Grow Your Audience With Video

By 2019, video traffic will account for 80 percent of all consumer Internet traffic

If you’re looking to grow your audience and build your homebuilding business, then we’re convinced video marketing is a great option. Just think, if a picture is worth a thousand words, how much more dynamic would integrating video into your marketing campaign be? Although video on sites like YouTube, Vimeo, Snapchat, and Facebook Live has been around for years, only now are companies realizing just how easily they can attract a fair amount of traffic with little effort, outshining their competition.

Not convinced video marketing is right for you? Take a look at the numbers.

• By 2019, video traffic will account for 80 percent of all consumer Internet traffic
• Click-through rate increases 13 percent when ‘video’ is used in the subject line
• 75 million people in the US alone watch online video every day.
• YouTube alone has over one billion users – that equates to nearly one-third of all Internet users.

What can YouTube do for your business?

It’s hard to imagine, but more than 500 million hours of videos are watched on YouTube every day. In fact, YouTube is the second largest search engine! That’s a very large audience to tap into and grow your customer base. YouTube makes it easy to explain what you do and what you offer, promote your brand, make company or industry announcements, demonstrate a product, and so much more. For example:

• YouTube videos are like a booster shot for your website by maximizing SEO. Every video on YouTube can be indexed and tagged, which increases the odds your business name will show up in natural searches for keywords related to your business.
• You can direct people to your YouTube videos on your Facebook and other social media pages, and vice versa.
• You can use YouTube to build your reputation as an expert in your field using video tutorials and industry tips.
• YouTube allows you to embed videos on your Website without increasing bandwidth, so download speeds remain constant.

What types of videos are best for your business?

As a homebuilder, you may ask what types of videos make the most sense for my business? Since you’re in the business of showing rather than telling, videos work exceptionally well in your industry. And, since videos can be used for sales and support, you can use pre-recorded video with salespeople, or record short messages personalized to your target audience who can watch them at their convenience. More ideas include:

• Explain the features and materials that make your homes unique.
• You may shoot on-site videos showing new homes being built.
• Shoot videos of testimonials by real people, previous clients and new homebuyers. Word of mouth is one of the most trusted tools to build credibility for you and your business.
• Shoot a video of your faithful employees, your offices or building, or of the entire community proving your business to be an asset in your neck of the woods.
• Hire a professional company to shoot a tour of a new home build. Prospective clients love to see what is possible and what state-of-the-art in exterior and interior materials.

How to produce a professional-looking video

You may be tempted to shoot your video using your smartphone, but think again. Unless you are a pro, have a tripod to compensate for hand-shaking, can balance lighting, you may do more harm than good for your business. That’s not to say that many successful marketing videos aren’t shot using a smartphone. Many are, and some are very good. However, it takes a lot more finesse, time, and skill to see a positive outcome than most people think.

• Do not shoot on a cheap phone or camera, and always use the back camera, as front cameras are less reliable when you want decent video quality.
• Record in landscape mode rather than shooting vertical. This is especially important as computer and TV screens are horizontal and vertical shots do not look as nice.
• Add a grid, allowing you to use your background as a point of reference. That way your recording is always straight.
• Make sure your subject – a fixture or kitchen island for example – is illuminated by a bright light source that’s ideally behind you. And, try not to shoot using your camera’s flash feature. It can distort colors and dull blacks.
• Consider hiring someone to shoot your video professionally

How best to promote your video

There are any number of ways to promote your video. Some are better than others, so it’s best to experiment with different ideas until you notice increased viewership. We’ve put together a short list of some of the ideas we’ve found work best for homebuilders.

• Write a blog article about your video and promote it using targeted keywords. For instance, maybe you’re shooting a video showing the installation of a kitchen tile floor in a new home. Keywords may include: flooring, tile flooring, new kitchen tiles, ceramic floor tile, kitchen tile flooring, etc.
• Post the blog on your website and embed the video.
• Add a video thumbnail into your email, which boosts readership of the email over using a plain image.
• Consider paying for the first views and likes to get the flywheel turning. YouTube Promoted videos are similar to Google search ads, which draw attention to your video. Plus, they don’t cost an arm and a leg so you can experiment to see what works best for you.

Do I really need a video?

The short answer, yes! Besides overwhelming proof that video attracts and retains an audience by boosting conversions, we feel its fair to say that video shows a great return on your investment (ROI), helps build trust in you and your company, rocks email campaigns, and improves the time spent by visitors to your site, which Google loves.

In addition to producing amazing videos for our clients, from NewHomeSource.com listings to our dynamic advertising, social media, SEO, email, and research services, BDX has all of the digital marketing solutions you need.” We will professionally shoot and produce your video to grow your audience and build your homebuilding business.

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