So much so that it is a commonly-used verb – you’ll commonly hear holiday-goers responding on their stay, “We Airbnb-ed in Paris”. Getting a brand to rise to that kind of infamy, especially as it’s not a legacy brand such as Coca-cola or Levis, requires innovation and marketing. 

Exploring how Airbnb got to where it is today gives plenty of insight for a company looking to head in the same direction – up.

In 2014, Airbnb’s revenue was $0.4 billion; in 2019, that number had risen to $4.7 billion. Even during the pandemic, where most people were under governmental orders to restrict their movement, Airbnb’s revenue only fell to $3.4 billion.  

Looking to the massive surge in Airbnb users, the number in 2012 lay at 6 million. By 2018, that number became 150 million. 

Experiential marketing 

Airbnb rose to fame right when experiential marketing was becoming a really effective method of securing loyal customers. Before Airbnb, travel had already become the norm for most people in the western world. The number of long weekend flights away had risen. However, there was also the element of people have seen everything before. There isn’t much that sets most hotels apart. 

With Airbnb, however, lies a platform where ordinary people can let you into their corner of paradise. Some even offer to do local tours or break bread with their visitors. It’s the sense of getting off the beaten track and into an old farmhouse cottage, a geodesic dome or a boutique townhouse that oozes personality. 

All of this is bang in the centre of what people want now – experiences. 76% of consumers prefer to spend on experiences than on material items. On top of that, consumers identify “inspiration and meaning” as the most sought-after quality in brands, a 200 per cent increase from 2012 for this particular set of attributes. 

So perhaps it’s worth asking how your business can provide that experiential element – even if you’re selling products. Is there a way to give a more meaningful brand-customer interaction? Find untold secrets to brand awareness in this article.

Investment in video content

In 2019 Airbnb announced a video strategy that simply lets branding and entertainment drive profits. 

“The more we put content out there, the more you’re going to bring people to the platform,” says Chris Lehane, Airbnb’s senior vice president of global policy and communications, in the Reuters interview. 

Airbnb has partnered with Apple’s upcoming streaming service for their docuseries “Home,” which features unique homes around the world and the stories of the homeowners. Although the show’s premise isn’t new to viewers, viewers can book these locations through Airbnb.

Showcasing the most exciting properties reminds people why Airbnb is such an enticing marketplace. Video content can be a subtle way of inspiring and entertaining an audience rather than the obvious hard-sell. Using unconventional marketing campaigns helps to set Airbnb apart from the hotel industry and online travel agencies.

Previously Airbnb gambled with launching its own magazine. However print has been dwindling for years now, and there isn’t much interest in new magazines hitting the shelves. Digital, and video in particular, has been a much more effective strategy serving viewers their dream getaways – especially during a pandemic. 

Email Marketing

Airbnb saw this as a real opportunity to build a community among users and ran with it. Their emails are highly personalised, and this is largely down to the fact that they have regional teams on the ground rather than one marketing campaign for all of their users. 

Airbnb’s marketing campaigns, especially their referral campaigns, are highly successful. In the referrals, customers will receive an email offering a discount for both themselves and a new customer should they sign up using your link. A quick copy and paste of the link into Whatsapp, or just pressing the “share to Facebook” link makes for quick work and easy to share discounts for both parties. Paypal had a similar offer when they started and was the source of their surge in signups. It certainly worked for both these businesses.

Cross-selling

The most successful companies know how to showcase what a customer wants. When going on holidays, tourists will enjoy excursions, activities and experiences. Airbnb knew this and so set up Airbnb experiences – an easy to find tab on the Airbnb homepage.

Airbnb experiences are also shared on the page just before checkout. This simplifies the person’s holiday planning, making it more of an all-in-one process. Using data analytics to their advantages to provide a personalised booking process makes customers come back.

How can your company simplify life for your customers and cross-sell to increase their likelihood of becoming loyal customers? 

