All about the videos that get visitors to become customers and sellers to lock in their loyalty

In our last post, we discussed why video is the secret sauce for marketplaces. As a quick recap – and this will probably not come as a big surprise – people vastly prefer to watch a video about a product or service than to read about it. And, once they actually see what they’re supposed to get, they are much more likely to make the purchase.

Now that the value of video for marketplace sellers (and owners) has been established, let’s take a look at what’s at the heart of securing engagement with prospective buyers, and for turning them into customers.

How they love video let us count the ways

Last time we covered one example of the kind of videos that marketplace visitors like to watch – i.e. the product or service feature showcase.

But, it doesn’t end there. There are many more types of videos that will resonate with marketplace visitors, for example:

Unboxing

This is a variant of the feature showcase. Instead of just walking potential customers through the amazing capabilities of your product or the benefits of your service – you take prospects through an exciting discovery experience.

Unboxing inspires the emotional response of anticipation and provides the kind of product information you can’t get through a spec sheet.

It should be noted that unboxing is not solely applicable to physical products. You can also metaphorically ‘unbox’ a service or space/real estate.

And, whether you’re literally removing the wrapping, or leading the camera through a hallway or the studio/office through which you provide your service – unfold the discovery slowly, this builds suspense, which is always very engaging.

Showcase your expertise

Why should features be the only ones to have all the fun and get up on stage for a showcase? Your expertise is one of your greatest assets and will work wonders for securing trust and confidence in you as a worthy supplier.

Do a little research to uncover the greatest wants and needs of your target audience. Set those up as questions that they would ask you had they had the opportunity to meet with you face to face. And, then set out to answer those questions, bringing tips, best practices, and insights into your domain—their area of interest.

Don’t forget to weave in subtly what they need to do/have in order to achieve their goals – and then let them know at the end – “ oh, and by the way, guess what . . .” – you’ve got the answer to their needs!

Just make sure not to be overtly or even slightly ‘salesee’ about it. That would undermine credibility.

Show them the customer love

Customer testimonials are probably one of the most effective marketing tools out there, and all the better when on video. Consider this:

• Customer testimonials can help generate more than 62% more revenue from every customer and every visit.
• 92% of prospects read testimonials during the ‘hunt.’
• 88% of consumers say they trust testimonials just as much as personal recommendations.

These are powerful numbers and are reflective of a powerful force in the human decision-making process called ‘social proof.’

Namely, the theory posited by psychologist Robert Cialdini maintains that when we’re not sure about how to behave or which choices to make in a particular situation, we look to others around us and/or to those who are like us, to see what they’re doing as evidence for what we too should be doing.

Monkey see monkey do, as the saying goes. Being the social animals that we are, this should come as no surprise.

In marketing – social proof has long been one of the most effective go-to’s for persuading prospects to become customers. Think: “9 out of 10 people agree” and the like.

If you can go to an existing customer and have them agree to go on film to sing the praises of your product or service, then run don’t walk. The return will be tremendous.

How to’s

No list of great product/service videos would be complete without the ‘how to.’ People are always looking to maximize usage and benefits from what they purchase. Similarly, we are also motivated to make sure that we’re not missing out on any important features or capabilities that will deliver more value.

When you share insights and tips on how to make the most of your product or service, you not only deliver expertise, you deliver value.

When making your how-to, it would be worthwhile to keep these tactics in mind:

• Make sure to provide your usage tips in context, demonstrating what would/could happen in a real-life situation.
• Deliver the tips in short steps that are clearly explained, making it easy for the viewer to follow.
• Consider making the ‘how to’ a series that would motivate return visits to the marketplace showcasing your product/service.

Making it all doable

Now that owners and sellers know what the stuff of great marketplace videos is all about, the next logical question is – how the heck can they make it happen?

Well, when the marketplace platform has a built-in video creator that makes it easy to create videos while still delivering a professional look, the seller’s world is rocked!

The key to such a creator tool, are the following four principles:

• Beautiful videos made easy: delivering the ability to create videos easily, but without compromising the visual esthetic nor the seller’s unique brand identity.
• No time, no sweat: enabling sellers to select from multiple pre-built storyboards, making it not only easy to use, but also fast to create.
• Distribution ready: providing support for multiple formats to distribute on any channel, including (and especially) social platforms, beyond the marketplace itself.
• Hassle-free: enabling intuitive, branded integration into the marketplace platform.

Now, not only does that help sellers make killer videos that engage and convert, but it also helps marketplace owners ensure the engagement of sellers and inspire them to keep coming back to create more and more videos and remain loyal to the marketplace.

Just see how expertly it works and looks on Houzz, an online community and marketplace for architecture, interior design and decorating landscape design, and home improvement.

This marketplace is quite adept at enabling providers of the relevant services to showcase their might. For example:

And another great example can be seen here:

And that folks, is the gasoline that sets marketplace videos on fire and the stuff that great video creator tools are made of!