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Why Video? How We Live in a Visual World

Graphics. GIFs. Photos. Presentations. Video.

Our culture relies on visual expression to send and receive information and content, and if content is king, then video is the crown.

According to Brandwatch.com, 300 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute, and Cisco projects that by 2021, videos will make up 82% of global consumer internet traffic.

People spend more time watching videos online than ever before, and humans can process visuals 60,000 times faster than text.

We live in a rapidly evolving world with more visual content than ever, and your brand is constantly evolving. So, how do you communicate that evolution to customers? Video is one of the best ways to tell a compelling story and engage with your audience. It is an essential component in a complete marketing strategy.

“Did you see that video?”

Users are more engaged with visuals, specifically with video, on the Internet than they are with text and graphics. They are more likely to pay attention to, comment, like, share, and remember.

So while you may be producing well-intended webinars, creating gorgeous data-filled infographics, and writing whitepapers or case studies filled with bullet points, facts, and statistics, are your customers really parsing through all that information to learn the story of your brand?

When asked how they’d most like to learn about a brand, product or service… man-filming-video-on-camera

– 66% of people said they prefer to watch a video.

– 18% would rather read a text-based article, website, or post.

– 4% prefer to view an infographic.

– 3% would download an eBook or manual.

– 3% would attend an online seminar or pitch.

– 2% like to receive a sales call or demo.

So why do customers want video?

 

It Connects Us

The power and possibility of video is unquestionable. Video does what graphics and text do not. It tells a story through immediacy and through an immersive experience. Videos spark curiosity.

Videos can move people to laugh, cry, learn, empathize, and feel inspired. Movement gets our attention. Music generates emotions. Inflection can build trust, and trust is a foundational element of sales.

The idea is to not produce a video that sounds like a pitch, but one that causes the viewer to feel like their lives will change because of what they just watched. With the right tone and messaging you can build a powerful connection with your audience, and help them understand and relate to your brand, product, and services.

On top of that, while the quantity of Internet content is increasing, our attention spans are decreasing. Holding a viewer’s interest is essential to resonate with audiences. Yes, video can spark your audiences’ curiosity. Is that enough to not only keep them engaged, but to hold their attention and cause them to share your video content?

Want an example? Check out Mercedes-Benz’s “Poop Tweet” video for Smart Car, and tell us you were not hooked almost immediately.

smart-car-poop-tweet

Videos Explain Everything

Videos are a terrific way to show and pitch how your brand, product, or service works because they show things in action. Cat videos aside, the most commonly created types of videos are…

woman-learning-to-cook-from-video

  • Explainer videos (72%) – a short animated video that quickly tells a story.
  • Presentation videos (49%) – a video of a slideshow with the slides played sequentially that can have voiceover narration.
  • Testimonials (48%) – in which a customer or client talks about how a product or service has helped them.
  • Sales videos (42%) – short, personalized outreach videos for prospecting.
  • Video ads (42%) – promotional content that plays before, during, and/or after streaming content.

You can use video in a sales pitch to deliver news and important announcements, give a product demo, and set up your brand as a thought leader in your industry.

Videos are Accessible

Video is accessible and shareable anywhere there is an Internet connection. The number of smartphone users is increasing dramatically, and with video integrated into social media and search engine platforms like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok, there are plenty of ways for audiences to access it, comment, like it, and share it.

Video content as a marketing tool is not new but taking the opportunity to engage with audiences means creating appealing, useful video content that is easy to share with others. It is about tapping into social capital.

Shareable content spreads when audiences connect with a topic, idea, or story, and click to share it with their friends and followers.

Social capital refers to the connections between people, and the social norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that those connections cultivate.

It seems safe to say that people want to gain social capital by impressing others, right? Thereby it makes sense that people are more likely to share content that makes them look knowledgeable, socially responsible, or cool.

Pro Tips: Users can engage, embed, share and comment on video content all at the touch of a button, so be sure to include calls-to-action in the video and in any supporting content. Also, many people watch video content silently in public, so be sure to use subtitles and call outs.

When we think of video accessibility, we should also think beyond how we as individuals access it. Take a moment to access your content through the experience of differently abled folks. These potential customers are often overlooked. Can everyone see your video? Can everyone hear it? Assistive technologies like 508-compliant video players and screen readers help make content accessible and compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Adding captions helps deaf or hearing-impaired users, and audio transcriptions that describe what is happening in your video, help blind or vision-impaired audiences.

woman-looking-at-apple-phone

Video Differentiates You

The Internet is a crowded place and differentiating your brand can be a true challenge. The key to creating engaging campaigns is to realize video’s ability to connect and produce real storytelling and emotion that speaks directly to your intended target audience. When visual content sparks curiosity, fosters trust, and inspires people to act , it’s a powerful way of outdoing the competition.

 

Content marketing can and will  help you grow. Contact us! We will be glad to help you execute your campaign!

