If you are like most business owners, you want your firm to continue to grow. But, while this is a great accomplishment, it can simultaneously create service issues since you don’t have as much time to tend to each individual client. Although hiring more staff can alleviate this potential issue, it also eliminates one key reason clients chose your firm to begin with: you. One of the easiest ways to bridge this gap is with the use of video, which allows you to be seen and heard even though you can’t be directly in front of your client. Through video, you can continue to nurture the bond created between you and your client.
Popularity of video is increasing at an astounding rate. According to Cisco, by 2013, 64 percent of the usage in this medium is projected to be through mobile applications. Why choose video as a way to communicate with your client and prospective client base? Its ability to appeal to different ways people learn and process information, its time-saving properties, and its ease of use are the primary reasons why video popularity continues to crest to new heights.
First, over 65 percent of the world’s population learns best through a visual message (“Pearson Prentice Hall: ETeach: Strategies for Visual Learners.” Prentice Hall Bridge Page. Web. 04 Jan. 2011.). If you can’t be there in person to provide market updates, trends in the community, etc., video is a great alternative.
Second, as a population, the demands on our time are ever increasing. Your client having time to watch a 3- to 5-minute video is much likelier than he or she having time to read a 3- to 4-page market newsletter. It does not mean your newsletter is unimportant or that you should stop producing a one; rather, video can serve as an introduction to the newsletter to hit the main points you’d like to convey. The client can then read the newsletter if they would like greater detail or when they have more time. The brand recognition gleaned from them seeing your face instead of just your name in their email inbox can be quite a difference maker.
Third, video is easy to use. Coupled with today’s technology, such as scan tags or quick-response code boxes, and the increasing functionality of smart phones, video gives you the ability to be seen anywhere at any time. With a scan tag or quick-response code, the user simply uses an application already on their smart phone (or that can be downloaded for free) to “scan the tag” and thus launch a video message or web site. The fact that it’s so easy to launch these from mobile devices and forward them on increases your chances your video going “viral.” Your clients’ ability to easily forward these to friends and family means more prospective clients.
CLS has already incorporated this scan tag technology into our clients’ quarterly performance evaluations. You can also incorporate it into your business to educate your clients on current market conditions, provide topical tips as they head into tax season, send holiday greetings, and more. As Davis Janowski pointed out in a December 12, 2010, article in Investment News, “[… ]as potentially significant as the codes may become, it’s the use of video that holds immediate promise for advisers — at least in the RIA community, where there are fewer compliance restraints on its use than in the broker-dealer world.”
Like any other initiative within your marketing plan, it’s important to measure the effectiveness of your video efforts. To do so, you may want to consider professionally hosting your videos on a site such as Wistia, which allows you to see reports of site traffic. Just be sure the measurement is beyond just the number of viewings of your video. True measurement to gauge your success rate should include how many viewers have watched, how long they watched, where they stopped, what areas were watched repeatedly, and who watched repeatedly. If you have gone through the effort this far and have something you are proud of, the best thing to do is make sure it is getting the traction you desire. You’ll also want to determine your return on investment. Even if your video is getting viewed, the investment in production may not be worth it if it’s not translating into new clients or increased sales.
Join CLS on February 15 at 3:15 Central time for a webinar featuring Christopher Norton, Executive Producer of 510 Cinema and Creative Consultant to CLS’s studio in Omaha, Nebraska. In the webinar, Mr. Norton will discuss how to incorporate video has part of an overall marketing strategy. He will also outline steps business owners should take to make the most use of their time and resources to use this medium to help retain and gain clients.
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