How Associations Can Use Videos to Grow Membership
Videos help humanize industries; they turn complex issues into compelling stories; they inspire action and they create community. That’s why nearly half of all associations have integrated videos into their communications strategies and 24% are planning on doing so shortly, according to one study
Videos will constitute 82% of all consumer internet traffic by 2019, according to the Cisco Visual Networking Index. For associations, they will be especially effective for accessing younger audiences – tomorrow’s members and industry leaders — who spend about 1 hour 45 minutes daily watching online video content on connected devices
If you plan to add this powerful medium in your association’s marketing mix and need inspiration to convince your board members to allocate a budget for video marketing, the list below can help:
- Videos Convey Membership Benefits Better
Facts tell but stories sell. And watching a stirring, authentic story is a lot more effective than reading one. The International Facility Management Association (IFMA) makes good use of video in their member testimonials.
You can promote your association’s member benefits in video in your emails, in your social media campaigns and strategically throughout your website. Among other success statistics, embedding videos in landing pages can increase conversion rates by 80%! The stirring video by the American Heart Association for its Life is Why campaign is an inspiring example.
- Videos Explain Complicated Issues Better
For audiences that only need overviews and a few key messages about your industry or issues, animated videos, in particular, are extremely effective. The creators of this European Window Film Association’s (EWFA) short video about its contribution to the European Union energy efficiency targets claimed they could have distributed press releases, policy papers, newsletters or books about this industry, but none would have been as effective as a video.
- Videos Teach Better
Since one of the primary functions of an association is to educate its members, video content in the form of educational courses, demonstrations, interviews with experts, etc. can be counted on to both attract and inform more learners. Nearly 60% people are searching YouTube for videos that give information and your association can capture this large segment by creating helpful video content.
The Material Handling Equipment Distributors Association (MHEDA) discovered this when it partnered with Mitsubishi, Caterpillar, and Toyota to produce a video series about the proper use of forklifts in material handling.
- Videos Generate More Excitement Around Events
Associations are getting more and more creative in using videos to promote events to potential attendees, exhibitors and sponsors. Nothing generates “fear of missing out” (FOMO) as effectively as video. The National Association of Convenience Stores(NACS) used an extensive video marketing strategy when they saw a dip in the attendance rates during their annual Atlanta convention. They hired an agency to create food- and travel-related episodes to showcase all the great things attendees could do in Atlanta. And during the convention, they created a television show with daily broadcasts of the event to drum up interest next year.
“That’s a wrap!”
It’s clear that the general population is increasingly drawn to video content across virtually every platform. And video’s effectiveness in contributing to so many of associations’ marketing, education and advocacy goals makes it an essential tool in every communications plan. But for many marketers, the leap into video production is a bit scary, and for good reason: the videos have to have good sound and visual quality; the script has to be concise and compelling; the cast (human or animated) must be on-point in tone and execution; and the entire production must fit into the budget.
To the latter point, prices are coming down every day for the technology, but the cost for professionals — at the very least, a director/video editor — still makes the production of quality videos an investment of time and money.
And then there are the skills required for actually marketing the video content and analyzing its performance. The good news is that excellent production software and experienced production and marketing support is available. These professionals can train marketers to create short-form and/or uncomplicated pieces in-house — or they can be hired as contractors to produce more sophisticated pieces.
For more examples of effective video content and to talk to a professional, visit www.boylepublicaffairs.com or contact Kellie at Kellie@boylepublicaffairs.com