Top 5 Reasons to Have Video on Your Website

Video on websites isn't a new thing, but it's one that's not taken off quite as much as it should.

We're great believers in engaging the audience of sites that we build, and with this in mind launched our latest service recently, where you can have web video for as little as £99.

Here are our top 5 reasons you should have video on your website:

1) People buy from people - they want to feel as if they know you and trust you before they part with their hard earned cash. It's not always easy to get personality across on a website, with awkwardly posed professional photographs and copywritten text that can often be devoid of personality. A video allows them to see the real you, the person they will be dealing with, or the company that they're spending their money with. It makes you seem more personable and approachable and could be the difference between a sale or an exit.

2) It allows you to play alongside the 'big boys'. For a long time the smaller business suffered because they didn't have the budget of the big brands - their websites looked inferior, and they couldn't afford the gizmos and gadgets that the big players could. That's all changed. With web video costing as little as £99, any business can invest and make the most of it for their website.

3) Some people just like video. I'm not going to quote stats to you, but it's well known that some people learn and understand by hearing something, some by reading, and some by watching. Video gives you two of those ways, and your website the third - that way you've reached the maximum potential audience in the way that they like.

4) Some industries reaaly NEED video. I'm talking about hotels, estate agents, holiday companies etc. They need to be able to show off their wares, to connect with people's emotions and make them able to see how great the hotel room / house / beach is.

5) Video is not just about talking heads. You can use video on your site in a number of ways: tours around your facilities, demos of how to work things, small commercials, montages of your products, educational tools, and yes, of course, a talking head interview or speech. You know your audience, what would they like to see?

It's easy to think that video isn't for you - but do you remember the days when even large companies were saying they didn't even need a website?

If my 5 reasons have helped you to realise that web video could be the way forward for your website, get in touch!

So you've got a website – now what?

Having a website is all well and good but what are you going to do to help promote it? The days of SEO being the be all and end all of website promotion is well gone, and some would say “Thank goodness!”

Marketing your website is no longer just about creating and keeping your own audience. By creating a buzz online through other websites and social media sites, you are able to access other audiences, who you may not have done previously.

Social Media and the internet has taken off in a big way; 80% of the population work and play online, so it has never been more important to step up and start being social online.

Here are just some of the ways you could promote your website:

• By uploading material to YouTube, contributing to online discussions and creating podcasts – on a variety of topics, you have the ability to connect with audiences and customers who may not have been within your initial ‘target market’
  
• A blog gives your company a voice, pretty much like this one. It allows you (the customer!) to read and experience the ethos of the organisation. By regularly talking and engaging with your customers it allows them to feel part of the brand or organisation.
  
• Social media – become active on Facebook and Twitter. That is where your customers will be ‘hanging out’ so you should be too. Engage with them, don’t just create a profile and update it – use it. Talk to your customers and ensure that you add value, join in with conversations – give your opinion and provide links to your website.
  
• Your LinkedIn profile is essential for those B2B relationships – make sure your profile is up to date and relevant. Link it to your brand’s Twitter profile as well as your personal one. Let people know what you are about as a person – and link them back to the company website (see the theme here?!) LinkedIn is also a great platform to raise awareness around your work experience, by listing how many years’ experience you have in a field or any awards you may have won will allow both your peers and your customers an insight into your professional life.

These are just a few ways in which you can promote your website externally – having a great website is a great start, but if you're not promoting it then what's the point?

At Whype we not only design fantastic websites, we give out free information such as this to help our customers make the most of their new promotional tool.

Need a free website appraisal? Contact us now!