You may have heard the old adage: ‘You’ll never get a second chance to make a first impression’. And this truism is just as valid today. Whether you’re in an interview or a social setting: as humans we tend to judge something or someone within the first ten seconds of contact. To reverse that first impression can be tricky if not impossible. So rather get it the right first time!
When meeting someone the first time, we know the social protocol dictates that we make eye contact and smile. We want to put our best foot forward, to portray the values that we stand for. To deliver that successfully, we need to be as presentable as we can be. It’s called building rapport.
The same goes for making a great and lasting impression when promoting a brand via a YouTube video. And people can’t get enough. People are drawn to the exciting, fast medium that is YouTube video. Looking back into video history, video marketing has been a favorite since the 1960s when TV commercials started reaching their viewers.
Nowadays videos are found on many different platforms including social media and websites, which makes them an extremely versatile, attractive and effortless medium to share. Using video-heavy content will definitely increase your brand awareness and guarantee that customers will return to your product.
These days, there’s more and more value given to video driven content marketing, because people prefer watching a video of a product or service. Video is by far THE most engaging content form out there. According to Diode Digital, video content marketing is 600% more effective than print and direct email combined. Video is gaining popularity partly because it’s a relatively new format of online content. Smartphones that have video playback capability have only taken off in the last 10 years or so since the unveiling of the landmark first Apple iPhone in 2007. Since then, the mainstreaming of smartphones, increases in screen size and rapid improvements in broadband data connections have helped spur on the consumption of video which until then had been limited to TV and certain websites. As a result, almost 50% of videos today are now watched on mobile devices.
So companies are increasingly becoming aware of the importance of video marketing as part of their social media campaigns and YouTube channel. According to The Street, there are now over 1 billion hours of YouTube Videos watched each day:
Having those numbers in mind, one can see why it is imperative to use this easily shareable medium as part of a branding strategy.
Using a video with a high-quality intro is a powerful way to show credibility and capability right from the start. A video can present who you are as a brand and deliver your key message within seconds in a quick, sophisticated manner!
Renderforest recently brought a tech revolution to the online video production industry. With their variety of templates, high-tech animations for videos and slideshows, as well as strong intro makers and extremely fast processing, Renderforest is helping millions of users worldwide to create extraordinary presentations for their clients.
We took a look around and with Renderforest being one of the top ten on the video making platforms list, we want to show you in a bit more detail as to how easily you can make a YouTube video with a super strong and high-end intro. Renderforest is not only really affordable, but it is also an extremely user-friendly tool with which to create high-profile slideshows and videos!
Indeed, Renderforest is the WordPress of video editing. Just like before WordPress, people often had to hard-code their own websites which required learning HTML, before Renderforest people had to learn motion graphics and video production skills using expensive, complicated tools like Adobe After Effects and Adobe Premiere Pro. Renderforest removes those challenges because it’s cost-effective and like WordPress, relies on templates that can be infinitely customized to create a unique look. Also similar to WordPress, Renderforest is a drag-and-drop editor that’s intuitive to operate. Check their templates out here.
But how do you keep your audience watching the whole video? Especially given that most of the audience is watching their videos on their mobile phones? The key is to have your audience hooked with high-quality intros. So to have a video with an epic intro of your brand or product is imperative so the viewer stays with you right until the end. With having a strong intro, you can also add a logo of your brand to it.
More and more brands also use influencers to present their products via YouTube. Especially since video content marketers achieve a 54% increase in brand awareness according to Optinmonster. Those influencers often use their own logo to introduce themselves in the videos. Check out the popular YouTuber Daniel Maritz’s intro:
As you can see in the video, the influencer Theresa, who got over 1 million views for this YouTube video, uses his logo as part of an intro sequence. This strong opening sets the tone of the video and, ultimately, his brand. This depiction of your key values and visual representation of your brand builds audience recognition and trust, while it also helps to grab your viewers’ attention. As a result, your sales and conversions go up.
Another interesting video is by SciShow who also uses a logo as part of their intro to their Youtube video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESOKuRxNCpE. The show has over 5 million subscribers and uses its simple, yet smart logo to establish its brand equity within seconds. The strong intro prepares the viewers for what lies ahead- helping to build the excitement and audience anticipation to ultimately keep them watching.
What you really want to establish with your video marketing is a long lasting relationship with your clients. Your goal should be to deliver your key message and brand appearance within a couple of seconds so that they stay on the page to finish your YouTube video. So the biggest challenge, which is to have your audience glued to your YouTube video, is easily overcome with a strong intro – for example, one from Renderforest: https://www.renderforest.com/intro-videos. And also, check out this tutorial on how to make a powerful Renderforest intro with your logo:
Also, remember that your video will be the most powerful part of your blog. Why? Well, for the same reasons we’ve highlighted above. People will often skim over the text, perhaps read the headline, but will possibly go straight to the moving images.
So in summary, make video content marketing your focus and put some thought and work into video intros so that you draw your target audience into your brand story right from the beginning. That’s going to set the scene and create a recognition in the mind of your viewer that will encourage them not only to keep watching but also it’s an irresistible hook to buy into your product or service! That’s the power of video intros- make a great first impression and you’ll maximize your impact. And the result? Truly irresistible video marketing.
I am the Chief Marketing Officer at Renderforest, a Content Marketing Specialist and an Expert in SEO, Social Media Marketing, and Link Building who enjoys sharing the experiences gained along working as a marketer and helping other entrepreneurs succeed.
My works have been published on different blogs and mediums like Crazy Egg, Forbes, Upwork, ShareThis, etc. You can find me on Twitter.