Video outreach strategies for sales have been around for several years, but it’s taken some time and data to figure out whether or not they make a difference.
The data science team at Salesloft decided to answer this question by analyzing 134 million emails, 4.5 million of which contained an embedded video. After taking into account when the emails were sent in the cadence, their team discovered that emails with video see a 26% increase in replies.
Video communication can help you stand out in a decision maker’s overflowing inbox, but it needs to be handled with care. We’re consuming more video than ever in our personal time, but a sales video hits different than consuming hours of TikTok. Whatever your video strategy looks like, it needs to be tested, analyzed, and tweaked based on high-quality engagement data so you can perfect it over time.
Keep reading for the details, but here’s a rundown of the types of video strategies we’ll walk through below:
- Personalized asynchronous video pitches—the most common type of sales outreach by video, embedded in emails
- Video testimonials—getting your existing customers involved in recording positive reviews
- Product demo videos—showing your prospects how your product works after they’ve expressed interest
- Webinars—live or recorded, they nurture prospects by teaching them something valuable
- Live video—focusing on LinkedIn live, if you want to experiment with a growing audience on the platform
Personalized asynchronous video pitches
Asynchronous video pitches are pitches that prospects can watch on their own time. When you record a video pitch, you’re usually recording your screen and your face, so the prospect can see your personality during a short pitch.
The content, length, and personalization of your video sales pitch will change depending on your audience, but if you feel confident about your targeting, here’s what you need to get started:
Length
As a general rule, video sales pitches run no longer than two minutes.
If your recipient is almost ready to buy, you can probably get away with sending a longer video with more requested details. If you’re first approaching a prospect, you’ll want to keep your pitch as short as possible with the goal of triggering a conversation, not answering every possible question about your product.
Content
If you know your prospect well, the majority of your content should be based on that knowledge. But for cold pitching, feel free to follow this basic format for your video pitch:
Start with a personable hook—to show you’ve done your research and understand your prospect’s specific needs.
Continue with clear benefits—so that your prospect walks away understanding exactly how your product solves their problem.
Close with a call to action—so your prospect understands the next step in the sales process if they’re interested.
Personalization
For best results, personalize your video pitch for every prospect. Here are some quick tips on how:
- Use the prospect’s name right away.
- Mention a problem the prospect has publicly talked about online.
- Mention a mutual connection that shows you’re not a stranger.
Testing and optimizing with video analytics
Tip: Las analíticas de vídeo de DocSend can help you test and refine your video pitch strategy. Here’s what you’ll want to pay attention to when you start sending videos to prospects:
- Porcentaje del tiempo de reproducción: —to find out how far viewers are making it through your pitch. Test 30, 60, and 90 second versions and see the difference.
- Omitir: para comprobar si alguna parte necesita volver a trabajarse.
- Rebobinar: para comprobar qué secciones son, o bien las más interesantes o necesitan ampliarse.
- De fondo: para ver si has captado verdaderamente la atención de alguien o si están reproduciendo tu vídeo de fondo mientras miran otra cosa.
Video testimonials from customers
Maybe some of your prospects have responded to your initial video pitch, but you’re finding it hard to move them down the sales funnel. That’s when a video customer testimonial might be the right push to build trust and credibility.
Start by building a bank of customer testimonial videos that cover some of the following angles:
- Broad product benefits
- Specific product features
- Common objections from prospects
- Variations on customer pain points
Then follow these steps to build your bank:
- Work with customer service teams to identify happy customers who are willing to speak on camera about their experience with your product.
- Create a “beat sheet” of bullet points you’d like your customers to hit in their video. Never provide a script—you’ll want customers to use their own words.
- If you want high-quality video production, you’ll need some budget to shoot each testimonial. But more often than not, a smartphone video from the customer works just as well.
- Start sending your video testimonials to prospects. Use video analytics to determine what works (and when it works best in the sales cycle).
- Train your sales team with the performance data you’re collecting, so they know when to best use video customer testimonials.
Remember: Check in with your customer service team regularly, so that you’re always gathering new testimonials. You’ll want to make sure your sales team has fresh content to use.
Product demo videos
Product demos are similar to pitches, except they walk your customer through the usability of your product (as opposed to covering mainly benefits).
The best time to send a prospect a product demo video is in the middle of the sales cycle, after initial contact and some qualification. A product demo video can then act as further qualification, so that a rep can confirm interest through analytics on the demo video.
Tip: If your product is complicated and you need several demos to cover its breadth, use a customized virtual data room to house all of them in one place. With one shared link, your prospects will be able to browse a suite of demos similar to how they would browse their own YouTube feed.
To make your product demo videos as effective as possible, make sure to add:
- A personal note at the beginning: Use information gathered from research and interactions with prospects to address their specific needs and pain points.
- A call-to-action: Close the video with an ask to schedule a follow-up call or sign up for a free trial.
Webinars
Webinars are a great way to nurture prospects who aren’t ready to buy and need more education before they can make a decision.
A good webinar should:
- Focus on a specific topic and teach the prospect valuable information
- Include expert speakers who are known in your industry
- Have an interactive component, like a Q&A
- Talk about your product briefly
- Include a call to action, like a free trial or special offer
- Be recorded for people who can’t attend, with a follow up to watch the webinar on their own time
Similar to product demos, customized virtual data rooms can help you organize and share all your webinars in one place—which is crucial when you start to collect so many that they form a knowledge center for your brand.
Live video on LinkedIn
We don’t see a lot of people doing this, which may mean there’s still an opportunity to gain a competitive edge with LinkedIn live.
First, to go live on LinkedIn you’ll need 150 followers to qualify. If you do, consider testing the following types of content:
- Quick topic explainers relevant to your industry
- Q&A sessions with a known expert in your field
- A product announcement with an offer for LinkedIn live viewers
- A rant about what’s wrong with your industry
- A chat with a customer about how they solve industry problems
The key to getting the most out of LinkedIn live is the follow-up with your list of viewers. To come full circle, send a personalized video pitch to everyone who attended your live session—and track performance analytics from there.
Ready to see how DocSend video analytics works in real-time? Inicia tu prueba gratuita ahora.
