Online Video Marketing Sri Lanka – 8 Things to Consider and Include

If this was somewhere in 2017, would you rather be reading this article or would you be watching it? With wi-fi becoming easily accessible and technology of hand held devices improving, so will the demand to be informed by online video rise by the Sri Lankan consumers.

In fact, Cisco predicts that online video will account to over 69% of ALL consumer internet traffic by 2017. This means video-on-demand will surpass the global marketing frenzy we saw with social media back in 2012. Video will become the insatiable sort out web tool for browsers to satisfy their information and entertainment needs. Whether you are a small businesses owner, or a brand manager of a large company, failing to include video as part of your online marketing strategy will be at your own peril.

The top 15 video marketing statistics for 2015 will reveal why you cannot ignore online video as part of your brand strategy. It is no longer a fancy worded complementary for you to consider for the future – It is a “must have” for your business and for your brand to succeed the future.

While traditional advertising and marketing methods of TV, radio and print still reach the masses of the Sri Lankan consumers, waiting until the future catches up can cost your business and your brand another vital commodity – Video ranking. Video ranking will become fiercely competed for products and services within the next few years.

Online video marketing Sri Lanka – TOP 8 things to consider and include to succeed your future video marketing strategy.

1. DO NOT Listen to Traditionalist Marketers

Online video marketing is one of the least understood marketing strategies in Sri Lanka. Don’t let traditionalist marketers and advertisers tell you otherwise – just look at how ikman.lk quickly rose to unprecedented web prominence without* any traditional marketing efforts.
* They did run a couple of their marquee web videos as television commercials during the 2014 T20 world cup

The important factor to consider here is the fact that 92%* of global mobile video viewers shared videos with others, and that 40%** of the total global watch time on youtube was made up of mobile users. Imagine this statistic catching up in Sri Lanka? Smart phone sales have exploded with easy payment schemes arranged by many vendors. Just look at the Sunday advertisement sections on mobile phones on leading newspapers. With pre-paid internet data becoming cheaper, it is just a matter of time before the majority of Sri Lankan mobile users turn to video to inform themselves of products and services.
*Invodo  **youtube

2. UNDERSTANDING the Importance of Ranking a Video.

The FIRST important factor to consider here is whether your online video(s) is found when your consumers are searching for it. Imagine a soon to be bride searching the internet for a bridal gown – “bridal designer sri lanka”, “best bridal designer sri lanka”, “affordable bridal designers sri lanka” are some of the potential keywords she may use. In order to be found by those searching for bridal gowns it is important to use those keywords on your video titles, descriptions and tags.

The SECOND important factor to consider is that those (bridal designers) who are already ranked higher for their videos on Google search and on Youtube search will stay atop as long as searchers find, engage and share them. Competition for keyword ranking for videos in Sri Lanka (at present) is minimal to average, and this is the “prime” reason why you should NOT delay your online video strategy any longer. Doing so in 2-3 years from now may be too late.

3. DEDICATING Resources – Online Video is NOT Expensive

Every business owner worries about budgets and rupees. If you have not done any video related marketing for your business don’t think you need deep pockets to do online videos and they are often accompanied by big production crews.

Download my e-book Video Strategy Guide and see how you can start your own with no money down, OR plan an affordable budget to have your own in-office studio to shoot HD quality professional videos under Rs. 50,000.

The rapid advancement of technology (especially on smart phones) has made things easier for everyone. Look at the dancing girl and dancing uncle videos Ikman.lk did with a low budget production… You can do the same for your business.

4. FIGURING-OUT Your Audience

FIRST and foremost you need to understand that your online audience is different to that of a television audience. A television audience is “somewhat” coerced to watch your advertisement while it is shown during a commercial break.

While your television audience is NOT demanding your advertisement, an online browser who searched and found your video (prior to hitting the play button) is demanding your content. Online browsers have a very short attention span and it is vital that you engage them and “wow” them with your video within the first 10-20 seconds. If the viewer find your content not to their liking then it is very likely they might go watch another related video, or even worst watch that of a competitor.

