How to Promote Your Brand with Video

Cynthia Kay

How to Promote Your Brand with Video

It’s a fact. Today many people simply do not read. The reasons are many and varied. We spend so much time on computers that we need a break.  We want to have a richer experience- to see and hear about things rather than just reading.  And, it’s just more fun to see a video.

Perhaps that’s why companies, celebrities and consumers use videos constantly. From creating a 15 second Instagram clip via their phone to having a full promo video done by a video production company on Youtube. Most recently, hip hop moguls and power couple Jay Z and Beyonce produced a 3:45 film trailer for their On the Run concert tour and it quickly became viral.

Businesses can also take advantage of the popularity of videos by building their brand through this medium. YouTube, Vimeo, and Instagram all are great places to increase your brand exposure. While video is great (I do making a living creating them), I also believe it can have a negative impact on your brand if you don’t understand how to properly brand your company on different online platforms.  So here are a few tips.

YouTube
In his book Entrepreneur Magazine's Ultimate Guide to YouTube for Business, marketing and public relations consultant Jason Rich provides several tips on how to master the secrets of successful "YouTubers" and put your brand in front of millions of potential viewers. To begin, start by using the tools available directly through YouTube. For example, provide a detailed and accurate title and description to each of your videos and associate tags (keywords) that are directly relevant. Next, promote your videos to the people you know, including your real-life friends, relatives, customers and clients. Ask these people to watch your video(s) and share them with their online friends. Then, use a call to action within your videos to encourage people to like, rate, comment and share your videos.

A couple more helpful tips are to get your videos (and your YouTube Channel page) listed with the major search engines, including Google, Yahoo! and Bing, and then focus on SEO strategies to get the best possible listing placements. And finally, try to collaborate on videos with other companies that are already utilizing YouTube effectively and that are targeting the same audience. Just make sure that these companies are not in direct competition with you. This will allow you to capture the attention of your collaborator’s viewers and subscribers.

Vimeo
While Vimeo has less users than YouTube it is more famous for its quality of users. Vimeo consists mostly of college students and people who are well-versed and knowledgeable in the art of filmmaking. The discussions and comments on Vimeo are of a better level and can even be enriching if taken constructively. Some benefits of branding your company on Vimeo include much higher video/production quality, more aesthetically appealing video player, the ability to choose your own thumbnails, cleaner and more professional profile pages and you can host your own domain.

Effectively promoting your brand on Vimeo starts with getting a paid Pro account. A Pro account includes 2-pass encoding (this process makes videos much cleaner, requiring less bandwidth to view), priority uploading, complete customization of its video players for embedded logos and disabling of in-video advertising.

Instagram
Getting started on Instagram is fairly simple. Simply sign up for an account using the same name as your Twitter handle, add your profile picture (brand logo) and connect your posts to your Facebook brand page. Posting content is the tricky part. For Instagram you want to balance fun videos and pictures with business or promotional content. Try to tell a story with your posts. Once you get a good rhythm going, track the engagement to find out what your followers like best!
Since the launch of Instagram’s 15 second, filter enabled, editable videos, Vine has received a run for its money.

For brands the best method to promote videos via Instagram is to begin by sharing unique branded experiences. Highlight brand advocates, co-create content with audiences, preview products, highlight a specific cause, extend the brand’s persona via video, preview upcoming events by adding visual context, share important news, drive promotional awareness, leverage Instagram video for promotion and create videos that show fan appreciation. Then embed your Instagram video in your blog or website to extend the reach of your content.

There is no doubt about it, using video to promote your brand can take some extra time and energy but it has been proven to be very effective. Brands like Lululemon and National Geographic have gotten video marketing on Instagram down to a science and there’s no reason you can’t too.