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Business Video: Create a Virtual Company Tour

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What if you could create a business video that showcases your company, its employees, and its facilities to prospective customers and future employees? You can! By creating a virtual company tour, your customers can see you in action while also learning more about your philosophy, products, and processes.

Why produce a corporate video tour? A professionally produced business video showcasing your organization can personalize your company, satisfy your customer’s curiosity, pre-sell your products, and set you apart from the competition. Consumers are naturally curious about how things are made. A number of television programs such as How it’s Made and Build it Bigger satisfy this curiosity and have proven to be popular with viewers. The How Stuff Works website is also a popular destination. People want to know so why not open the doors to your office and give your customers a peek?

Whether you run a bank, a catering company, a manufacturing facility, or an auto repair shop, creating an online video that takes consumers behind the scenes could be an effective marketing tool. Posting the video online allows customers who are researching similar companies and services to get to know you better. Being able to see your building, your friendly staff, and employees hard at work builds confidence and shows that you’re not a fly-by-night operation with a fancy website.

You can also use the business video tour in your company’s lobby. For example, if your business performs a service behind closed doors, your customers may wonder what goes on back there. You may not be able to take customers out on the shop or manufacturing floor due to safety concerns, but you could take them on a virtual tour.

If your company uses a sales team that asks other professionals for business referrals, having a business video showcasing your company’s location could help build relationships and confidence. These professionals will likely be more comfortable recommending a company that they have seen in action rather than one they’ve simply heard about from a salesperson. A business video can help them to “see” your company. For example, if you run an upscale auto repair shop and your sales team asks local insurance agents to recommend your services to their clients, the agents can personally vouch that your shop has a “clean, comfortable lobby with leather couches and an espresso machine” because they watched your video and saw the lobby.

Other potential audiences for your virtual company tour include attendees at trade shows and job fairs. Use the video tour at a trade show as part of your display, again building confidence and satisfying the natural curiosity people have about how things are made. At a job fair, you can use your business video to show job candidates your facility and how you work.

How long should your business video tour be? Avoid the temptation of creating a documentary about your company because few people are that interested. Instead, keep the video short and professional. If you’ll use the video online, consider breaking it down into individual videos covering different departments or areas such as: reception, call center, accounting, warehouse, and so on. Doing so allows viewers to pick the areas of interest to them. You can also design your DVD with menus for each department, again giving viewers a measure of control over which segments to watch.

Creating a business video that takes customers on a virtual tour of your company serves many purposes including building confidence and distinguishing your company from the competition.

Who Should Star in Your Corporate Video Production?

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You’ve decided to shoot a corporate video production and soon thereafter, the panic sets in. What am I thinking! I’m terrible in front of a camera! This is a natural reaction, especially if you’re one of the company’s principals who is expected to lead and therefore expected to be the star of your corporate video. But does this mean that you’re the best person for the job?

When it comes to corporate video productions, the business owner or CEO may seem like a natural choice. For example, if you’re shooting an employee orientation video, your audience will want to get to know about you, your philosophy, and your company and who better to discuss yourself and your vision than you? The same is true of corporate video productions designed to attract investors. However, if you’re extremely uncomfortable on camera, appearing in a starring role could be counterproductive. Instead of inspiring confidence, a poor portrayal onscreen could cause doubt. Because of this, you should assess whether or not you’re the best person to lead the video. And if you’re not the best person, who is?

Define the Corporate Video Production’s Purpose
Corporate videos are made for many reasons ranging from employee orientations, investor relations, and sales videos to company tours and “how to” videos. Ask yourself what purpose the video is intended to serve and who the intended audience is. Now ask yourself how you’re going to use video to get your message across.

For example, if your video is intended to put your investors’ minds at ease and inspire confidence that your company continues to innovate, then your video needs to convey energy, commitment, and strength. While a talking head with loads of bar charts could convince investors that your company is on track, a corporate video production showing your team hard at work may be more effective. Should you stand in front of the camera talking about your latest initiatives or would one of your more energetic employees take the lead? A series of employee testimonials could be far more convincing than a discussion of bank balances in this case.

Similarly, customer testimonials are powerful tools. After all, who better to talk about the wonders of your products and services than the customers who have benefited from them?

