Ever wondered how LinkedIn video marketing masters do their thing?
Well, wonder no more my young padawan! We’re here to teach you all those Jedi mind tricks that will have leads falling over themselves to do business with you.
Source: starwars.com
Ready, are you? Then begin we shall.
TLDR
- LinkedIn video marketing is extremely effective, but there are important technical specifications your content will need to meet
- The best kind of video content depends on the stage of the marketing funnel you’re working on. Different tactics - video ads, webinars, personalized video messaging, etc - work best at the top, middle, and bottom of the funnel
- LinkedIn video marketing works best when it’s part of a holistic approach - and that means making use of other tools. We take a look at some of the best
Why You Need LinkedIn Video Marketing
If you’re not doing video marketing at all or if LinkedIn isn’t part of your video marketing strategy, where have you been?
- 86% of businesses already rely on video marketing
- 30% of marketers see video as more important to their results than their own websites
- 91% think that video marketing has become even more important since the Covid-19 pandemic began
- In 2021, LinkedIn had about 800 million global users, and 90 million of them are senior-level decision-makers and influencers
- LinkedIn video posts generate an average of three times more engagement than other posts and are five times more likely to start a conversation
- Video ad campaigns on LinkedIn have a view rate of around 50%
- LinkedIn’s algorithm favors video, giving it a wider audience than other content formats
So clearly LinkedIn video marketing is an effective strategy and one that is becoming more and more popular. And with only 32% of businesses using video directly in sales, there’s plenty of scope for smart businesses to generate ROI through the channel.
Having said that, not all of LinkedIn’s excursions into video have been successful.
Remember LinkedIn Stories?
Source: business.linkedin.com
No, us neither. 🤣🤣🤣
Back in 2020, the network introduced a feature by this name that was remarkably similar to Instagram Stories, allowing users to combine video and text in short clips.
Nobody used it, and it was removed in September 2021.
LinkedIn Video Technical Requirements
OK, here are the latest technical specifications! 🤓
👉 LinkedIn supports the following video formats: MP4, ASF, FLV, MPEG-1 and MPEG-4, MKV, WebM, H264/AVC, VP8 and VP9, WMV2, and WMV3.
👉 LinkedIn doesn’t support AVI, ProRes, MPEG-2, Raw Video, VP6, WMV1, QuickTime, or .MOV (but you can upload .MOV files to Sendspark and share the URL to LinkedIn).
👉 Videos must be between 75KB and 5GB in size, and 3 seconds and 10 minutes in length
👉 Resolution range: between 256x144 and 4096x2304.
👉 Aspect ratio: from 1:2.4 to 2.4:1.
👉 Frame rate: between 10 and 60 frames per second.
👉 Bit rate: between 192 kbps and 30 Mbps.
LinkedIn has updated and expanded options for video a lot recently, which gives you a clue as to how important it sees the medium.
How Video Marketing Works on LinkedIn
There are three main types of video marketing on LinkedIn:
- Top of Funnel (TOFU) - which is all about generating awareness of your brand, your service, and the problems that they solve
- Middle of Funnel (MOFU) - where a prospect is becoming interested in the specific pros and cons of what you can do for them and how you can add value
- Bottom of Funnel (BOFU) - when you’re attempting to convince a prospect to take the next step, whether that’s making a purchase, getting on a sales call, etc
We’ve used this schema in a lot of previous blogs, most recently here, so we’ll skip a detailed recap.
Source: weidert.com
But it’s important to note that, in the content of LinkedIn - which is a social network that facilitates one-on-one conversation - the content you use lower down the funnel will be:
- Not only more and more focused on the service you’re offering
- But also more and more personalized to the viewer
While you might @-mention certain people in your newsfeed posts to encourage them to engage and share, or to flag their involvement, the act of publishing a video on LinkedIn is essentially a “broadcast” that can’t (or shouldn’t) be addressed solely to the particular needs of specific individuals.
When you start talking one-on-one via the inbox though, that’s exactly what you need to do.
