Over the past decade, video marketing has skyrocketed in popularity because of its efficacy when it comes to traffic generation. In the past, only a few bold marketers ventured into the space and made videos.

Now, if you don’t have a video channel on YouTube, are you even really a legit marketer?
But all levity aside, it’s important to understand that YouTube is not just a place where you watch videos; it’s the second largest search engine on the planet, and it’s owned by Google.

This will explain why when you do a search on Google, very often, you’ll also see videos showing up at the top of the search results. Which brings us to the next point…

Benefits of Video Marketing

As mentioned earlier, it’s great for traffic generation. If you manage to get your video ranking in Google, you can bet that people will be clicking on your video and watching it. Now imagine several videos ranking. Your traffic will snowball.

Unlike paid ads, video marketing is free. Of course, you’ll be spending time making the videos, and one could argue that time is money – which is true.

But when you’re a beginner marketer on a tight budget, you’ll be more than willing to spend time rather than money to drive traffic to your web properties.

Videos can also be embedded in your blog and social media. Which means you’ll get more bang for your buck because the same piece of content can be shared in multiple places.

Many people prefer watching videos to reading text. So, if you have videos on your site, you’ll keep them engaged longer.

Now let’s look at 10 crucial tips when it comes to video marketing. They’re in no particular order. Each is as important as the other. So give them all your attention and apply them.

1. Use a good screen recording tool

If you’re doing tutorial videos, you’ll need a reliable screen recording tool. You’ll also need a good microphone. Audio is just as important when it comes to making videos.

Some marketers will prefer to appear on camera while others prefer to remain off-screen. There are no right or wrong answers here. Do what feels right for you.

But if you’re appearing on screen, you’ll want to ensure that you have a good camera and your lighting is bright enough so that you’re not shrouded in shadows. You’ll need to spend time learning how to arrange the lights so that you look your best onscreen.

2. Keyword research is crucial

If you’re trying to rank in YouTube, ideally, you should be using tools such as vidIQ or Tube Buddy to see what keywords your competitors are ranking for and get a data about their tags and other metrics.

You can’t go in blind here. Knowing which keywords are getting the most searches will help you to focus your efforts so that your videos get the best results. Initially, you’ll want to keep your focus narrow and make videos on a particular topic.

This will allow the YouTube algorithm to know what your channel is about and it will be easier to rank your videos accordingly and show them to people who need your content the most.

3. Have a good intro video

Adding an intro to your video is an excellent way to make your videos look professional. The good news is that you can get one created for you for a very low price. Just head over to Fiverr and do a search for ‘video intro’. Look at some of the results you’ll find…

There’s a wide selection to choose from. Pick an intro that most closely fits in with the ‘vibe’ of your channel. Once you get your intro video, you can add it to all your videos for consistency and branding.

Besides an intro video, you’ll also want to get overlays done for your channel. These are little animations that will remind your viewers to like your video and subscribe to your channel.
A quick search on Etsy turned up these results…

So, it’s easy to find all these simple effects to make your videos stand out. You can even hire someone on Fiverr to design an attractive thumbnail for your video. You don’t need to do it all yourself. There are solutions out there that will save you time and effort. All you need to do is focus on creating the best video content you can.

4. Personality MATTERS!

This is probably one of the most important points you should take note of. Whether you’re appearing on screen or not, your personality must shine through your videos. Nobody is going to stick around if your videos are dull and boring.

You want to educate and entertain at the same time. Sometimes you may wish to create a persona for yourself and be slightly over the top. You’ll get more attention and be more memorable.

The best way you can learn about this will be to watch popular YouTubers, TikTok videos and Instagram influencers. Pay attention to what they’re doing and their personalities.

What do the audience like most about them? 

For some, it may be their outlandish clothes. Others may be good storytellers. Some of them are hilarious and make people laugh.

Some people are extreme like, Stefanie Millinger, who does death defying stunts and posts the videos on Instagram for the world to see…

It doesn’t matter what the platform is – the principle is the same. You CANNOT afford to be boring. With so many content creators around, the only way to stand above the noise is to let your personality shine.

Depending on the niche you’re in, that may mean providing excellent information, insider secrets, case studies, video demonstrations, etc. Mix in some jokes, storytelling and a wacky personality and you’ll build an audience who loves your content.

Don’t panic if you see some people ‘thumbing down’ your videos. Almost all videos, no matter how popular and awesome they are, still get thumbs down from the usual haters. Even a thumbs down on your video is fine because it’s still engagement in YouTube eyes.

You can’t please everybody. Your goal will be to get more likes than dislikes. If you can do that, you’re on the right track.

5. Get to the point

People love to be entertained. This is why they’ll binge watch an entire series on Netflix. It doesn’t matter whether each episode ends with a cliffhanger. They’ll still be there for the next episode.
YouTube videos, however, are different. You must have a purpose for making them. Since you’re doing video marketing, your goal will probably be to drive traffic, get sales and build your list.
In order to do that, you’ll be making promotional/tutorial videos.

