5 Examples of High Impact Videos

You’re in marketing – which means that by now, you already know for a fact that video marketing is the future.

Last year, 63% of businesses used video as an integral part of their marketing strategy.

This year, that number has grown to 81%.

And with more and more businesses realizing the power of video marketing, you can bet that this number will continue to grow in the coming years.

Of course, you can’t get left behind. As early as now, you need high impact business videos that will cement your business’s place in the top spot. The challenge here is how to make this happen. How do you create the kind of impact your audiences will not be able to ignore or forget?

5 Great Examples of High Impact Marketing Videos

The best way to figure out what to do and where to start would be to see what others have done. Especially when it comes to video marketing, you have to start with the best.

Here are some of the best high impact videos out there:

1. Saroo Brierley: Homeward Bound

The Story: No matter how far you get, you’ll always yearn for home. Saroo Brierley fell asleep on a train one day and found himself 1500 km away from his family. He was eventually adopted, but he never lost the gut feeling that somehow, he can be reunited with his family once again.

This video shows Saroo’s journey and how he eventually found his way back home with the help of Google Earth.

The Impact: Everybody loves tearful reunions, especially if the story spans years. Notice that there was no blatant promotion of Google Earth. All this video did was focus on two things that every human being will be able to relate with – family and the hope for happy endings.

The Takeaway: Every business needs a video that does not just promote the brand, but embraces the human heart. Emotions are key if you want your website videos to have real impact.

People will zone out or forget bits and pieces of your video if all you talk about is your brand or your product. But if you share real stories from the heart, you do not only become a personable brand, you also break through barriers and capture human trust in the end.

2. Helpful Tips from Facebook

The Story: Facebook is one of the most important tools a marketer can ever have. As marketers, you have probably explored every nook and cranny of its capabilities. But what about individual users who do not have a heart for technology?

This series shows Facebook’s all-inclusive nature. It tells every person struggling to use Facebook that on this platform, anything can be easily done.

The Impact: Every single video in this series is less than 30 seconds. That means watching the entire series takes up less than 6 minutes of your life! Each video is easily laid out, giving clear examples that relate to daily life. Even better, each tutorial in this series answers the most frequently asked questions from a lot of users.

The Takeaway: Talk about your brand or product in a way that your audience understands. Remember that it’s not about how YOU see it, but how YOUR AUDIENCE sees it.

Length is another key point here. See how so much information was given in a span of how many seconds? You don’t have to give your audience a mental breakdown every time you deliver information. You don’t need heavy graphs and statistics or lengthy intros and complicated conclusions. The shorter, the better.

3. GoPro: Fireman Saves Kitten

The Story: Everyone has shared and used a cat meme or GIF at least once in their lives. If not, you may have oohed and aahed at their cuteness. Well, this video takes home the award in terms of cat content.

This is the story of a fireman who, upon seeing a kitten inside a burning home, took the time out to bring it out to safety and do everything to revive it. The image of a shivering, breathing kitten being hugged by a brave fireman in the end is something that will make your eyes water.

The Impact: This was a great example of a great human being interacting with such a frail and helpless animal. The inspiration one can gain from it is overwhelming. It tugs right into the heartstrings of anyone watching. The dramatic but happy ending is also something that everyone can cheer about.

This is also a great example of user-generated content. The fact that this video was taken using a GoPro gives people a view of the entire drama from the perspective of someone who’s actually there as the event unfolds. That makes it even more engaging.

The Takeaway: Video marketing does not always need to be complicated or overly planned. Every so often, using raw videos like this create an even bigger impact than intricately filmed promotional video content.

The Story: Women empowerment is one of the most pressing issues that this society has been facing in recent years. But if comments like “You do this like a girl,” are being thrown around like being a girl is a bad thing, when will the prejudice and the stereotyping ever stop?

In this video, Always shows that there’s nothing wrong with doing things like a girl.

The Impact: Some brands tiptoe around social issues like gender shaming simply because they want to stay on the safe side. But making an impact also involves taking the right risks. In the world of marketing, controversial is sometimes better than safe. Especially if you know you’re on the right side.

Another key point in this video is the fact that they got regular, everyday women who audiences can easily relate to. These are people who audiences can easily point to while saying, “That could be me.”

The Takeaway: Don’t limit your video marketing efforts to what you’ve always done. Look at common social issues that your own target audience are probably involved in. Take a stand and show people that you’re not just a brand who’s after revenue. Show them that you know where your market is coming from and what their common pain points are.

Also, don’t overthink your video marketing concept. This video is raw – it shows interviews with real people inside an actual studio. There’s nothing fancy going on. And that makes the emotions even more authentic.

 5. A New Beginning – Is Fear Holding You Back?

The Story: Michael Lazerow is an entrepreneur who founded a number of successful businesses including Buddy Media, which was eventually sold to salesforce.com. This video, however, ended up to become more than just an announcement video. It became a story of resilience and survival. It tells an emotional tale of how Michael cheated death a few times in his lifetime – and how, through the business decisions he is making, he is choosing to celebrate life.

The Impact: This is another perfect example of raw human emotion being brought to centerstage. Sure, it was not exactly meant to be a marketing video. But can you just imagine how many people searched for “Buddy Media” and its deal with Salesforce the moment the video went viral?

It’s also worth noting that the video was very simply done. This makes the video even more relatable, and less overwhelming or daunting.

The Takeaway: Even CEOs have emotions. Sometimes, revealing those emotions can be a good thing.

