Creating engaging video content for your target audience is something that requires planning. Effective videos - even the most simplest ones - have a strategy behind them. You need to have a process in order to attract and delight a following to your brand. At Visual Marketing & Design, we created the framework for our marketing videos. This process is broken down into four simple steps. These steps will help you focus on producing valuable content for your business and help you attract more qualified leads. 

Developing a Buyer Persona

Developing a buyer persona - or a target audience - is critical for your marketing videos. According to HubSpot, a buyer persona is a semi-fictional representation of your ideal customer based on market research and real data about your existing customers. So before you even turn on the camera, you need to think about whom you are trying to connect with before you start filming.

When creating your buyer persona, you want to look into the key demographics that make up your ideal customer. This could be their age, location, personal interest, and challenges that they may face. Once you have identified the metrics that will make up your target audience you can start to strategize on which topics will be of value to them. 

It is important to keep in mind that each platform draws in a different audience. Your followers on Instagram will vary from your subscribers on YouTube or friends on Facebook. Keep your buyer persona in mind with each video that you create. Your topics and content should speak directly to them and their needs. The goal is to add value to your ideal customer so that they see you as a source of truth in your industry. 

Pick a topic - but not just any topic.

In order for your videos to connect with your target audience, you need to pick a topic that would address any challenges they may face. The likelihood of your videos resonating with your key demographic is higher when you address their specific pain points. Start with a broad topic that would speak directly to their needs and identify specific points that you would like to address in your video. The specific points that you want to make will be actual content for your videos. The broad topic that you have selected will continue to act as a source for you to produce more videos in the future. 

Sticking to this strategy is extremely important in developing a healthy cadence on social media. You want to avoid creating a video that covers a broad topic because it will not add value to the viewer. That is why the broad topic should be part of the long-term marketing strategy while the specific points you make in your videos are part of your short-form content marketing. Platforms like Instagram Reels and TikTok only allow you to produce ninety-second to three-minute videos. Most social media apps are optimized for short-form video content - that is why you should be specific in your videos. 

Write a script

Consider this the heart of your content strategy for videos. It is so important for you to write down what you want to say before you film. You will achieve the best results on your videos if you have a script prepared. It is extremely difficult to go into a session without any preparation. Creating a video can be hard and you may freeze when the camera is rolling. The videos that you like on social media most likely have some form of script.

Sixty to ninety-second scripts range from 180-230 words. Writing a script for your videos does not mean that you will come off rehearsed or unnatural. In fact, having a script prepared will organize your thoughts and help you avoid rambling. Scripts do not have to be memorized instead they are used as a reference for you to stay on point and ensure that your message is being delivered effectively. 

Go long and create multiple shorts

You have identified your target audience, picked a topic, written a script, and are ready to film. The best strategy is to create a long-form video for you to post on your website and YouTube. Then, repurpose that video into micro content so it can be posted on platforms like Instagram Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts. Your long-form video should be about 2-5 mins in length. While short-form videos should be about 30-90 seconds. 

The idea is to have multiple pieces of content for social media and your website. The best way to do that is to repurpose your long-form content into short-form for distribution on various platforms. Instead of posting one 60-second video on Reels, create a 2-3 minute video on YouTube and then chop that up into six 30-second clips for your Instagram audience. Keep in mind, each social media platform attracts a different audience. Repurposing that content is the best way to connect with each demographic. 

Rinse and Repeat

Follow these four steps and your videos will delight and invite your audience to engage with your brand. Creating consistent content for your website and social media can seem like an overwhelming task but it doesn’t have to be if you follow this formula. We also recommend that you create batch videos on a monthly or semi-monthly basis. For our clients, we book about 2-3 hours per month and create about 5-6 videos in each session. But if committing to a yearly schedule is not feasible for you, then we would recommend that you focus on marketing during the downtime in your business cycle.

You will only see results from your marketing efforts if you are consistent. It is much easier to be consistent if you have a process for your content.