If you’re looking for solutions right now during COVID-19 check out our blog on

Recycling Video: 5 Ways to Repurpose Your Existing Video Content

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Virtual Training: How to Keep Your Participants Engaged in Today’s World

Virtual training has been around for years. Platforms such as: Adobe Connect, Zoom, GoToMeeting, and WebEx are among the many outlets that have provided the technology for online learning to ensue. Since the rapid spread of the coronavirus around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has created a new normal within the training development arena.

GotoMeeting-App-On-Mobile

Virtual Training Today

Traditional person to person training courses and programs are being forced to be put on halt or transferred to a virtual platform. Although there are many voice risks and uncertainties around virtual settings, virtual trainings actually have many advantages. Virtual trainings can reduce costs, which in turn eliminates the travel expenses companies would have to shell out to fly their leaders to the program sites. It can also attract people from all over the world, which can increase profit. Once you have the participants enrolled, the big question is, how do you continue to engage these leaders across your virtual classroom?

Woman-on-apple-laptop

Designing for Virtual Engagement

It is hard to keep participants engaged when you are competing against the biggest distraction machine: a computer. It’s your classroom versus email, Facebook, YouTube and other various outlets. It may be hard to get 100% engagement from your participants, but there are some ways you can design for engagement to increase your participation percentage. Increasing your participation can directly raise your retention rates.

Facilitator-Guide-Example-lightbulb-moment

Designing for engagement entails detailed brainstorming and thorough planning. It will be helpful to start with a storyboard and facilitator guides. Facilitator guides help with planning out the details of your classroom and helps keep your classroom consistent among multiple facilitators. Different virtual platforms have layouts where it can also help you with the flow of your classroom. Within these layouts you will be able to add breakout rooms and different pods for engagement. Pods such as: chat boxes, whiteboards, timers, polls, and Q&A’s. Incorporating these different pods throughout your classroom curricula will help keep your participants engaged. You should prompt for interaction at least every 5-7 minutes during your classroom. Polls are one of the best and easiest forms of interaction for participants. (Learn more about Adobe Pods here).

polls-adobe-connect-lynda.com

Be Visual

It is pertinent to provide content that is very visual for your learners. Having slides that include too much text within the slide is a sure way for your engagement to decline within your virtual classroom. Be sure to minimize your text on each slide and incorporate numbered and bulleted lists. It also helps to include audio and video, infographics, charts, and funny newspaper clippings to assist in reinforcing your topic. According to an article written on engagement in virtual classrooms, the authors found that visual imagery is related to higher levels of course engagement by participants.

Obtaining an Enthusiastic Facilitator

To help with executing your interactive and engaging content, you need an energetic and engaging facilitator. Your facilitator can make or break your virtual classroom. It is extremely hard looking at a computer for over an hour listening to a facilitator that can’t grab your attention. You remember being in college and sitting in your geology class listening to your lethargic professor talk about rocks? You can easily mentally check out and venture off to doing your own work or checking your social media.

zoom-meeting-participants

It is essential to have a captivating and experienced facilitator who is able to attract and sustain participant’s attention. As well as foster development though their connection and transparency. Having an instructor that can connect with their participants on an emotional level by revealing past experiences and relatable stories, actively keeps students engaged. It also helps to have a facilitator that is experienced in facilitating online courses and programs and is well versed in the online platform that is being used for your virtual training.

Collaboration

Collaboration and teamwork are a huge part of leadership development training. It is a way to keep your students engaged while learning and also a great way for them to foster a team environment. Fostering this teamwork environment encourages your students to be open and transparent with each other in a smaller and more vulnerable setting.

You may wonder, “how can I keep the essence of collaboration among students within a virtual training classroom?” Easy! A lot of online learning platforms have the option to have breakout rooms within a classroom. These breakout rooms are similar to how you would breakout out your students into teams during an in-person training. This way, the participants can still be active with one another, share ideas and have deeper conversations regarding the content to gain a new perspective or understanding.Facilitators also have the option to pop in and out of these breakout rooms to check in on the participants progression and provide any input or additional instructions if needed.

Ultimately, this tool is a great way for interactivity among learners in smaller groups and to enhance engagement levels.

Conclusion

Although virtual training differs from your traditional in-person training, it is still possible to have a successful engaging online training program. Just remember the following tips when designing or redesigning your content and your engagement rates will increase:

  • Include interactions at least every 5 -7 minutes
  • Limit text per slide and use visual imagery
  • Seek a personable and engaging facilitator
  • Incorporate collaboration exercises among the learners throughout the training

In conclusion, keeping these tips in mind will help elevate your virtual training experience and engagement for your participants.

Sources:

  • Lee, Alistair. Creating Virtual Classrooms that Engage. Adobe Connect, 13 Jan. 2020. Webinar
  • Ehrler, Mercy. “How to Best Engage Virtual Learners in a Corporate Training Event”. HRtechnologist.com. 16 Jul. 2019. Web.
  • Pulley, Phillip. “Visualize the Possibilities: Using Visual Elements to Enhance Online Learning”. Schoology.com. 6 Jul 2018. Web
  • Pappas, Christopher. “5 Proven Ways to Engage Employees in Your Virtual Classroom”. Elearningindustry.com. 30 Dec 2015. Web