Influencer marketing 

You may not be aware that Airbnb invests in influencer marketing. That’s because of how subtle and enticing this content appears on the social media user’s feeds. Their most common method is to collaborate with celebrities who share snap pics of their latest Airbnb stay and post to their socials. Simple but effective and has boosted its impressive growth over the years. It is a great way to find your target market – influencers across Instagram and Facebook have their own niche, and finding one that fits your own target market gives you a direct line to them. Site traffic to Airbnb website lies at 91 million in January 2020– influencer marketing is a leading driver of these impressive stats.

Airbnb’s success is directly related to their deep and adaptive understanding of what their customers want. They understand that needs and desires change and are willing to try unconventional forms of marketing for a fresh and welcome approach to brand awareness.

Finding that nuanced approach takes experience and talent to deliver. We’re a small team here at Videoworks London with a knack for storytelling and creating video content that connects people to your brand. If you’d like to get started with a video production project that boosts your brand’s awareness, you can get in touch here.

The post The Gems of Airbnb’s Marketing Strategy appeared first on Video Production London - VideoWorks.

It doesn’t matter how long you spend on post through social channels or cranking up on your ad spend. Not unless your brand stands out from the crowd. Otherwise, your brand isn’t going to reach its potential.

Brand awareness is one of the main pillars of building a successful business; that includes B2B as well as consumer-facing brands. Have a think about it; when you go to buy a car, you’re likely to be much slower to opt for the obscure brand that you’ve never heard of before.

That said, if you’d seen some crisp, professional ads displaying this car as the newest in motor performance and you’ve consistently seen trustworthy reviews, then you’re far more likely to at least be open to learning more about this car brand. The same can be said for any industry. Consumers are smart. They’re reluctant to invest their money into unknown products and services. Brand awareness is where you can build real momentum and start standing out from your competitors.

Top methods to build brand awareness

1. Referral strategy

Referral marketing is an incredible option because you have the opportunity to generate brand awareness and acquire new customers at the same time. There’s not a whole pile of other methods that have this capability.

Also, you’re working with your loyal customers. Those that trust and admire your business are the ones that will be spreading the word to their friends, family and perhaps their social media followers.

AirBnb is an excellent example of what can happen when a business focuses on its referral programmes. They committed to making the referral programme as simple as possible for customers to partake. This included the ability to share across multiple channels, so whether it was via a link, Facebook or email – people would still find it easy and quick to spread the word.

AirBnb also found a difference when A/B email testing with one crucial element. Each invite needed to appear as a gift, not a promotion. And that applies to a lot of referral marketing. Making it sound inviting rather than pushy, will make people a lot more open and excited about joining in on the programme.

Taru Bhargava, author at AppVirality, describes just why this person-to-person referral experience is so effective:

“We tend to follow the footsteps of those whom we value. Sometimes these actions imitate ‘the monkey see and monkey do’ approach. According to a Nielsen report, 84% of people go by recommendations from friend and family. If we observe it carefully, word-of-mouth via mobile app referral follows the same trend. In Airbnb’s case, it was further elevated by a personalized landing page, when a user installed an app via a referral link.”

2. Create a brand awareness campaign

It’s not going to shock any of you reading this that campaigns these days primarily involve video.

Here are the three reasons that hold businesses back from creating video campaigns:

• 66% of marketers don’t make videos because they think it’s too time-consuming.
• 41% of marketers don’t make videos because they think it’s too complicated.
• 37% of marketers don’t make videos because they think it’s too expensive.

If this is what’s holding your brand back, then it’s time to open to the advances in technology.

A good smartphone can create videos. The quality won’t be cinematic, but it will still effectively get your message across.

Another key to creating a campaign within budget is organisation. If your team has decided that the video quality needs to be impressive, then a top-quality video production crew can create multiple campaigns in a batch. This makes each campaign more cost-effective and saves time. It’s also great for a business to have content ready to roll out in advance. Having professionals in the creative process will provide refinement in defining and connecting with your target audience. It also gives you the expertise to make your brand memorable within these videos.

