Tips for Creating a Successful Video Landing Page

Over the past few years, the benefits of video content have become increasingly obvious. Videos have the power to engage, entertain, and influence viewers. The medium has a ton of potential and anyone savvy enough to use it well can reap the benefits.

Videos on landing pages have also yielded positive results. Deposit Photos revealed that a landing page with video can increase conversion by 80%. While Forbes stated that adding a video to your website makes site visitors spend 88% more time than usual.

 

 

Now, even businesses that never created video content have incorporated it into their marketing strategy. Some either produce videos in-house or hire a production agency to do the job for them.

The downside to this influx of video content creation is the fact that people have become much more selective in what they want to give their attention to. Anything that seems unoriginal or badly produced will fall through the cracks.

In order to stand out in today’s video-saturated landscape, your business needs to learn to really care about producing quality content that delivers a clear message and provides value to the viewer.

An important thing to note at this point is that just because video landing pages perform well, in general, doesn’t mean that every single one is going to be a winner.

If you want your video landing page to do well, you’ll have to put effort into it. In my previous post about why a video landing page is better than a traditional one, I discuss what a video landing page is and its benefits.

So, how can you go about creating a successful video landing page that engages, entertains, and converts? In this post, I’ll give you a few tips and examples that’ll show you how to achieve that.

 

1. Create personalized videos

 

A landing page targets a very particular segment of your audience. Keeping that in mind, it makes sense to craft a video that is customized for that particular audience. If you try to create a one-size-fits-all type of video, you will most certainly fail at achieving your objectives.

If you’re targeting content creators; marketers, and innovators, for example, the tone, language, visuals, etc. should reflect that. The SXSW landing page video below illustrates how to do this well.

Similarly, if you’re targeting laymen, you should avoid using industry-specific jargon. Tailoring your videos for your landing page will help you connect with your audience in an authentic way.

 

 

2. Keep it short and to the point

Videos on landing pages should be precise and to the point. Visitors are often looking for quick; easy-to-digest information, and relevant answers. Direct response marketers find 2-minute videos effective. So aim for that or less.

A short video that delivers the message with clarity is highly engaging and may spark the visitor’s interest to explore your page in more depth. The more interested the visitor is in what you are offering, the better the chances are of a successful conversion.

This 74-second video about Litmus email testing does an excellent job of explaining the company’s offering in a succinct and fun-to-watch way. Take notes, people!

 

 

3. Think of the video as your center piece

 

When you’re planning what your video landing page will look like, be sure to design around the video and don’t just slap it on wherever you see a bit of empty space. Keep the page simple and find an optimal spot to position your video.

Your video landing page design should lead the audience to where they need to look. Designing the video landing page is important if you want your audience to take some kind of action once they’ve arrived on your page.

 

 

4. Maintain your brand identity

 

 

Your video landing page should stay true to your brand. You can get creative but don’t lose sight of the big picture when you plan your design. Consistent branding is paramount when it comes to improving your brand positioning.

Your audience should feel like they are in familiar territory when they watch your video. Frito-Lay does it well with its holiday commercial.

 

 

5. Tell your audience a story

A lot of the videos I’ve listed in this post tell a story. Human brains are hard-wired to remember stories and recall information better if they receive it in a story format. With video, you have the opportunity to leverage the power of storytelling to the max. Use that to your advantage.

This Adobe video delivers its message creatively. It reveals an unsuspecting twist at the end, too. Viewers can’t help but share content like this. Think your plotline through and you’ll increase your chances of achieving your video landing page objectives.

 

 

6. Create a screencast for your video landing page

Screencasts are great if you want to give your viewers easy-to-follow instructions. These types of videos don’t require a major investment in terms of time and money.

Compared to animated or live-action videos, screencasts don’t really need a lot of skill level to produce. All you need is a good software and high-quality voiceover. That’s it, you’re good to go.

If your business has a complicated product that may be a bit tricky for your customers to wrap their heads around, then a screencast would be useful.

Make sure the video is easy to pause and replay because your viewers may want to revisit certain sections or follow the instructions step by step.

 

7. Your CTA should be clear

Your video landing page has a purpose. You need to make sure that it’s clear. Don’t beat around the bush if you want your viewers to take some kind of action. The Dollar Shave Club’s commercial has a perfectly clear CTA. 

Ads like these can often ruffle some feathers and go south really fast, but the Dollar Shave Club managed to get away with it because they didn’t cross the line and understood the needs and motivations of their target audience.

 

 

8. Focus on creating a high-quality video

If you’re going to do video, then do it right. A cheap and sloppy-looking video on your landing page will do more harm than good.

More often than not, a person that arrives on your video landing page doesn’t know much about your company or brand. If you go with a poor quality video, you won’t just leave a terrible first-impression (those are very hard to undo by the way) you’ll also run the risk of damaging your company’s credibility.

Because of limited attention spans, you’ll have a very short window to capture your audience’s attention. Therefore, you need to do it well. That’s why it is necessary to invest in high-quality video content.

If you’re going to make a live-action video and produce it in-house, make sure that you use an HD camera and have a quality audio setup. If producing a video isn’t something you’re prepared to take up, you could always hire a production agency to do the job for you.

Read more: How to Pick a Production Studio for that Amazing Explainer Video

This video is a great example of entertaining, high-quality video content with Easter eggs.

 

 

9. Optimize your video for SEO

As I mentioned before, the internet is saturated with video content right now. If you want to rise above the noise, you’ll have to work on SEO.

Use appropriate keywords so your video landing page can be found easily via search engines, select a catchy; relevant title and make sure you’ve added the meta description for your page, too.

 

10. Don’t set your video on autoplay

 

 

If you set your landing-page video on autoplay, it could come off as annoying and intrusive. Iceland’s official tourism website has a video on its main page that you have to click on to view

 

 

If you do want your video to autoplay, then there is a right way to do it; play a video that’s silent.

Nike’s website features a video on loop. You’ll notice that it has no sound and it plays in the background. It doesn’t come off as intrusive from the visitor’s perspective.

 

 

11. Narrow it down to one goal

A video landing page shouldn’t try to do too much all at once. Focus on one goal; define it clearly, and execute it well. Your goal could be to get people to download an eBook, signup for a newsletter or you could be trying to get people to purchase an item. Whatever it is, pick one and go with it. If you try to send out too many messages, you’ll sound like you’re confused. 

 

The bottom line

• A video landing page gives you the opportunity to be creative. Use humor or good storytelling to engage your audience.
• Keep the message clear and concise. Emphasize your prospect’s pain points and offer a solution
• If you want your audience to know how great your product or service is, show it in action.
• Keep your video concise. A video under 2 minutes is the most sensible option.

Have you ever used a video for your landing page? What tactics did you use to make sure it would be successful? Share your wisdom and experience in the comments!

If you’re planning to make a video for your business and want to hire a production agency to outsource the work, feel free to contact us. We’d be happy to help.