Hardwood Floors August/September 2019

By Katrina Olson

Practical considerations These are mostly “housekeeping” issues. • What logos, certifications, websites, words, images, messages, or other content must be included? • Where should the video appear? Where do you have existing relationships or contracts? • How long should the message be and in what format? • How and how often will success be evaluated? What metrics should you use? (We’ll cover metrics more extensively in part three of this series in the December/January issue.) Choose the right format

Communication strategy Every video should serve a purpose for your company; otherwise, why bother creating it? • What broader company goal or objective does this video address? • What problem does the subject matter solve for the customer? • What is your position in the marketplace? What does the target audience currently think of you? • What is your promise to the target audience? What do you offer?Why should they work with you? • What is the objective? What should the target

audience think, feel, or do as a result? • What barriers or challenges does the company, product, or service currently face? Next, we’ll focus on the message – what to say and how to say it. Message strategy

The goal of anymarketingpiece is to move theprospect one stepcloser to buying.That’swhy it’s good tobuild a libraryof content that addresses customers at each stageof their buying journey. An image search for “contentmarketing funnel” or “videomarketing funnel”will yield something like the image at left. Considerwhere viewers are in their journey anddevelop content accordingly.

Awareness

Discovery

Consideration

Gather the creative team – writers, graphic designers, your employees who are always watching the latest YouTube videos – to answer these questions: • What is the key message – the most important piece of information the target audience wants or needs to know? • What do you know about the target audience that might affect the message? What motivates them? • Why should they believe you? What facts, expertise, or research – rational and emotional – support your claims? Try to visualize how the final video will look, feel, and sound. Find samples of videos you like, even if they’re from outside your industry. Will you use animation, still photos, live action, a narrator, a talking head, or a combination? Look over the list of formats in the next section and consider which work best for your situation. • Should the tone be helpful, educational, expert, persuasive, formal, friendly, or something else?

Conversion

Loyalty

Brand/Company video This should be a short (two- to three-minute), unique, and fun introductory video to create awareness of your company or brand. Make a good first impression and give viewers a sense of the company’s personality. Explainer video These are also very short videos that explain a company, service, product, or idea, very simply and clearly, with concise language and engaging illustrations that keep the viewer's attention.They often feature a 2D illustration or simple cartoons.

the magazine of the national wood flooring association

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