4 Ideas For Top Of Funnel LinkedIn Video Marketing
But first, let’s look at generating awareness at the Top of the Funnel.
1. Video Adverts
Just like other social networks, LinkedIn makes a lot of its money by running targeted advertisements - of which video ads are among the most effective.
The sky is the limit when it comes to content: big, bold animations work particularly well as LinkedIn ads because the objective is to arrest people in the course of their scrolling.
LinkedIn has some of the best targeting options for its advertising of any social platform, but the CPAs tend to be significantly higher than other sites.
2. Teasers for Value-Add Content
Planning on running a webinar or publishing a big report? A great way to build up pre-release interest (and registrations) can be to produce some “teaser” videos. These can:
- Feature talking heads discussing some of the upcoming content
- Explain the value and the sign-up process
- Provide additional background material and context for the problem under consideration
Use your videos to drive viewers to a LinkedIn Events page or your own registration form.
Source: socialmediaexaminer.com
Remember to upload your video to LinkedIn when sharing it in posts. The LinkedIn algorithm favors native video to content hosted on third-party sites like YouTube!
3. Cold Outreach to Prospects
An alternative way of getting onto prospects’ radars with LinkedIn is to go straight to the inbox and bypass the newsfeed.
Since 2019, LinkedIn has supported video messaging - and even when you’re sending out a generic message, it’s unusual enough that it will often grab recipients’ attention.
Using a screen and webcam tool like Sendspark, record a quick introduction, show a few key slides, and say your call-to-action. Best keep this video very short - studies show that one third of all viewers give up within the first 30 seconds.
Remember to save it as a Template for future use! 👍
Then, download the file or get a URL link and you use it in message after message - not forgetting to include a link to your calendar app in the text part of the message to make it as easy as possible for them to book!
4. Add Subtitles and Optimize for Mobile
One big advantage that LinkedIn gives to video is that autoplay is activated by default. That’s perfect for stopping the scroll!
But LinkedIn also defaults to silent mode.
79% of all videos on LinkedIn are watched without sound. So adding subtitles can make a huge difference to the awareness-generating capabilities of your video marketing.
Plus, more than half - 57% to be precise - of all LinkedIn activity takes place on mobile devices.
That means you need to make sure your video looks good on mobile formats as well as desktop screens.
4 Ideas for Middle of Funnel LinkedIn Video Marketing
OK, now we’ve got your attention, what are we going to do with it? MOFU content is all about adding value, and video is uniquely placed to take advantage of the “show, don’t tell” principle here.
1. Webinars
Webinars are the video thought leadership gifts that keep on giving:
- Use TOFU video to drive pre-registrations, then send bespoke messages (see next section) to attendees before and after the event
- Once the webinar has taken place, it will be a great asset. Market it as a lead magnet, giving on-demand access to people who register - and add them into your drip campaigns
- Finally, share the video on your website and LinkedIn to drive organic traffic and boost your SEO
2. Product Demos
74% of people who see a product in action are more likely to buy it. So show them your product in action!
This is a great way to communicate, not just the features of your product, but also how it feels to use it.
3. Video Sales Letters
We’ve written extensively about video sales letters before. In essence, this is a recording of your full sales pitch delivered to camera and popped into prospects’ inboxes.
Much more convenient all-round than you trying to book a meeting and having a sales agent travel to their office to do it! And of course, one recording can be used any number of times.
4. Case Studies
Case studies provide vital “social proof”. Prospects think “if it worked for them, it could work for me!”
And video gives you a lot of scope - once again - to show that in more creative ways than by just telling the story in text.
Whether you’re sending them out as part of a lead nurturing campaign, publishing them on your newsfeed, or showcasing them on your company page, case study videos are a powerful part of your LinkedIn video marketing mix.
4 Ideas for Bottom of Funnel LinkedIn Video Marketing
Now it’s time to get personal! Convincing leads is all about addressing their individual needs - and that’s what BOFU video marketing content needs to focus on.
