As channels like YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn shape the way we consume video, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies need to take stock of their video content strategy.
Marketing teams are finding video content to be more effective for B2B than written content. In fact, 59% of senior executives said they’d rather watch a video than read an article. This goes for B2C markets as well, 72% of people surveyed said they’d rather learn about a brand or service through video.
The experts discuss what video marketing is, why it’s beneficial for SaaS companies and how to get started with video content.
What Is Video Marketing?
Video marketing, especially for SaaS companies, involves utilizing video through the funnel to attract, convert and delight customers,” explained Ed Laczynski, CEO of Zype. Videos have the ability to engage with audiences better than pure text content because people like the visual experience. Each stage in the funnel, however, requires different techniques to make this engagement happen.
“When it comes to videos, [you] see the best SaaS marketers using different styles of videos depending on the audience and purpose,” said Drew Beechler, director of marketing at High Alpha. These videos could be product demos, training videos, customer testimonials, or even personalized videos embedded within email marketing campaigns.
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Should SaaS Companies Use Video Marketing?
Viktoriya Caneva, digital marketing manager at ITProTV, believes video is the best medium for reaching high-quality leads for B2B SaaS companies in particular. “Video has taken over every social medium, and YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world,” she added. If B2B brands produce relevant and valuable videos, therefore, they have a greater chance of reaching decision-makers within their market.
When it comes to SaaS companies specifically, Quincy Smith, head of SEO & content at Ampjar said, “Videos bridge the gap between a demo and an email.” This makes video a great way to explain a feature or benefit of your software services, while having a greater chance of getting a potential lead’s attention. Video content comes in many forms, but their advantage lies in being informative and engaging at the same time.
How to Get Started With SaaS Video Marketing
When our experts spoke about getting started, they emphasized the need to have an outcome in mind. From there, they had specific advice for types of video content to create and the best platforms to publish the content on.
Determine Your Audience
Like any marketing initiative,” suggested Laczynski, “you should have expectations for your venture into video.” You need to decide who you’re trying to reach, where they are within your sales funnel and why video content will make an impact on them.
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Showcase Your Product and Case Studies
Once you’ve determined your target audience, you need to create the video content itself. A few types of video content that our marketing experts have found most effective are demo videos, testimonials and personalized videos. “I think for SaaS companies, one of the best ways to get started with video marketing is to record your first demo video, even if it's just a screen recording and not with a professional videographer,” said Beechler. These videos can be published as “on-demand” demos for lead generation.
Beyond demo videos, Beechler recommends recording customer testimonials. “I would recommend a company find a way to film customer case studies as early as possible.” These testimonials and case studies serve as social proof for your brand that can drive conversions.
Another type of video content is creating highly personalized videos for your validated leads or ideal customers. “Every time a lead makes it to this stage,” explained Smith, “have your sales or marketing staff create a custom video for [the validated lead] (using a template) to showcase how your platform can help them.” You can send these personalized videos with your normal email marketing campaigns for greater engagement and improved click-through rates.
Choose a Platform
At this point, you need to consider which platforms to publish the content on. Beyond publishing to your brand website or embedding in marketing emails, video content can be posted on a variety of social media platforms.
“The best free way for SaaS companies to start leveraging video is using free social media tools like Facebook Live or Instagram,” said Caneva. These platforms let you post with your phone, so your company doesn’t need to invest in anything to get started. The algorithms of these social media platforms, she believes, also value video content more than other content. Telling engaging stories through videos, therefore, could generate greater leads on these platforms than traditional written content.
The great thing about video content is that it’s reusable. “Video is incredibly flexible and extensible, meaning your organization can find its footing in video and quickly scale, especially with the right video technology behind them,” explained Laczynski. You can publish the videos you create across a wide variety of digital touchpoints from your website or email campaigns to interactive digital signage.
Finally, concluded Beechler, “we've seen a number of different waves of video marketing come and go, but the best marketers have found that videos — if done right — still remain a great way to cut through the clutter and engage with a visual-first world and audience.”