Here’s the truth – your videos will probably NEVER be as interesting as a Netflix show, no matter how engaging you are.

What that means is that while your personality should shine, you MUST get to the point relatively quickly because people’s attention spans are short. If they’re watching your video to learn something, they’re not interested in listening to your life story.

You want to be entertaining while showing them what they need to know, preferably quickly. Don’t waffle for too long and it’s best to edit your videos to keep them ‘tight’ and fast-paced.

In this way, you’ll increase the viewer retention rate of your videos and also make your viewers happy. You must have a goal for every video you make.

* Is it to sell something?
* Or teach something?
* Or just for information purposes?

Once you have a goal in mind, create a video that meets the goal. Your video will be more focused and easier to create. You might even want to plan your video out on paper first before recording.

6. Build a squeeze page

You’re probably wondering, “Why do I need a squeeze page for video marketing?”
To build your list – that’s why!

People lose their YouTube accounts daily for a multitude of reasons. If a competitor flags your channel and reports it too many times, you might find your account shut down or temporarily restricted.

This is the price to pay when you build your house on rented land. You have no control over your content. It’s owned by YouTube and they can boot you out any time they see fit… without any explanation.

By building a squeeze page with a page builder, you’ll be able to add a link to this page in your description for people to join your email list.

The email list an asset that’s yours! You’ll be able to market to these subscribers and let them know if you release a new video.

While not every video needs to have a link to your landing page, make sure a lot of them do. Always build your email list… and have a call to action at the end of each video telling them to click on the link in the description and sign up.

7. Engage with your viewers

You’re never too cool to engage with your viewers. Respond to their comments with either replies or by ‘hearting’ their comments. Show them that you appreciate their support.

It may not seem like much to you, but it will mean a lot to the people who are following you. While you may not be able to reply all of them, at least try and reply the first 10 -15 comments. YouTube loves to see engagement.

8. Start a blog

Many beginners start a video channel just because they don’t want to create content for a blog. However, having a blog opens up a lot of opportunities to you.

For starters, your viewers will be able to visit your blog and consume more content. You’ll be able to weave links to affiliate products within your blog content. Having a pop up or a scroll mat feature on your blog will help you build your list too. You can easily add these if you have the Thrive Leads plugin.

Your blog can also be used to sell physical and digital products. It’s a lot easier to sell from a blog. Videos are great for driving traffic, but it’s hard to sell from YouTube.

The only visible link is the one in the description… and while you could add more links below, the truth is that most viewers rarely expand on the description or see the other links.

So, it’s just easier to sell from a blog. Just make sure you’re using a good WordPress theme and you’re with a reliable web hosting service.

9. Posting schedule

Just like how most professional bloggers have a content schedule, when you have a video channel, you’ll want to have a consistent posting schedule. Some marketers post videos daily while others post once a week.

Whatever the case, you want to be regular in your posting. Even 1 video a week will make your channel seem relevant in YouTube’s eyes. It’ll not be another abandoned channel.

YouTube tends to give preference to channels that constantly put out new content. It’s a way of rewarding the content creators for making the platform more ‘valuable’.

10. Be everywhere

Last but not least, being everywhere means that besides YouTube, you’ll also have a Facebook page/group, a Pinterest board, an Instagram account and so on. While your focus may only be on YouTube, it doesn’t hurt to have accounts on these other platforms.

Every time you post a video, you can share it on your Facebook page, link to it from Twitter, create a pin on Pinterest linking to it and so on. All these backlinks will help to make your video rank better.
Not only that, but users on the other platforms will stumble across your links and end up watching your videos and even signing up for your list. It’s all connected and the more links you have out there pointing back to your videos, the better.

Common Problems You May Face

While video marketing is relatively straightforward, most beginners may struggle with a few issues…
The first one is getting the SEO right for their videos. The good news is that video optimization is a lot easier than ranking your blog posts in Google. With vidIQ and Tube Buddy, you’ll have enough data to know what you need to do to get ranked.

Alternatively, you may wish to get a good video marketing course to guide you here. Another problem some marketers will have is shyness. They’re either afraid to appear on camera or they hate the sound of their voice.

There’s only one way to overcome this problem… you just have to go ahead and do it. No one really cares how you look if your content rocks! They just want information and entertainment. If you can speak clearly, it doesn’t matter whether you have an accent or your voice isn’t smooth and sultry. Can you get the message across in a clear manner?

You can? Excellent! You’re ready to make videos. Just do it.

In conclusion…

Video marketing is a very cost-effective way to drive traffic to your site, build your list, get affiliate sales and much more.

Once you make the first few videos and upload them, you’ll realize that it’s not that difficult at all. Your videos will get better with time, and you’ll learn how to optimize your videos and descriptions so that they rank and get you sales.

It all starts with the first video. So, get started today and use video marketing to generate income for you online.

You’ll be a pro in no time at all!