Assess On Camera Skills
Whether you’re considering yourself or someone else for the starring role, it’s important that whoever leads the corporate video production is comfortable on camera. Formal acting training isn’t necessary to adequately represent your company in a business video, but whoever leads the video should be comfortable with role playing and speaking on camera.

Consider holding a casting call for the video. For example, if your video will feature an employee giving new hires a sneak peek at what it’s really like working for your company, you could hire an actor to play the part but having a real employee do it will be more effective. Let your employees know about the opportunity and have them submit video auditions or try out in front of a video camera set up in your conference room. Not only might you be surprised at the talent your staff has, your employees could enjoy being involved in your corporate video production.

Consult with Your Corporate Video Production Team
Your video production team knows what it’s doing, so make sure to partner with your producer. If it’s essential that you star in the video, your producer can put you at ease and help you look good on camera. You may be able to appear on camera for a short time, filling in the rest of the video with voiceovers, graphics, photos, images of your company, and testimonials. Your production company may recommend a spokesperson or even a character, depending on the video’s purpose and audience.

Deciding who should star in your corporate video production comes down to who is best equipped to deliver the intended message to the intended audience. It may be you, it may be an employee, it may be an actor, or it may be your customers!

Attract Traffic and Boost Sales with Short Web Videos

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The latest research from PewInternet.org shows what many marketers already know: More Americans are watching and sharing online videos – dramatically so. According to Pew’s State of Online Video 2010, 69 percent of adult Internet users have used the Internet to watch or download video. These numbers are but part of the story. While Web videos are popular with users, they can also drive traffic to business websites and boost sales conversions.

Typical business websites act as online brochures, showing customers and prospects what the business has to offer. Early designs were relatively static with brochure-like text and contact information. Today, most business websites provide far more than a sales pitch and contact information. Now, informative articles, blogs, and interactive content are website standbys. With more Internet users willing to watch videos online, adding 60 to 90 minute Web videos makes sense. After all, video is an effective medium to convey messages.

In addition to being a terrific way to communicate, Web videos can actually drive traffic to your website, build trust and credibility, and boost sales conversion. First, all of the major search engines include video results in their search results pages. Not only do video results now appear in general search results, separate video categories exist where users can specifically search for sites with videos.

For example, if you have a well optimized Web page discussing “how to attract butterflies to your garden,” your page could conceivably appear on the first page of Google’s search results. If that same site had a video discussing the topic, not only might your page be listed in general, the video would appear as a separate search result. That’s two links attracting traffic. Now, what if the user was specifically looking for videos about attracting butterflies? If you don’t have a Web video on your site, your site won’t appear in the search results no matter how well you optimized the text. By including Web videos on your pages, your site should get more exposure than without.

Attracting more visitors can lead to increased conversions based on numbers alone. However, adding Web video is more than a simple numbers game. By producing informative 60 to 90 minute videos, you are adding value to your site and building trust with your site’s visitors. No matter how a visitor arrives to your site, a sale won’t take place unless the visitor sees value and trusts you to deliver.

Because value and trust are crucial to winning sales, it’s vital that these short Web videos project these characteristics. Consider a business website, one with a professionally produced Web video and one with an amateur Web video. Which one would you be more likely to buy from? Which one is more likely to be around several years from now to honor any warranties? Web visitors make subconscious judgments like these based on what they experience. Strong production values can sway these judgments in your favor.

There’s more to Web video than a pretty picture; your content needs to build trust as well. Is the video informative? Does it add value? Does it give site visitors are reason to select your company over others? If your Web video promises to show how to attract butterflies but is merely a picture of butterflies flitting around, it has failed no matter how beautiful it may be. On the other hand, if it presents a useful technique or product, then it has lived up to its promise and added value.

A solid Web video strategy can drive traffic and boost sales. As you begin forming your online video strategy, keep value and trust in mind and you’re sure to start seeing results!

Converting Site Visitors to Customers with Web Video

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You’ve spent countless hours and large sums of money developing pay per click campaigns, press releases, and other strategies to attract visitors to your website. Now what? Shouldn’t the sales start rushing in? They should, but if your site lacks compelling content, calls to action, and a reason to buy, they won’t. Many strategies exist to convert prospects into customers. One such strategy involves using Web videos.

