How to Convince Your Boss that You Need Video

When it comes to creating a holistic digital marketing strategy, most initiatives can be broken down into two distinct categories – “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves.” Believe it or not, there was once a time when video fell under the “nice-to-have” category, but lucky for us, that period is ancient history. Now, I know that you believe that, but if you’re working at a small business with a very tight budget, or even at a huge, red-tape-filled corporation, your boss might not be as easily convinced.

In order to prove the value of video in your marketing mix, you should come to the table with a number of key selling points. When the time comes to raise that video-flag high in your next budget meeting, you’ll be ready to point to some cold hard video marketing facts. Let’s dig in!

Video ROI is clear

Show me the money! Or the numbers. That works too. Your boss might be wondering how you plan to measure the success of your video – how do you know that your videos are actually working? Like with any new marketing endeavor, setting up specific, measurable goals around your strategy from the start will help you determine success.

Reporting on your video’s ROI can come in many forms, some qualitative and others quantitative. Unfortunately, simply stating that you “think the video did well” is not enough to appease your number-hungry boss.

You can easily prove video ROI in two ways with leads and conversions. When you use Turnstile to collect leads from within your video, you can identify how many leads eventually sign up and become paying customers. In a similar vein, tracking conversions in Google Analytics lets you learn where you should be investing more in video by comparing video viewers to non-video viewers. This will help you determine whether or not your video content is aiding conversions.

It can improve your website’s SEO

If one of your goals as a marketing team is to drive traffic to your website, video can certainly help you make that a reality. Explain to your boss that by putting video on your website, you’re actually making a concerted effort to improve SEO. Chances are, she already sees the value in optimizing for search, so this fact should really help your case!

How does this video-SEO-business work, you ask? Great question. When you host videos on your site, you’re ensuring that this valuable content will be indexed on all major search engines, therefore driving traffic back to your site. We automate video SEO at Wistia by injecting metadata into your web page’s header, which means there’s no extra work for you once you’ve embedded it on your site – pretty neat!

It lets you build trust and boost engagement

“Video is the most engaging medium there is!” While this statement is true, it’s not as compelling as it could be. The "show, don’t tell’ principle also applies when you’re pitching your boss on video. Show her a few examples of awesome videos that have moved you to take action, helped you understand a concept, or have influenced you as a consumer in some way. It’s hard to deny the power of video when it’s staring you square in the face.

Check out this video by Stitch Fix, an online retailer that ships you clothes based on your unique style. In this video, Stitch Fix explains their product from start to finish in less than one minute.

Another compelling argument for video is that it keeps visitors on your site for longer. According to HubSpot, including a video on a landing page can increase conversion rates by 80%! And let’s face it – people are lazy. They want to consume the most information as possible with the least amount of effort. Including a video on your landing page allows viewers to absorb all of the key pieces of information without having to do much other than hit play.

Above all else, video creates trust. If your brand is struggling with a common misconception that you’d like to change,or if you’re trying to recover from a PR disaster, video is the perfect way to take on these challenges. By featuring yourself or your co-workers in the videos you create, you’re letting the viewer in on what goes on behind the scenes. Show the friendly faces of the people at your company and instill trust within the viewer.

Video on social media is a must

Facebook has 8 billion daily video views. That’s billion with a ’b’. Mic drop.

At this point in 2016, social media is basically synonymous with video. If your boss is still not convinced you should be investing in video, the social media angle should push her over the edge.

Nearly every mainstream social media channel over the past year has started to optimize for video content — whether it’s the ability to upload natively or even features that are unique to each platform — we should have been thinking about social video yesterday. Facebook continues to compete with YouTube with its video-centric newsfeed, Instagram just introduced Snapchat-like features, and LinkedIn finally decided to do something with video, however lame it may be.

Regardless of business size or industry, you’re likely already using at least a few social media platforms. If your boss wants more proof that video is a successful tactic before investing additional time or resources, try experimenting with platforms that are meant to be more casual.

Facebook Live is a great starting point, and you can easily measure engagement as well as reach once you finish broadcasting. Snapchat is also perfect for getting comfortable on camera while flexing your creative muscles. Impress your boss with these initiatives without even spending a dime, and she’ll see the potential for success when even just a little bit of dough comes into play.

Hook, line, and sinker

Most small and medium-sized brands and businesses use video marketing in some capacity. At the end of the day, as marketers, it all comes down to communication and the way your target audience likes to consume information. Chances are, your competition is already making great use of video in their marketing strategy, and hey, if they aren’t, you can beat them to the punch!

It’s always helpful to remind your boss why you believe in the power of video marketing, so whether you’re looking to expand your resources, or even if you’re just getting started on your first video, be sure to keep these selling points in mind.

Implementing video in your marketing strategy can yield some killer results and will help you stay ahead of the curve as more and more businesses ride the video wave. Now get in that conference room and start convincing!