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Understanding Promotional Videos

Posted on 11. May, 2014 by Ryan Stone in Marketing

The promotional video format can be far-ranging in content and style with the only real objective of informing the viewer of something…anything! It doesn’t necessarily have to sell or persuade, but just raise awareness of a relevant item. It might be an exercise in brand building, or the benefits of a product. In this article we’re going to take a look at defining the promotional video format a little more.

A promotional video really can take any form, however the way I see it, is that the objective is to create a return. To do this, it must be universal enough to appeal to as many people.

Light subject matter and easy to digest information is often key to ensure your viewers are not confused or alienated. It could be argued that promotional videos are similar to regular television adverts, designed for wide appeal and to quickly disseminate information and encourage some sort of response. However, with online video you’re not confined to the 30-second slot so promotional videos have more opportunity to include more information through talking heads or interviews etc

Furthermore, online, attention spans are short and indulgence in branded advertising is rare. Therefore, many promotional videos take a soft-sell approach using an abstract concept and delivered in a light-hearted or humorous way. This approach has been coined as ‘Advertainment’, obviously a hybridisation of advertising and entertainment. Notable videos include ‘The man your man could smell like’ promo from Old Spice, the Evian Roller Babies, Ken Block’s Gymkhana for DC Shoes, or any of the GoPro aspirational shorts.

To conclude, the promotional video for your business should be designed to be a light, engaging product. It should be clear what is is promoting but without forcing your viewer to buy buy buy! The soft-sell approach should ideally be coupled with an innovative and clever concept that will encourage web-savvy viewers to share your video and increase your audience reach.

In the next set of articles we’ll take a look the structure and definition of alternative video marketing formats that you can use to raise the profile of your business online, engage with new customers and of course, sell more.

This information and much, much more is all in Ryan’s Video for Business video marketing course, or for examples and articles on effective video marketing, try Retina Burn, Ryan’s video marketing blog for your needs.

Ryan Stone

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