When a prospect visits your site, he may or may not intend to make a purchase. With a solid website strategy in place, you can gently guide the visitor through the decision making process. Web video can play an important role. Let’s take a look at the site visitor’s perspective before exploring how Web videos can enhance the process.

Most visitors arrive after entering a phrase into a search engine. For example, a visitor might enter the phrase “low cost widgets” and land on a page of your site that has been optimized for the same term. Alternately, your pay per click ad for low cost widgets may show up, prompting the user to visit your website. Does he find anything on that page that convinces him that your company is the best source of low cost widgets? What makes your widgets better than other widgets in the same price range? What makes your company the company of choice? Why should the visitor act now?

If the visitor’s attention is not captured quickly, if there’s nothing on your page that distinguishes your products from your competitors’ products, or if there’s no reason to act, the visitor will move on to the next site listed in the search engine results. Don’t let this happen. Instead, help your visitors by providing well written information and professionally produced Web videos.

First, consider where site visitors will land when your targeted keywords have found a prospect. This page is called a landing page. Because it is the first page that the visitor lands on, don’t assume that he has read your Home or About Us pages. This landing page is your first, and possibly only, chance to make a good impression. Since the landing page is related to a specific keyword phrase, in this case “low cost widgets,” the content needs to be relevant to that topic. In this example, you’ll be competing on price, but that doesn’t mean you need to focus only on that aspect. Yes, highlight that your widgets are affordable, but add value whenever possible. Think about what makes your widgets better than comparably priced widgets. The warranty? The quality? The free technical support and training? Make sure to discuss value in the text.

Now, let’s add Web video to the mix. A short video showing how easy your widgets are to assemble could be a terrific selling point. If your competitor’s widgets have complicated instructions and take three hours to assemble and yours snap together in three easy steps in under five minutes, use Web video to illustrate the difference. You could also use video tutorials, video testimonials, or even a video spokesperson.

In fact, video spokespeople are a terrific strategy. These video overlays can direct visitors to pages with additional information, provide details, demonstrate products, and put your visitors at ease. Suddenly, your website promoting low cost widgets isn’t one of many; it’s unique and professional.

The prospect is impressed. Will he click the “buy now” button or will he click the “back” button to continue his search? Don’t leave it to chance – include a call to action. Ask the customer to do something such as:

  • “Take advantage of our special discount and save $X by buying today”
  • “Add this product to your wish list”
  • “Sign up for our free newsletter”

Ideally, after reading your content and viewing your Web video, the prospect will be ready to buy. If not, adding the product to a wish list or signing up for a newsletter makes it more likely that you’ll get a second chance. Use Web video as a key component of your site’s conversion strategy.

Do You Need a Web Video Strategy?

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Adding web videos to your websites and blogs is a terrific way to add value to your sites while also taking advantage of the potential additional traffic from video search engine results. However, there’s more involved than occasionally posting an online video on your site. As with the other elements of Web development, video for web pages should be strategically planned and managed.

First, how can online video benefit your site? The benefits are numerous. For example, having Web videos on your site can result in additional traffic based on search results. Not only do the major search engines list results based on text, they now list video results. While additional traffic is always welcome, video for web pages can also: inform visitors, direct attention to specific areas of the website, convey your message, make your company more personable, and prompt users to act in some desirable way.

With all of the benefits of online video, the decision to move forward is relatively easy. Before you start trolling YouTube for inspiration, it’s important to understand what you want the Web video to accomplish.

Ask yourself the following questions:

  • What is the purpose of the website?
  • How can Web video help you to further that purpose?
  • Which benefit of online video is most important to you?
  • Where does it make the most sense to post video on your website?
  • How often are you willing to post online videos?

The answers to these questions can guide you in creating a Web video strategy. For example, if your website’s purpose is to raise awareness about a specific cause, adding informational videos could be powerful. On the other hand, if your website’s purpose is sales driven, how-to videos or product demos may be a better choice. If you want to attract visitors, inform them, and create a more engaging experience, you may want to opt for a video spokesperson who acts as a virtual tour guide throughout your site.

Where should you post your online videos? Again, it depends on the purpose of the site and the Web video. The home page may be the perfect spot for your cause awareness video whereas individual product pages may be better suited for the how-to videos. Depending on how you incorporate Web videos, you may even want to create a video gallery or showcase section of your site.