Human experiences like these are also a powerful thing. Make the most out of testimonies like these. It may not be your CEO, but a key member in your team may have had experiences that would inspire people. Maximize those stories. It reminds people that you are more than just a brand.

5 Tips and Tricks for Making High Impact Videos

We’ve set the standards through the examples above. Now, it’s time to see how you can integrate that level of awesomeness into your own video marketing strategy.

1. Stick to a single concept.

You may be excited to share so many things through your business videos, and that’s okay. But make sure you stick to one single concept for each video you’re creating.

Now, just because you’re sticking to one concept does not mean you only feature one story. Look at the Always video, for example. Several girls were interviewed, each of them having their own say. But at the end of the day, all their stories had a single message to share.

Having one thought allows your audience to focus on the message you’re trying to put across. And in the case of the videos above, it’s not even evident that there’s a brand behind those videos. Each of them zeroed in on one message and delivered a homerun.

2. Make it emotional.

When we say emotional, we don’t mean crying. You can use any human emotion that you believe your audience will strongly relate to – sadness, joy, fear – it’s all up to you.

Gone are the days when marketing meant delivering numbers and statistics. You don’t even have to drill product specifics or an entire list of benefits into your audience’s minds. Now, it’s all about showing them your human side.

Emotional responses are more genuine. And when you get this emotional response from your target consumers, you bet their trust will be high and the relationship between them and you will be authentic.

3. Pick the right length.

Remember the Facebook tutorials earlier? It’s amazing how much information they placed into a few seconds. And the best thing about it is that people don’t have time to get bored or remember they’re busy. You already have the entire message delivered. And if you do it the right way, you’ll find them replaying the video for more.

You see, today’s market do not have time for nonsense. They do not like wasting time. Fail to capture their attention the first second or two and they can easily browse on to the next piece of content on their feed.

What exactly is the right length?

HubSpot says that Instagram videos posted on Instagram averaging around 26 seconds received the most number of comments.

Videos on Twitter also fight to win #VideoOfTheDay, and once you crunch the numbers, you’ll find that video content bearing that hashtag average 45 seconds.

On Facebook, you’ll see the highest engagement on videos averaging 1 minute. YouTube, however, sees the most engagement on videos that are 2 minutes on the average.

4. Make it search-engine friendly

Remember that ultimately, your main goal would still be to have your videos come up on top during relevant searches. You may have poured out so much time and effort into creating an intense storyline. You could have spent days and hours getting every frame right.

But what good would it be if nobody sees your video content?

This is why despite the heavy nitty gritty of creating and conceptualizing the video, you also have to spend time planning how to make people discover it easily.

Most of the time, it all boils down to the topic you pick. ALWAYS look at what’s trending around your audience’s circles. You may be creating a video that very well relates to your own goals, but if it’s not something people in your target market are interested in, then it’s no good.

Once you have a topic that you know people would pick up, use the right captions when you post the video. Look for hot keywords or phrases that people will most likely type into their search bars.

Use the right hashtags, too. Make it a mix of something unique to your brand, and something that’s already trending on social media platforms.

5. Pick the right characters

You’re making high impact videos here – you should also choose high impact people who will leave a lasting mark on your audience’s minds.

Note that just because you hear “high impact” does not mean getting Beyoncé or Justin Timberlake to frontline your video campaign (unless you have the huge budget for it). Sometimes, the more low key your characters are, the higher the impact.

Just take a look at Google Earth’s video above. Or at the Always campaign. These are normal, everyday people anybody can bump into at the mall, or at the grocery store. These are people who could be living right next door. They could even be you!

And because they are so relatable, the impact is so much higher.

Now, turn your attention to the main characters on the GoPro video. You see a fireman, a picture of courage and strength. This is someone seen as a hero. He serves his community by taking many risks day in and day out. So you can just imagine how big of a contrast there is between the fireman and the little kitten.

The kitten was small, frail, and injured. It was helpless. And seeing the fireman’s heart soften over this little creature is enough to make anyone tear up. That’s what impact should be all about. Pair a cute little kid with the kitten, and you’d probably get off with a few ooohhs and aaahhs from your audience. But if you’re making people cry, you need something dramatic, like the contrast in these characters.

Creating a high impact video is not easy. It could take days or weeks of planning and research. The concept alone can drive people to become extremely frustrated. The process of shooting the video and getting each frame perfect will also require blood, sweat and tears. But if the finished product gets all the impact it needs, then it’s all more than worth it.

Remember that this should not just be about your brand, product or services. It has to be focused on the people you’re trying to reach.

How do you do this?

Find their pain points. Look at what they’re complaining about online. Look at solutions that they’re hoping they have. Find out what questions they have. These open up opportunities that will make you realize what your video needs.

Also, don’t be afraid to show your brand’s human side. Remember that people would rather have human to human interactions, instead of brand to human ones. Don’t hesitate to go all out in terms of showing emotion. Don’t treat your video content as a representation of what happens between you and your entire board inside the conference room.

Lastly, remain responsive to them long after your video has been posted, long after it has gone viral. Even if they leave negative comments, acknowledge them. Engage with them. Doing so can convert not only leads into customers, but also skeptics into brand ambassadors and true believers.

To create high impact videos that will give you the audience response you’re looking for, contact (business name), a trusted Denver video production company.

To jumpstart the process of creating an efficient video marketing plan for your business, contact us here.