Another crucial element that is unique to Sri Lanka is the fact that three major languages are spoken by your potential audience. If your product or service is for everyone, then it is vital that you communicate this through your online video strategy in all three languages. While a case can be made that Sinhala and Tamil search queries* are not yet at the same competitive levels as English, you simply cannot ignore that part of your audience.
*Google is yet to provide analytics for Sinhala and Tamil search queries as of June 2015

Let us re-examine the dancing girl and the dancing uncle videos of Ikman.lk The narration of that video can be easily changed to a Sinhala or a Tamil speaking audience and the titles and descriptions changed accordingly.

If you are the business owner directly talking to your audience in one language and you don’t speak either of the other two, it is easy to hire a copy writer and feature subtitles below your video. This let’s your audience know that you are sincere about doing business with them, and it will only add towards your business credibility.

5. What to Include and what NOT to Include

Any audience prefers brevity and arriving at the point while wasting very little time. This is true for online video. 60 second videos are often watched until the end, while longer videos are not. There is no evidence currently available to measure the exact metrics of whether a video was watched in its entirety. If a viewer only watched half of your two minute video then he/she left without even getting your message… so keep things short and to the point, and make longer videos entertaining and engaging.

DO NOT always push products on videos. While it is important to explain a product, looking at it may not be so. Try and have as many human faces and try and feature your customers and clients who already love doing business with you. Let them become your champion, unbiased spokespersons to promote your business and your brand.

DO NOT do the mistake of ending your videos without a “call to action” message. While your audience may love your videos, but have no idea what to do after watching it, all your hard work will be for nothing. Add a coupon, a discount code or a few words on what action to take can create a conversation that otherwise would not have been a possibility.

Instead of posting your videos in a random haphazard way, think of your online video strategy in terms of a series. Your video strategy should not be a “one and done” video, it should be a series or a story that that should be a lead-up to something great. Think of your online video strategy as a campaign or a series. Once determined space out the videos and have a schedule leading up to a big promotion or a product launch.

6. KNOWING the end-use

Knowing what you want to accomplish by your videos is a key element that should be part of your video strategy. Unlike the traditional television advertisement, an online viewer may demand more information or information congruent to the product or service. When done strategically your online videos can become your 24/7 sales team. This strategy is amply demonstrated with video examples in How to Build Your Ideal Sales Team with Video.

7. HOW to make your videos found in the internet

If you thought youtube, facebook on the outset of reading this sub-topic, then you know where online videos take center stage. Youtube is great because (1) It is free (2) Generate ranking on google. The downside of youtube is that it refers you to other unrelated content or worst yet to your competitors. Youtube viewers also have the agonizingly painstakingly task of finding your website (if not properly displayed).

The solution: hosting your own videos on your own website while using free hosting services like youtube.

Why: because google is now giving more prominence to websites that feature videos. This was a key addition in the google pigeon algorithm update in 2014.

When a potential customer or client search your products and services on google (especially on a mobile device) and are presented with the option of reading through chunks of content against watching a video… guess which option they may most likely to choose?

8. Measurements, Analytics and MILESTONES

In a matter of a few more years your business will compete for the attention of your customers and clients with your local competition. Therefore, it is vital to have a system of metrics to analyze and measure the success of your videos. Don’t be fooled by the “view count”, it is not a guarantee that those who have watched your video watched it from the beginning to the end.

Youtube provides great analytics on where your video audience is coming from. Collect the data that comes from Sri Lanka and find out the uniqueness of viewer engagement, repeated views, rewinds, replays, etc. What you gather can give you a clear vision on how you want to stand in your future online video strategy and dominating the markets of Sri Lanka through video.

Like everywhere else in the world, video will take Sri Lanka by storm. The comforting fact is that the storm has not gathered enough strength to be taken notice by businesses and brands. Five years ago Sri Lankan marketers and advertisers were intimidated and skeptical about social media… now almost everyone engages and dedicate resources for social media.

The challenges of starting your online video campaign are minimal compared with the rewards your business or brand will reap in the future. Ignoring it will be at your own peril.

If you have read it this far you will notice that a single video will be more important than adding a shopping cart for your e-commerce site – I wish you and your business all the success.

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