5 Psychology-Backed Hacks for Your Innovative Video Marketing Campaigns

Every month, more than 1.8 million people visit YouTube. It’s roughly a fifth of the entire population of our planet. However, many people also use Snapchat and Facebook, watching over 20 billion videos every day on these platforms. Since the primary goal of any marketer is to get consumers’ attention, there is no surprise that video content is so popular and effective in online marketing.

Videos are extremely popular, but that is for a reason. As much as 90% of all information our brain receives is visual content. Our brains are wired to process videos quite swiftly. In fact, we do it 60,000 faster than when dealing with textual content. Videos are also great because they allow you to deliver a lot of information within a short period of time. In addition to this, videos trigger an emotional response quite easily, and this is precisely what you need if you want your marketing materials to be engaging and effective.

Video Psychology Fundamentals

Videos quickly grab the attention of your target audience, and the main reason is the emotional factor. Emotional content allows brands to build strong relationships with their potential consumers. According to research, companies that prioritize the optimization of emotional connection demonstrate an 85% better sales growth than their competitors and also outperform them by 26% in the gross margin. The easiest way to make your viewers feel certain emotions is to use the right music. However, your video content should also correspond to the music, and it shouldn’t be boring.

Another psychologically important factor is the length of your videos. Modern people have an extremely short attention span. It’s tough to make your viewers watch a long video, so we suggest that you try to keep your videos as short as possible. Short videos get more views than long ones. However, if your video is longer than a minute, you should make sure that the beginning of the video is dynamic enough.

According to research by Facebook, viewers who’ve seen the first three seconds of your video will likely keep watching it for at least 30 seconds. You should also make your longer videos engaging. For example, Facebook changes the organic reach of videos depending on the engagement level. Thus, if the majority of people who watch your video make it from the beginning to the end, algorithms recognize such a video as worth distribution.

Videos attract attention not only because of emotional connection but also because of curiosity. There is a psychological phenomenon called the curiosity gap; it’s the gap between what we already know and what we want to know. Sooner or later, the curiosity gap pushes us to take action, learning something new and searching for information. Marketers take advantage of this phenomenon by writing interesting headlines and creating interesting thumbnail images. Your thumbnails and captions are very important because they can speak to your viewers’ curiosity. The main thing is not to make them disappointed after they click the play button.

Psychology-Backed Hacks for Your Innovative Video Marketing Campaigns

 

1. Hook your viewers

Never forget how short the attention span of your audience is, and make sure that the first three seconds of your video clip is so good that your viewers will want to watch the entire clip. Use these three seconds to show fragments of the most exciting and engaging footages you have. Briefly describe the main idea and the central message of your video at the very beginning. Use dynamic editing along with narration to quickly explain what valuable information your viewers can learn from your video.

2. Use the right colors

Every color associates with certain feelings and there are colors which are especially good at grabbing attention. For example, the color Red triggers an immediate response. According to research, our brain became very sensitive to this color during evolution. First, red sticks out on a green background which is so abundant in nature. Along with yellow, red is also often used as a warning sign, since many venomous species are colored red.

You should also use the psychological features of other colors as well. For example, blue associates with security and trust, while black delivers a sense of exclusivity and luxury.

3. Use footages with faces

Our faces play a crucial role in our communications as they can provide even more information than our words. As much as 55% of all information we process when communicating with others is related to facial expressions and body language. Therefore, human faces make your video content more informative. Moreover, they also make your videos conversational and relatable. Friendly faces reassure viewers, engage them, and build trust. Furthermore, researches found out that including faces on your thumbnails can increase your click-through rates and attract more viewers. However, if there are too many faces on your thumbnails, they cause the opposite effect.

4. Create strong associations

Videos allow you to build long-term associations between your brand and your audience. For example, every time you hear “I’m loving it,” you think of McDonald’s. When we see a green mermaid, it reminds us of Starbucks. Building strong associations is a rewarding approach. However, it also takes a lot of time, as people have to see your ads many times. On the other hand, you can make your video content more memorable. “Show characters that represent your audience. When your viewers can identify with the characters, they also get more interested in your brand and your products,” explains Melissa Brown, a psychology expert at Masterra.

Besides, your marketing content should be consistent, and videos are no exception. Don’t forget to include your brand logo, use brand colors, etc. The primary goal is to make people remember your brand image.

5. Make your videos credible

People see advertising materials everywhere, all the time. Many of us have already developed immunity to advertisements, and the main reason is that most people don’t trust them. As much as 97% of people who use the internet don’t trust the advertisements, and your main goal is to persuade them that your brand is trustworthy. Is it possible? Fortunately, people still trust each other, and this is why influencers are so powerful. You can collaborate with influencers on YouTube and Instagram, who will promote your products effectively and engagingly.

Also, influencers have a loyal audience of their own, consisting of people who are interested in a particular sort of product and are ready to try what they see. In this case, you can benefit from another psychological phenomenon called “social proof.” Simply put, people like to do what they see others do because it allows them to determine the proper way of behavior in a specific situation.

Conclusion

Videos are very effective means of marketing for many reasons. They are informative, fun to watch, and emotional. Engaging videos allow you to not only deliver a lot of information within a limited time but also to connect with your audience emotionally, providing non-verbal messages, and using various psychological tricks.

Make sure that the first few seconds of your videos are intriguing, use the right colors to evoke certain feelings and emotions, and use a conversational approach. Videos enable you to get closer to your potential customers and to build strong associations with your products. Provide valuable and entertaining content, and you will see how videos increase the effectiveness of your marketing efforts in no time.