1. Personalized Messaging
Video is the perfect medium for one-on-one messaging. You can use your prospects’ LinkedIn inboxes like a voicemail, only with the added benefit of visuals.
Sendspark lets you record directly from your computer (even from in the LinkedIn web app, as we look at in the next section) and then add a link to a message.
You can even personalize the thumbnail preview image (see above) with a bespoke message and your prospect’s company logo.
When you record a completely personal, bespoke video, you can expect a positive response. It shows you’ve taken the time to understand your prospect and the trouble to create a personalized video.
2. Template Personalized Messaging
But sometimes, you won’t have time for that. Doesn’t matter.
Perhaps your business serves three different audience personas:
- Create a series of short videos, each addressed to particular concerns or needs of those personas
- Send the most suitable video out to all your leads fitting that persona
- But tailor just the accompanying text intro!
Much quicker than recording one video per lead, but it can feel just as personal. 👍
3. FAQs and Objection Handling
A big part of the BOFU challenge is getting people to overcome their reservations and commit. Sales agents regularly report that they spend huge amounts of time answering the same questions, over and over again.
What if you could just refer a wavering prospect to a video where all their worries are addressed?
Video can be a big asset in supporting sales and marketing efforts. Even when it’s a generic resource like an FAQ, a video can help maintain that vital one-on-one feel that helps maintain trust during the sales process.
4. Testimonials
The only thing better than a video case study is a video testimonial - that is, a satisfied customer saying why they’re satisfied to camera!
The trick here is getting customers to film their endorsements. And this is where Sendspark’s Request Video function is exceptionally useful.
With a single click, you can send a link to a customer which - when clicked - opens up Sendspark’s recorder (no download or installation needed). Super simple, fast, and effective!
4 Tools to Help Supercharge your LinkedIn Video Marketing
As every marketer knows, even the best content needs a helping hand to get in front of its ideal audience. These tools will give you that edge!
1. Sendspark
Sendspark is invaluable for LinkedIn video marketing, as we’ve already mentioned a few times…
Not only can you use it to record your screen and webcam and download the footage to share on your newsfeed: Sendspark is now accessible directly in your LinkedIn inbox!
When you’ve installed the Sendspark Chrome extension, you’ll have the option to record and preview a video message from inside the LinkedIn web app.
This is a better way to send out video messages than by uploading files - because the Sendspark platform gives you access to essential analytics, so you can see how many times your video has been watched and how far viewers got.
2. Phantombuster
We’ve written about Phantombuster before in an earlier blog. It’s a multi-channel automation platform that can be a huge help with LinkedIn marketing:
- Enabling you to extract profile data in bulk and upload it to your CRM
- Automating actions such as post liking, profile following, accepting connection requests, etc
Source: phantombuster.com
It takes quite a lot of effort to learn how to get the best out of Phantombuster, but its time-saving capabilities are well worth the trouble.
3. Lempod
Lempod is one of the most successful LinkedIn pod services around. It amplifies the visibility of your posts by arranging for groups (pods) of LinkedIn users with similar interests to like and comment on one another’s content.
This initial boost from the pod can be a real help in getting more people to see your video by showing the LinkedIn algorithm high engagement early on.
4. Linkedin Hashtags
Loads of LinkedIn users follow content around topics they’re interested in via hashtags. So using popular hashtags can be a great way of expanding your audience by flagging what it’s about.
But it’s laborious to find out whether the hashtag you’re thinking of using has millions of followers or just a handful.
Until you install the LinkedIn Hashtags Chrome extension, that is!
Hover over hashtags to see their follower count and even get the data while you’re typing!
Conclusion
LinkedIn video marketing is a vital part of every serious marketer’s plans today. Video content has significant advantages on the platform wherever it appears - newsfeed and inbox alike.
And yet a significant proportion of businesses - 41% - are still shying away from all this potential because they think it’s “too difficult” to make video work for them.
Don’t be one of them - join the LinkedIn video marketing rebellion now!✊
Sendspark makes it easy to create or import videos and distribute them across email, social, and the web. Sign up now if you want to start recording and sharing videos for free.
