to an advertisement impacts purchase intent more than the content.
The worst kind of emotional response is no emotional response at all. Make your viewers laugh, make them cry - just make sure they feel something!
5. Maximize Multimedia
Research suggests that a viewer’s understanding of your service gets a 74% boost from dual auditory and visual coding that comes through on a video. Additionally, the human brain processes visuals 60,000 times faster than text. If a picture is worth a thousand words, video’s worth a million.
So what does this mean for your video? Create informative, engaging, story-driven video content that makes the most of the medium. Pair memorable imagery with powerful music and narration to evoke a strong emotional response in your viewers. They won’t forget it!
6. Offer a Strong Call to Action (CTA)
In marketing, a call to action (CTA) is an instruction to the audience designed to provoke an immediate response, usually using an imperative verb such as "call now", "find out more" or "visit a store today”.
From a psychological standpoint, CTA’s reinforce our sense of reward. Framing the desired action as a reward or benefit for your viewer and potential customer drives home the notion that it’s the culmination of their viewing experience - and they’ll be more likely to click or call.
You want your video to end with a CTA that your target client finds it nearly impossible not to click or call. So don’t waste your time or your clients’ time! Instead offer a strong, rewards-focused CTA that capitalizes on your viewer’s investment of time and attention.
Is there a possibility your company can benefit from video marketing? Whether you just need some guidance or a complete custom video marketing campaign, let our expert team create your video masterpiece. Visit our Capabilities page to learn more.