Sales has severely changed over the years. The time of a salesman coming to your door is long gone. These days, sales happen mostly online. This is true for both B2C and B2B. Leads check information online and consumers browse in webshops.

As a company, it is vital that you offer your prospects the right information at the right time during the sales cycle. From brand awareness to checking up on your current clients. Your goal is to convince prospects that they should be using your product or service and to make sure they want to keep using it.

Organizations are also aware of this shift from offline to online. More than half of the organizations indicate that generating leads and increasing conversion rates are the most important reasons to use video. In this blog I’ll show you five examples of how sales video is an efficient way of surprising prospects, of keeping them informed and it helps to effectively shorten your sales cycle.

Attract and inform: brand awareness

In most cases people choose a product or service that looks and sounds familiar. This makes it imperative that your brand stands out. Allow people to get to know your organization, product or service. The human eye is attracted to moving objects, so take advantage of that by providing compelling video content that represents your brand for the full 100%.

However, using the right video to promote your organization is not the only important thing. It’s also about making sure your videos are being seen by your target audience. Getting your message across on different platforms might propose a bit of a challenge. For example, Instagram limits you to one minute of video, while Facebook allows you to upload hours of video. Create separate content for each individual social media platform by making different edits of your video. Additionally, you might consider sponsored content. This pops up on people’s feeds unannounced, making it extra important that your brand takes the lead.

Create interest: share knowledge

Once the word about your product or service is out there, you want to answer any possible questions prospects could have. It’s time to show them that you are the true expert. You could put this in writing, but we all know that seeing is believing. Nearly 50% of customers search for a product video online before visiting any store (Google).

Video works well with frequently asked questions. What exactly does a product do? What’s part of the subscription? Why should they buy your product or service and not go for the other guy? Visually stunning images do a product or service justice and will provide you with the perfect opportunity to show how you differ from your competitors.

FAQ’s can be sorted in one long video, or you can choose to snip it up into little bits. These videos should be accessible on your own domain, such as separate landing page or a demo page.

FAQ’s, demos and tutorials will inform your prospects and leads about your product and services. And well-informed leads are better qualified leads. This is what we call a win-win situation. In fact, video marketers score 66% more qualified leads per year compared to marketers that don’t use video (Optinmonster).

Evaluate: testimonials

It’s decision time. By now, leads know your name, they’ve seen what you can do and what you have to offer. The next step is to win their trust. Many organizations do this by adding reviews to their website. Because above anything else, other people’s opinions and experiences are valuable in the decision making stage.

Even better than having clients write down what they think about you, is having them actually say what they think about you. Testimonials build a feeling of trust and videos will add an extra layer of authenticity. Videos put a face and a voice to the name and make it even more personal. Ask clients to step in front of the camera to state what they think about your organization.

Purchase: conversion

The ultimate goal of lead generation is, of course, getting people to make an actual purchase. Whether it’s a subscription, buying a product or using a service. After watching a video, 64% of people are more likely to make a purchase (Social Media Today).

Make prospects an offer they can’t refuse using video. For example, have one of your salespeople explain the offer in a video and give your prospects that personal feeling that they get as if they are buying from a person.

Lower the threshold for buying even more by making it as easy as possible for your prospects to convert into a sale. One way of doing this is by adding a clickable call-to-action to your video. You can even set this up to be connected to your webshop, allowing people to buy directly from your video.

However, sometimes you might not be after a sale and instead have other goals, such as collecting information about your leads. In this case, you can add a form to the landing page that has your video embedded, or, if you’re using interactive video, you can insert the form directly into the video have your leads fill it out there. This works especially well on mobile devices where the video will take up the viewers’ entire screen.

Ambassadors: building and maintaining relations

The contract may be signed and the money may be transferred, but it doesn’t stop there. One of the most important parts of your sales cycle should be about keeping your current clients updated, interested and engaged.

One of the ways to keep clients engaged, is by using practical how-to videos. Offer tips and tricks on how to best use your products or get the most out of the service that you offer.

Video doesn’t have to be all business. It’s an excellent way of communicating on a more personal level too. For example, with a personalized video on their birthday or to celebrate significant moments, such as your one-year anniversary. Viewers highly value these types of videos. Customers who receive a personalized video spend 62% more time on a landing page (source: Smart Insights).

Each moment of contact in the sales process can be turned into a sales video. Making the sales cycle more efficient, without losing sight of the human touch of sales.

Managing video content in your own platform

Having your own online video platform can be a powerful way to promote your brand or business and sell your products or services. With your own platform, you can maintain control over the content and branding of your videos, and it allows you to personalize and optimize the viewing experience. Additionally, your own platform provides opportunities for generating revenue, collecting valuable data about your audience, and building a community around your brand.

Learn more about our online video platform.