Every day when we log in to our social media accounts and video streaming sites, we see videos being shared almost non-stop. Some videos remain at the "trending" section for weeks and we can't help but be curious why. Some popular videos dated back months or even years ago never stop circulating. So, what makes them viral? Are they unique, funny, or movie-like?
Brands have been seeking video production company services to mark their identity in the industry through captivating videos. Because social media and video streaming websites are so widely used, brands began to take advantage of them to promote their products and services. Apart from still images of celebrities endorsing the brand, video campaigns are now being used and spread online. That said, what makes them effective?
Videos Build Connections
86% of online marketers use video ads. 45% of people watch on Facebook or YouTube for more than an hour every week. With this statistical data, it's easy to see why videos are being used to spread brand awareness.
Successful video campaigns or ads aren't focused solely on selling their product or promoting their services. Instead, they try to tell their story to connect with their audience. The video is concentrated on the value that's being provided to the consumers. A brand may tell their origins and culture to effectively showcase their products in an engaging way.
Emotive Branding
Some brands do not only tell their story to the audience, but they tug on their heartstrings as well. Many people make decisions based on their emotions, and brands are well aware of this.
However, it isn't enough to make the audience feel emotional and leave it at that. Brands started evolving their videos into emotive campaigns. More than just emotional impact, emotive branding forges more valuable and meaningful connections to the audience. It's not limited to videos alone; emotive branding is visible from the product's packaging to the website and customer service.
To execute effective emotive branding, the brand must behave authentically like how they present themselves to the public. The branding must be true to who they are as a business and be able to share values to the public to form a bond. Only then the brand would be deemed credible.
Being consistent but not predictable is also key to effective emotive branding. Enhancing and deepening the connection already made with the audience is how consistency is built.
Integrating Different Appeals
Video ads are created to resonate different appeals, other than emotional ones. They can be rational, humorous, or fearful. The rational appeal in video ads can stimulate the audience's practicality. The product's functionality, benefits, and cost-efficiency are presented with backup evidence.
In ads with a humorous appeal, brands create an emotional connection for their product and the audience by tickling a funny bone. To execute this effectively, brands associate humor with a certain product that hits it home for the audience. Humorous ads work best for commonly purchased products like mobile phones and other necessities.
Lastly, fear is integrated into some ads to make people feel afraid that they might be missing out when they do not buy the product. The audiences' sense of belonging is tested when brands show the majority of the public enjoying their product. Fear can also be a motivator to encourage the audience to start or stop doing something, like eating healthy or smoking, respectively.
Videos have indeed come a long way since brands have used them to advertise. Now that people are always watching videos to entertain themselves, brands began to up their game by not only selling through videos but forging connections as well. We, as consumers, may not notice that we have developed an admiration for a certain brand because of their video ads or campaigns. That alone is already an indication that the brand has executed a successful video.
