Did you know that 72% of people prefer to learn about a company via video rather than the written word? And that 93% of marketers say they’ve landed a new customer thanks to a video on social media?
We know that video is valuable in the world of travel and tourism: It raises your brand awareness, captures the attention of potential clients, and inspires visitors. For many, creating video is at the forefront of their strategic plans and social wish lists.
But maybe you shouldn’t do it. If one of these scenarios fits your situation, you can quit creating video right now. (In the meantime, be prepared for some sassy yet sane video tips.)
1. Your groups are full
Are your upcoming group tours completely full? Is your waiting list a mile long? If so, no need to shoot video!
If you do need to fill more seats, though, video can help by attracting aspiring travelers. Tune in for one key takeaway to grow your video viewership.
2. Stagnant strategy
Does your video strategy date to the era when the cameras were as big as a bread box? If so—and you’re happy with that—you probably don’t need to create videos. If you’re ready to modernize, though, you need a new strategy.
Viewer interests and expectations change on a dime, and keeping up with current trends in storytelling and animation—as well as cheeky humor—are as important as the tech involved in video creation. Here are some tips to build your strategy for 2020: .
3. An equipment budget eludes you
What happens when you start watching a video only to find the audio is garbled or the video is boring? You tune out, right?
Don’t even think about posting video unless you make a small investment in an external microphone for your phone or video camera. And while you’re buying, how about adding a selfie stick or tri-pod to your shopping cart? These two items will take your video quality to the next level and inspire people to watch and enjoy for a longer time.
Even though many people watch video on social sites without the audio, You Tube viewers, as well as keeners (your perfect audience), will turn up the volume. Don’t scare off your hot prospects with bad audio.
And to grab your viewers’ attention right away, tune in to the video mentioned above for a quick tip ().
4. Misplaced advertising anguish
Why spend so much time writing, shooting, and editing video if it’s seen by only a few of your social fans? (Research shows that organic reach is dropping quickly.) Or if it’s shown to an ad audience that’s not interested? Don’t waste your time or ad budget.
If you’re investing time in creating a video strategy, invest a bit more time to create targeted ad audiences. You might unnecessarily worry about your ability to create video when you should direct your anguish to your choice of audience.
You can create different ad audiences to attract unique demographics, interests, and locations ().Take an even deeper dive and target people who have expressed an interest in your destination, enjoy a specific hobby or a certain style of food or beverage, or have visited a specific page on your website.
Once you have a solid collection of ad audiences, go ahead and take advantage of the split test and dynamic options in your ad account (). These tools will do the heavy lifting and show you which audience responds best to text, headlines, calls to action and visuals.
Then, for the icing on the cake, check your ad relevance score to get a sense of how your ads resonate with your unique audience. This score is found in your Ads Manager/Business Manager account.
The bottom line is this: If you’re not making the most of the video tools available, don’t waste your time and talent. But when you get the tech and advertising right, you’ll be on your way to filling your tours, selling out your events, and maximizing your visitor numbers.
Catherine Heeg, an international speaker and trainer, focuses on social media marketing strategies for the tourism and hospitality industry. Connect with her socially and at cmsspeaking.com.
Top photo ©New Africa/Adobe Stock