Have you ever thought about buying something and immediately headed over to YouTube to see how it was supposed to be used? A lot of the time, the copy on your landing page isn’t enough to highlight the main use case scenario and the important features your product has to offer.
This is where explainer videos come in. Typically, they’re short videos that are designed to help you introduce your product, explain how it works, and advertise its standout features.
Explainer videos make for excellent marketing tools that encourage user engagement and are easy to repurpose across a number of marketing channels. With this in mind, in this post, we’ll cover some proven ways your business can benefit from having an explainer video.
Let’s get started.
1. They Are Proven to Increase Conversion Rates
Even if you’re already getting a good amount of traffic on your website, you could always do with a few more sales every now and then. Explainer videos that are designed to educate prospects about your product and highlight the main features it offers are proven to help boost conversion rates.
According to EyeView, including an explainer video on your landing page can increase conversion by 80%. Most of the prospective customers that land on your site won’t go through all of the content you have published to find out what it is you’re selling, why they need it, and how much it’ll cost. An explainer video is kind of like an elevator pitch – in less than two minutes it explains everything the prospect needs to know about your product.
2. They Improve Your SEO Ranking
You might have noticed that Google has started to display video content in their search results. Creating an explainer video and uploading it to your website with the proper tags and titles can help you score a position on the front page of Google search results.
We already know that YouTube (owned by Google) is the second largest search engine out there. It only makes sense that you leverage it to its full potential by ranking for your keyword(s) through video content.
Another key benefit that explainer videos bring to the table is that they encourage user engagement and keep visitors on your website for longer periods. According to Syndacast, 65% of video viewers said that they watched more than three-fourths of a video. And we already know that Google considers dwell time (how long do people stay on your page) an important ranking factor. And according to Wistia, people spend 2.6x more time on a page that has a video than on pages that don’t.
3. They Are Easy to Share Across Multiple Channels
One of the best things about explainer videos is that they’re incredibly easy to share across digital marketing channels (like email newsletters and drip campaigns) and social media platforms (like Facebook and Twitter). According to TubularInsights, around 500 million people watch videos shared on Facebook. And Twitter reported that 82% of users watched video content on Twitter and most of them watch it on a hand-held screen.
You can place explainer videos on your: Home page; Landing page; Email newsletters; Blog posts; Social media networks.
Another thing that makes repurposing explainer videos so great is that they’re usually small in size which means that they’re easier on mobile phone bandwidth, too. And since mobile usage is on the rise, it’s a good idea to market to your target audience with an explainer video instead of expecting them to land on your website and go through several different pages to find out the basics – what your product is, what features it offers, and how much it costs.
4. They Help Build a Brand Identity
Another unique benefit that explainer videos offer is that they can help you build a strong brand identity in just a few minutes. Whether you decide to take a storyboard approach or highlight the main use case scenario of your product, an explainer video gives you the opportunity to: Establish who your target audience is; Communicate your brand values; Create a lasting brand impression.
And if you’re looking to create a digital experience around your brand then having an explainer video on your landing page is certainly a step in the right direction. It’ll help you connect with your target audience early on and convert them into loyal customers in the future.
5. They Make the Decision-Making Process Simpler for Prospects
According to Animoto, 4x as many customers would rather watch a video about a product than read about it. And if you’re anything like me, you can relate. Video content not only offers more depth but it also helps build credibility with your target audience.
And there are a number of different types of explainer videos that you can create, including: 2D animation; Whiteboard animation; 3D animation; Live action video; Motion graphics video; Stop motion video; Kinetic typography; Infographics video; Screencast video; Testimonial video; Cutout animation video.
Studies conducted by DMB Adobe found that online shoppers who view demo videos are 1.81x more likely to purchase than non-viewers. Explainer videos following a storyboard approach allow businesses to neatly illustrate the problem customers face and how their product (or service) offers a viable solution to it. It appeals to the emotion of the viewer and is a proven way to boost leads and even increase sales.
Conclusion
Explainer videos give businesses the opportunity to proactively address any potential concerns and questions their visitors might have about their product or service and increase the chances of making a sale.
Let’s quickly recap the main benefits of having an explainer video on your website: They are proven to increase conversion rates; They improve your SEO ranking; They are easy to share across multiple channels; They help build a strong brand identity; They make the decision-making process simpler for prospects.
