4 Types of Video to Promote Your Company

Video has exploded over the last 5 years as one of the premier ways to promote and market your company. In 2014, use of video for B2B Marketers increased from 8% to 58%! With YouTube continuing to grow year over year, the simple fact that producing video has become more cost efficient, and the increased focus on storytelling in marketing, companies are finding that they can better explain their products/services best with images and sound rather than just plain text.

In fact, video has become so popular that 55% of people watch a video online every single day, and for business executives, 75% of them watch work related videos at least once a week. Videos are being made, target audiences (regardless of industry) are watching videos, and the only remaining question is, are they watching yours?

Here are four, simple types of videos that you can have made to promote your organization. These popular techniques can help better explain what your company does in a small amount of time and convince a customer to pick up the phone or fill out that contact form.

#1: Corporate Video

One of the most common types of videos produced is a traditional, corporate video. These are typically in that 60-90 second range and shot on location of the company. You'll usually see two or three executives of the company talking about what makes them unique. It could be their mission, customer service, company culture, and the list goes on. This kind of video plays best on your website either on the home or about page. That way visitors looking to learn more about you can just spend a minute or two having you tell them what you're all about rather than having to read it.

A typical corporate video could take anywhere from 3-6 weeks to complete depending on scheduling and the availability of the person/company making the video. Here's an example of what a corporate video looks like:

#2: Animated Video

Another popular form of video is animated. This involves images and text moving around the screen at a nice, upbeat pace. Animated videos can be any number of lengths from a simple 15-30 second production, all the way to two or three minutes of text and images. With animation, it opens up a world of possibilities and creativity. There could be any number of graphical elements used and there are endless ways to make those elements move and interact on the screen. The goal of these animated video vary depending on the company. They could be used to promote the organization itself, or often times it's about a specific product or service that you might have.

There is quite a bit more involved in making an animated video (ie. script, storyboard, design, animation, etc.), so you could expect one to be completed anywhere from 5-8 weeks time. Here's an example of an animated video:

#3: Whiteboard Video

Whiteboard videos piggyback on an animated video, but I put it in a separate category for the simple reason that they can be either produced in person or using a computer program. A whiteboard video has always been a "thing," but they've increased in popularity ever since Moz started their "Whiteboard Fridays." A whiteboard video takes a significant amount of pre-planning (like all videos) because whether it is in person or animated, you need to know what's being said and what's being drawn on the screen. These kinds of videos could be any number of lengths ranging from 60 seconds to 15 minutes depending on the topic and what your purpose is.

Because of the two different types of whiteboard video you can do, the time it takes to complete ranges. You can put together an in-person video in as little as 1-2 weeks, but an animated whiteboard videos falls into that above category or 5-8 weeks. Here's what Moz does for their whiteboard videos:

#4: Live Action Video

This final kind of video is the hardest kind of video to make, but yet can still be greatly effective in promoting your company. A live action video (basically a commercial) is one that is more creative in nature and involves a larger production than the ones I've listed out above. This kind of video is best for a traditional TV spot or a YouTube channel rather than your website. With a creative angle, actors, and possibly some witty humor, live action videos take on much more thought, time, and energy to complete. These videos can come in at any length for an extended version, but will typically be cut down to 30 or 60 seconds.

With a higher production value, live action videos could take anywhere from 6-10 weeks to complete because of everything involved in the planning, production, and editing phases. Here's what a live action video looks like:

Bonus Video: Customer Testimonial

Testimonials are often the best ways to promote your company because who better to tell future customers how great you are than your current happy ones. Customer testimonial videos are becoming increasingly popular in the B2B and consumer service industries because of the fact that you can tell the story better through video rather than text. Typically shot like a corporate video, but the premise is much different. The focus is on the customer and the problem your company helped them solve. A company like GoDaddy are infamous for using customer testimonial videos, but be on the lookout for more businesses in manufacturing and other B2B areas to pick up on this trend.

A customer testimonial video could look like this: