What’s the best way to create effective e-commerce videos? This is one of the bigger questions for online retailers and marketers today. It’s not a secret that video marketing shows outstanding effectiveness figures. But what’s also true is that not all online videos bring equally good results. Like with any other business activity, promoting products or services via video content can only lead to the desired outcome when it’s done right.
There are some e-commerce video best practices to keep in mind. This means that your e-commerce videos should not only be of high quality but they also must properly deliver brand messages, engage customers, and, finally, sell.
Crafting different types of video styles may sound like a complex task requiring lots of financial resources. However, that’s not necessarily true anymore. Take a look at these tips for creating effective e-commerce videos so you can excel at video marketing in an easy and affordable way.
One: Build your video commerce strategy first
When a great idea for an online video pops up into your mind, it’s often tempting to start shooting it right away. But if you don’t have a video marketing strategy in place, it’s definitely not the best first step.
Statistics show that internet video traffic will constitute 82 percent of the overall internet traffic by 2021. Since the competition is fierce, planning is essential for you to stand out and get all the benefits of online videos. So think about the strategy before taking any actions. It might slow you down at the beginning but it will definitely pay off later.
A more useful first step is figuring out what you hope to achieve with your various e-commerce product videos.
Here are the most common objectives for online videos:
- Increasing traffic from search results and social media
- Raising brand awareness
- Educating customers
- Increasing engagement
- Lead generation
- Increasing sales revenue
- Increasing average order value
- Increasing customer lifetime value
Also, keep in mind that all e-commerce videos must be consistent with your brand voice and tone as well as fit into the company’s overall digital marketing strategy. In order to create an effective e-commerce video, it’s very valuable to keep this big picture in mind from the start.
Two: Choose the right type for your video
If you sell products via the Internet, it’s easy to think that most of your videos should belong to the product video category. Actually, that’s not always the case. The same item may be featured in videos in a number of different ways. The most popular types of e-commerce product videos include:
- Unboxing videos. They show the process from opening a package to displaying a finished product. These e-commerce videos help customers gain confidence in what they buy as well as allow sellers to explain every element (e.g. accessory) in a box.
- Product introduction videos. As the name suggests, the main purpose of these demo videos is to introduce a product to potential buyers by describing its benefits and features. The guys from the Solo Stove Bonfire team did this just perfectly (which you can see below).
- “How to” videos. This type of product videos is aimed at explaining to viewers how to use a product so it can solve their problems. They come in different forms, from stop motion to more in-depth animation videos.
- Testimonial videos. They show real people providing their reviews or simply doing an unboxing. To increase the level of credibility, reach out to some influencers who might be interested in the products you sell and are willing to shoot a short testimonial video for you.
- Video ads. These are short clips directly promoting a product or brand. But don’t make it all about the “hard sell”. A lot of viewers consider it irritating. Remember that the most effective video ads are captivating and interesting.
To make the right choice when it comes to video type; review your strategy, objectives, and resources. Also, when thinking about your target audience there are some questions to answer:
Where are they in the buying cycle? What type of content are they likely to be interested in when watching a video? What information would encourage them to make a purchase?
Three: Pick the right style of video
Choosing the proper style and format is another crucial prerequisite for creating an effective e-commerce video. There's a wide array of options so you can definitely find the one that fits your brand image best.
- Live action video. These are recordings of real people, locations, and objects. You cannot go wrong with this style no matter what type of video you want to create.
- Live streaming. These allow you to broadcast an event in real time. They perfectly suit unboxing and testimonial videos.
- Screen recording. These are screen captures that usually go with audio narration. This format is great for creating guidelines for buyers on how to complete a purchase, find some product info, etc.
- Animation. You cannot show the actual product in this format, but it works well for explainers and tutorials. It’s perfect for videos aimed at showing the idea behind a product (see Honda example below). 2d animation, 3d animation, and whiteboard animation are the most popular animation styles today.
It’s also worth mentioning that you don’t have to hire a crew of video creators to craft a product video. There are a lot of e-commerce video makers and video templates you can use to do the work yourself.
Four: Show, don’t tell
People watch online videos to receive some information in an audio-visual format. In other words, they want to see something, not to read it or just listen to it. This applies to all types of product videos which are generally aimed at convincing potential buyers to actually complete a purchase.
That's why it’s extremely useful to show how the products work in your video ads. Seeing a product in action is one of the most effective triggers for digital shoppers. It can significantly increase your conversions and revenues. A great example is Bring on the Intensity video featuring a new model of a training mask.
Five: Keep it short
If your e-commerce video is too long, most viewers will just quit halfway, and there’s a real danger that they might miss the whole point. Less than 50 percent of people are willing to continue watching online videos after 2-3 minutes. So keep that in mind and adapt. And if you doubt if it’s possible to create a short yet effective e-commerce video, watch this 15-second clip from NaturallyCurly.
Another important point is that if your product is complex (e.g. a new model of a smartphone), don’t try to explain everything in a single video. Create a series of short clips featuring separate sets of functionalities.
Six: Make it interactive with DUZY tv platform
Interactive shoppable videos are an emerging trend in video commerce. They allow buyers to make a purchase right from the video player by just clicking on a plus icon next to an item, or the shopping cart icon near the item they liked. As a result, digital shoppers get a real immersive experience with no interruptions. That naturally leads to more sales and higher profits for online retailers.
What’s the best way to create interactive e-commerce videos? The easiest and most cost-effective way is to use DUZY tv’s shoppable interactive video platform. You can connect your store to DUZY tv in a few clicks with no upfront investments. In fact, it won't cost anything until the video starts generating sales for you and it will constitute just a small share of each completed transaction.
Here are the steps you should follow to craft your first interactive product video:
- Go to this page to create an account.
- Follow these guidelines to connect your e-commerce store to the platform.
- Upload your existing video to make it interactive.
- Choose the relevant products from the list (they’ll be pulled into the platform automatically)
- It’s ready! Publish your interactive video on your website and share it via social media channels.
The greatest thing about interactive product videos is that they eliminate the gap between a shopper’s desire to buy a product featured in the ad and the actual purchase. After the checkout, customers can continue enjoying the video and buy more of the featured items.
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