Just as it’s important to regularly add articles and blog posts to your sites, regularly adding online videos is also important. Adding fresh content encourages return visitors and aids in SEO. Create an editorial calendar and map out your video for web goals. If you have the resources, adding a fresh online video each week would be an excellent start. Even if you can only handle one Web video per month, you’d have 12 videos working for your site in a year’s time, each delivering benefits and traffic.

Do you have a video for web strategy or are you winging it? What are your thoughts?

Enhance the Internet Sales Conversion Process with a Virtual Spokesperson

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Have you encountered a virtual spokesperson on a website yet? If you have, then you know that virtual spokespeople add a new, dynamic element to static Web pages. A video overlay of a real person walking onto the screen and speaking directly to site visitors helps personalize websites. However, there’s more involved than a friendly face; a virtual spokesperson can translate into increased conversions.

No matter what your website’s goals may be, using a virtual spokes model strategically can ensure that those goals are met. For example, do you have a landing page on your site designed to collect opt-in email addresses? While “click here” links and peel away banners entice users to click their way to the landing page, a virtual spokesperson can gently guide the visitor to the desired page. As the virtual spokesperson directs attention to the pages that you’d like the user to visit, she can also explain the benefits of doing so as well as thank the user for taking the desired action after the fact.

One of the most profound effects that virtual spokespeople have on site visitors is that of credibility. Because the spokes model looks, sounds, and acts like someone the visitor relates to, trust is built. Who do consumers buy from? People that they trust. Well written website content, a professional website design, and a real, albeit virtual, spokesperson work together to build trust.

This doesn’t mean that you should simply dress an actor in a lab coat and tell him his name is Dr. Smith. It means that you need to select a spokesperson who can build trust with your audience. Wardrobe choice is important, but it’s not the only priority. For example, if your site sells healthy living books, a number of spokes model characters could be effective such as a motherly type, yoga instructor, or athlete. Consider who your audience is and what type of role models resonate the best with site visitors. From there, select a virtual spokesperson with the qualities that your audience respects.

So, you have a professional website with a credible virtual spokesperson welcoming and guiding your site’s visitors. While you’ve been able to direct visitors to specific areas of the site and build trust along the way, nothing happens until the visitor takes action. If you’ve been involved in traditional sales, you know that the simple act of asking for the sale is one of the most powerful tools in your sales toolbox. Phrases such as “Would you like to place an order?” and “Can I schedule overnight delivery or standard delivery for you?” prompt users to make a decision. A virtual spokesperson can improve the sales conversion rate of your website simply by asking visitors for the sale.

Though some companies will suggest that incorporating a virtual spokesperson into your website is easy and inexpensive, the process is more complicated than cutting and pasting a few lines of code into an HTML editor. Among the many steps are: selecting the right actor or actress for your site, writing a script (or several scripts if the virtual spokesperson will be used extensively), choosing the wardrobe, shooting and editing the video, and overlaying the final composition over your site. Look for a video production company with an understanding of the nuances of Internet marketing as well as high production values.

Virtual spokespeople enhance the sales conversion process by building trust, guiding visitors, and asking for the sale. What have your virtual spokesperson experiences been like so far? Have you made a purchase decision based on a virtual spokesperson’s recommendation? Has your site seen improved conversions since adding a virtual spokes model? We’d love to hear from consumers as well as website owners.

The Benefits of a Virtual Spokesperson

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Last week we talked about the evolution of virtual spokespeople on the Web. While it’s interesting to see how virtual spokes models have transformed from animated text readers to full motion video overlays delivering custom messages, website spokes people serve a real purpose and deliver real results.

The benefits of having a virtual spokesperson on your website range from making your site’s visitors feel welcome to prompting visitors to perform a specific action such as “call us today to place your order” or “download this exclusive, free report now.” When a website’s visitors feel welcome, they’re more likely to stick around or return regularly. When visitors are prompted with a solid call to action, they’re more likely to act on that call. In both cases, having a friendly video spokesperson guiding visitors can lead to increased sales conversions.

Using a Virtual Spokesperson to Welcome Website Visitors

Incorporating a virtual spokes model on your website’s home page and landing pages is similar to having a customer service representative or receptionist greeting customers as they arrive at your place of business. A friendly face, a nice tone of voice, and a warm greeting help put customers at ease and let them know that their presence is welcome and appreciated.

Select an actor or actress with a professional appearance that fits in with your business type or customer base. Working with a professional script writer, you’ll then want to create a welcoming message that connects with the audience while also telling visitors what they can expect from visiting your website.

Using a Virtual Spokesperson to Build Trust

In addition to welcoming visitors, your virtual spokesperson can also build trust with users. Use the virtual spokesperson on informational pages, FAQs pages, and other areas of your site where you want additional credibility. Again, you’ll need a solid script presenting useful information to your site’s visitors as well as a virtual spokesperson with the right image. For example, if your Web page discusses preventing sports injuries, the appearance of a virtual spokesperson playing the role of a sports trainer, physician, or nurse can add credibility to your message and build trust with your audience.

Using a Virtual Spokesperson to Prompt Users to Perform Specific Actions

Your website is likely designed with several elements requiring specific user actions in order to be effective. For example, you may have a newsletter or special report that you use for building an opt-in mailing list. You might have specific pages with strong calls to action. You might have a video that educates and inspires your visitors, prompting them to donate to your cause. No matter what you’re trying to accomplish with your website, you’ve got to get your site’s visitors to those specific areas of the site. A virtual spokesperson can do just that by appearing on your site and guiding users to other areas of your website. Far more effective than a “click here” link, a virtual spokesperson can entice users to perform the desired action as well as explain the benefits of doing so.

By using a virtual spokesperson throughout your website, you can welcome visitors to your site, inform them, build trust, and convince them to perform specific actions. This makes for an engaging, informational experience for your users and translates into increased conversions for you. Make sure to team up with a professional video production company specializing in virtual spokes models.

The Evolution of Virtual Spokespeople

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Remember when it was fairly common to land on a Web page and find yourself face-to-face with an animated person reading the text on the page word for word? Those early virtual spokespeople have evolved, leaping out of their frames and shedding their cartoon appearances. Today’s virtual spokes models do more than simply read the page’s content. They appeal  site visitors on a personal level.

Early Virtual Spokespeople

Virtual spokes models are not new to the Internet. A typical early virtual spokesperson featured an animated talking head that read the words featured on the website. Web visitors either loved them or hated them. For some, hearing the text read by a robotic voice was more annoying than useful. Annoyed visitors don’t stick around long, and for the most part, these early spokes models have fallen out of favor.

As broadband connections have become more common, so too have video spokes models. At first, these virtual spokespeople appeared in video boxes just as any other hosted video on a website. Depending on how the Web developer set up the site, the videos either play automatically upon opening a page or are launched by the visitor. While it’s not unheard of for a video spokesperson of this type to read the page’s text, most follow their own scripts and deliver additional information.

Modern Virtual Spokespeople

spokes teamWith advanced Flash technology and a new emphasis on video spokes models, today’s virtual spokes person is a far cry from those early incarnations. You may still see the occasional animated spokes person; however, expect a level of interactivity that wasn’t present before. For example, Animotioninc.com’s virtual spokesperson, Bucky Smiles, appears buried under a clump of snow. A brush appears and the user is invited to brush the snow away to reveal the character, chattering teeth and all. Next, the user can drag a cup of coffee over and warm up the poor guy who finally has the opportunity to deliver his message.

As far as video spokespeople go, the actors are no longer confined to tiny frames. These virtual spokes models step across the screen, appearing as overlays on the site. For example, a virtual spokesperson can walk across the website, pointing visitors to specific areas of the site. Depending on how the scene was shot, a video spokesperson can jump into the website, landing on the page and delivering a unique message.

Today’s modern virtual spokes person is far more engaging than previous generations. With video spokespeople, an actor or actress presents a short message which has been scripted with a specific purpose in mind. For example, a video spokesperson might welcome site visitors, highlight specific products, or prompt visitors to perform a certain action such as sign up for newsletters or fill out a survey.

The modern video spokesperson for the Web is also more personable than the animated spokesperson of the past. Most video production companies offering virtual spokespeople have a cast of attractive, versatile actors and actresses capable of delivering any message. If your site appeals to businesses, a professional spokesperson can add credibility to your site. If your site appeals to a younger crowd, a young and vibrant virtual spokesperson can add a touch of fun and excitement to your site. Best of all, today’s virtual spokespeople add value and can lead to increased conversion rates.