There are many formats to play around with, here are just a few:

• Animation videos
• Brand introduction video
• Event videos
• Explainer videos
• Interview video
• Testimonial videos
• Tutorials/How to videos
• User-generated content
• Vlog

This is just a taster, yet it still gives plenty of scope on different angles that enliven your business and allow prospective customers to see into what makes your brand worthy of their attention.

3. Epic storytelling

No matter what format or platform you choose for your content, even the simplest photo tells a story, has a mood, conveys meaning. According to research by Headstream, if people love a brand story, 55% are more likely to buy the product in future, 44% will share the story, and 15% will buy the product immediately.

A memorable brand tells wonderful stories that connect with the audience, invokes emotions, and sparks interest. Creating stories that make your brand unforgettable, and you’ll win the interest of your audience.

4. Retargeting Campaigns

Retargeting campaigns fosters brand awareness so effectively. This strategy reminds your website visitors of your products and services after they leave your website without buying. After visiting specific pages, it allows you to retarget them and show your visitors relevant visual or text ads when they visit other websites. These are your audience segment that have a high potential of becoming customers. They’ve browsed your website but perhaps need time to consider the purchase. Drawing from the infamous rule of seven, it takes an average of seven interactions with your brand before a purchase will take place.

Retargeting enables your brand to focus on perspectives that are most likely to become customers. This refinement boosts brand awareness and also offers personalisation in the content that you use to interact with this segment. They will see your content across various websites and social channels that they use. People will have a conception that your brand is successful and reliable as they’ll become familiar with your branding and learning more about your business ad by ad.

Brand awareness isn’t rocket science. If you follow these steps and ensure that your content is both high-quality, engaging and has a strong storytelling core– then you’ll see tangible evidence of growth in brand awareness. If you’re looking for a professional team of storytelling content creators, you can get in touch with us here at Videoworks.

The post The Untold Secrets to Building Brand Awareness in 2021 appeared first on Video Production London - VideoWorks.

Instagram isn’t an impossible platform to gain traction in– although it can certainly feel that way without the right tactics. If you follow and commit to these steps in 2021, you will experience growth in your reach and engagement.

Let’s get into it!

There is no “beating the algorithm”

This term is mentioned by social media gurus about as frequently as it rains on the streets of London, but it just isn’t true.

Yes, there is an algorithm. Its job is to provide users with content they will enjoy so they stay longer on the platform and watch more ads.

That’s it.

It’s not out to get business accounts or show your post to only 10% of followers unless you pay to boost it.

Saying that, although we can’t beat the algorithm into submission with a stick – we can use the algorithm in our favour. We have to be focused and tuned in to what our audience is seeking. That means recording weekly stats and analysing what had your followers commenting, liking sharing. Monitoring which posts increased your brand’s reach. Analyse your competitors – observe when their account is experiencing a spike in growth and find out why.

The better your content engages your audience, the more the algorithm will push it out.

Engaging

Before even discussing how to create quality content for your brand – here’s a trick that so many businesses miss. They don’t do the engagement work.

Time each week needs to be committed to reaching out – it’s rare for posts to go viral and a business to gain thousands of followers overnight. However, although the rate of growth is slower this way, it’s much more steady and reliable. Take the time to comment, like and share content from those with a potential interest in your brand. Be genuine and try to make comments at least five words in length.

Here is what other articles won’t share; they want content marketing to appear very glamorous and feed-focused.

However, the behind the scenes graft, such as engagement, that will make your posted content far better received. You’ve done the work, built and maintained the community, and these people are far more likely to interact with your content.

Create snappy video content

Instagram rushed out its additional video features – reel, guides, and IGTV– to keep followers who are migrating to TikTok. With each update, functionality improves, and marketers are getting more of an insight into how people are using these features. We’ll look at the four main video formats with tips on how to make an impact:

Reels

Use the tools available in the Reels uploading process:

• add text (do this!),
• music (also unless speaking, throw a song in the background),
• filters and effects.

That being said, creating a reel is simple – it’s making an engaging one that’s the trick. The key is to find content that’s sparking conversion on social. Create a unique slant adds value and entertainment. Also, showcase the exciting parts of your business, offer sneak peeks of secret projects.

Feed Video

While a reel is set in portrait mode (1920px x 1080 px), feed video’s have the square dimnesions (1080px x 1080px) that’s classic to Instagram. Keep this in mind before shooting, as you might find it impossible to fit your video neatly into the frame.

• No need to use the whole minute – in fact, it’s better if you don’t. A Hubspot study revealed that feed videos that received the most comments averaged 26 seconds. Our brain processes visuals 60,000 times faster than text, making people scroll quickly through Instagram. Try shortening your videos to fit users’ expectations – less is more.
• Set a cover image – it’s easy to forget and is one of the last steps. You can do so while writing your caption. People will scroll right past the cover image if it’s a random, blurred frame from the middle of your video.

Stories

Stories are becoming more and more essential to a business. Some key elements to weave into your strategy:

• Consistency– it’s okay to take days off (you can announce the day before that you’re going for a #digitaldetox) but try to post 4-5 days a week and create a story arc on those days…
• Story arc– rather than posting random images throughout the day, instead post a couple of subsequent posts that tell a story. This method is far better for story retention and feels more experiential and meaningful for the viewer.

IGTV

IGTV has the lowest engagement and views compared to the above features, and it’s no wonder why. Social media users are consistently looking for short, snappy, shareable content. HOWEVER, there is one exception: Lives, ESPECIALLY Lives with guests. These are great for exposure as both your audience and the guest’s followers can tune in and watch– you can also save this to your IGTV.

Research your competitors’ strategies

Not just what competitors are positing, but also how often and what times. Inspect their captions, how they reply to comments, who’s liking and engaging with their posts.

This doesn’t mean to copy-cat everything your competitors are doing – that way, your brand will always be one step behind and also would detract from your own brand identity. Instead, be a critic – what’s working well for them and what isn’t. That helps to take the guesswork out of what will perform for your business on the platform.

Captions

Here’s your chance to encourage participation, and communicate a compelling CTA (call to action) is the path to engagement,

Get your comments section busy by exploring a topic that matters to your audience. Value their input– respond to comments with thought rather than just planting in a few love hearts.

User-generated Content

Make user-generated content a pillar of your content marketing.

Why?

UGC has a 4.5% higher conversion rate on Instagram.

Create exciting campaigns and giveaways to get your followers involved. Request that they tag your account and maybe use a specific hashtag to gain reach for your brand. Be sure to reshare this content! You have a strong testimonial at your disposal here.

With so many brands vying for Instagrammers time, the fact they made the time to create content for your brand shows that they trust and align with your business.

If you’d like to create video content that is expertly crafted and tells a strong story – you can contact us at Videoworks here.

The post How to Create an Instagram Content Marketing Strategy 2021 appeared first on Video Production London - VideoWorks.

We’ve done many, many testimonial videos for our clients over the years. In this article, we’re going to share how to create the best testimonial video for your budget.

Why video testimonials are a good idea

• Testimonials make for a great story – hearing someone’s experience of your business is a brilliant idea and not just for creating a level of trust. When done right, testimonial videos are entertaining as the customer tells their story, which leads us onto…
• Testimonials are evergreen – these are incredible assets to have that you can share around your online presence. You can also gather a lot of valuable content out of a single testimonial.
• They are cost-effective – unlike a high-end, underwater content shoot, you don’t need a whole lot of fancy equipment. We’ll be getting into what you will need further on in this article.
• They offer behind the scenes – there’s such a saturation of brands, and consumers don’t necessarily buy the cheapest or the best product anymore. Yes, they’re looking for high-quality, but are also searching for personality. If they enjoy your content, if they can connect with your business, they’re far more likely to become loyal supporters. 86 per cent of consumers say that authenticity is a key factor when deciding what brands they like and support (Stackla, 2019).

Top Tips for Creating an Excellent Testimonial Video

Before recording day

Here are tasks that are great to do in advance of shooting so that everything runs smoothly.

Get clear on the video’s tone

We’re mentioning this before shoot day because it’s key to having brand consistency online.

Is your brand humorous? Natural? A bit cheeky?

Even if you’re a B2B brand, there has to be more to your brand’s tone than ‘professional’. Once confident in the feelings you want to invoke in your audience from this video, then the next steps will be much easier to create.

Write a script

Collaborate with your customer about what aspects of the customer relationship you want to focus on.

As you’ve got the tone nailed, communicate with your customer how they can help bring this to life. For example, if your content often feels unscripted to the users, encourage your customer to make full use of their own personality– to smile, laugh and crack a joke!

Choose a Testimonial video format

There are a couple of formats you can consider. Each option will provide a different feel to the testimonial. The first is known as the talking head style. Typically, we’re shooting from the chest up. This is used so much in journalism because it portrays a sense of truth, reliability and professionalism.

Next, you have conversational interviews, and these instantly set a more casual tone. Note that even the type of chairs you sit in, straight back versus a couch, can be used for tone setting. The more welcoming the set, the better chance your audience will connect with the message.

Remote interviews are obviously handy if you and your client aren’t in easy reach of each other location-wise. Having a video production company create up a set in your client’s base saves time and prevents having to travel. In the end, you’ll have a high-quality testimonial video to have on hand.

The Set-Up

1. Camera

What sort of shooting equipment do you need?

You can use a smartphone camera if you’re tight on budget. The newer smartphones specifically are delivering higher quality footage. However, what you might struggle with is a shaky end-product. A mid- to high-range DSLR and tripod will produce a sleeker finish.

The last thing you want is to ask a customer of yours to come in and spend half a day recording just to realise that the footage isn’t usable.

For a professional and engaging finish, consider going with a video production company. They’ll have all the equipment and expertise to pull in the viewer. Stopping the scroll is an art form, and takes more skill than meets the eye. If you have the budget, outsourcing video testimonials enhances the look and feel of the finished product.

2. Sound

There’s nothing better than nice crisp audio. Research published in the Journal of the Audio Engineering Society found that low-quality audio made people perceive the quality of a video overall as much lower. So how can we ensure high-quality audio? Using a lapel microphone, also known as a lavalier microphone, helps pick up the speaker’s voice. If you’ve got the budget or already own one, shotgun mics also work well in this scenario.

3. Lighting

Natural light, or a recreation of it, is often what suits this style of video. Softbox lights are wonderful for creating diffused light that is flattering and appealing to the eye. You can also sit the speaker facing a window and shooting with natural light, although it will be a little more unpredictable, and you have to contend with clouds.

4. Warming up to the camera

The first take won’t be the one that makes the final cut. That means that you need to set time aside for multiple takes, allowing the customer to relax and get used to the lens and lights.

5. Add graphics and text

Of course, this doesn’t have to be done but overlaying your testimonial with text has a few benefits. Captions make it easier to catch and keep your audience’s attention. View time increases by 12 per cent when videos have captions. Many people dip into their phones during the workday and will keep the volume on mute while accessing their favourite social media apps. Graphics are another really effective method of holding attention and also an opportunity to strengthen brand recognition.

6. Editing

Editing isn’t just snapping the snippets of footage together. Using techniques such as colour grading and transitions throughout the conversation helps to create a standout video that engages the viewer.

Also adding music, whether as an intro or outro or an ambient instrumental throughout the testimonial is a great way again to connect with the audience and invoke the desired feelings you want out of the testimonial.

Testimonials make a business trustworthy, having a video format makes them more engaging. They help your audience discover your brand and what makes it unique. Crucially, people can envision themselves availing of products or services. You can get in touch with us here at Videoworks if you’d like to collaborate on your next testimonial video.

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