How to Use Video to Boost Your Brand Perception

As we’ve seen over the past few years, a company’s brand has become one of its most valuable assets. True, a company’s brand has always been a key part of any business. But we’ve also witnessed a huge shift in consumer preference to do business with companies they trust, that show authenticity, and can connect on an emotional level.

With the explosion of video marketing, ensuring a strong brand and consistently communicating that brand across content is more important than ever. This is especially true since it’s not uncommon for the first interaction they have with your brand to be through video.

But what exactly is a brand? How do iconic brands like Apple, Coca-Cola, and McDonald’s evoke specific associations and emotions?

How is brand perception formed?

At a fundamental level, brand perception is what others believe about your company and product.

Trying to nail down an exact definition of brand can be elusive. However, it’s safe to say that if something influences how customers perceive, think, and feel about your company, it’s part of your brand. Think about a company brand as you would your own personality: we create it, but we can’t control how others perceive it.

While there are a variety of interconnected factors that create your brand, there are also some common elements that contribute to all brands.

• Visual identity
• Authenticity
• Connection
• Emotion
• Experience

You can incorporate these brand elements into your video marketing strategy by focusing on two key areas: the video content and the viewing experience.

How to establish brand perception through video content.

While not every video is going to be specifically used for branding initiatives, branding should still be incorporated into all of your videos. Every time a customer interacts with your brand, you’re telling them a story about your company. That story starts and ends with your brand, so make sure it’s the story you want to tell. The old maxim “consistency is key” truly applies to your long-term branding initiatives.

That said, some of the most effective branding videos often fall into the categories that help build trust, showcase authenticity, and help build community.

• Company brand narratives. Videos that highlight your origin story, mission, values, and milestones create a deep connection with viewers. They build trust and create the authenticity required for positive brand perception.
• Product videos. For fairly obvious reasons, your product will always be a key part of your brand. Product videos can help viewers experience it before they actually make a purchase. When developing your product videos, aim to showcase its features, benefits, quality, technology, and what differentiates you from competitors.
• How-to/tutorials. These are great for community building. Consider incorporating user-generated content as well that helps viewers see product usage from “people like me.”
• Company culture videos. Both B2C and B2B customers understand that happy, engaged employees create better products and offer better service. These videos help humanize your brand and offer a glimpse into parts of your company the general public may not get to see.
• Thought leadership videos. These showcase both expertise and involvement in the industry. It’s another great way to humanize your brand while introducing them to top executives throughout the company. They can also highlight the forward-thinking and innovative approach your company takes to creating products—which in and of itself should be part of your brand.
• Video case studies and testimonials. Since so much of brand perception is generated from word of mouth, allowing others to hear directly from users of your product can be a powerful tool.
• Behind-the-scenes videos. There’s perhaps no better way to bring viewers from around the world deep into your company than with behind-the-scenes videos. These are great for building a strong sense of connection between your product, customers, and brand.
• Livestream videos. Livestreaming builds a sense of community and connection to the company. It evokes a “we’re all in this together” emotion that’s hard to replicate through other forms of marketing and communication.

How to enhance brand perception through the viewing experience.

Many companies spend considerable time carefully crafting their brand through video content. Yet fewer take the final, and perhaps one of the most important, steps to ensure the brand perception is also reflected in the viewing experience.

How was the video delivered and consumed? Where was it viewed? What was the user’s experience before, during, and after they viewed a video? All of these factors play a role in shaping brand perception.

Investing in an Online Video Player (OVP) will allow you to fully customize the viewer’s experience to support your brand. Here are some tips for maximizing your video branding efforts with an OVP.

1) Create the atmosphere where your branded videos will live

Videos on an owned, branded web page create a deeper personal brand connection with the viewer. It allows you to tailor your brand experience in many ways that popular social video platforms simply can’t.

For starters, you’re able to incorporate your visual brand identity throughout the page. Not only will an OVP allow for seamless embedding, it also eliminates the display ads, “watch on YouTube,” and other outside branding that can override your own.

2) Provide a distraction-free viewing experience

Few things are more frustrating for video marketers than having engaged viewers interrupted by an ad for your competitor in the middle of the video. Yet on free platforms, we see that over and over again. Beyond the ads on the video, viewers will be surrounded by ads on other parts of the page to watch promoted content or otherwise click away from your video.

When you host your video on public sites, you inevitably give up control over the display ads that appear on your video. Instead, use an OVP to create and insert your own custom (and, yes, branded) overlays. Not only will these reinforce your visual branding, they can also add further context and encourage users to continue exploring other brand content.

3) Take them on a journey

Creating a custom viewing experience with an OVP allows you to build a user journey that offers a fully branded experience. For some this will mean a highly branded and effective landing page that the video lives on. For others this could include creating a completely branded video portal.

When posting your high-value branded content to a public site, you ultimately have no control over where users are being directed to before, during, and after watching your video. Using an OVP, you can include your own CTAs that invite them to view other content that specifically builds upon the video they’re currently watching. This could include another video, landing page, or product page.

4) Build connection through interactivity

A core tenet in crafting your brand includes building connections with your followers, which can come in many different forms. For videos specifically, try inserting fun quizzes, polls, and other interactive elements that keeps users engaged and fosters two-way engagement.

5) Don’t forget about employees

Your employees should also play an important role in shaping your brand perception. When it comes to video branding, they’re also an excellent resource for a wide range of creative ideas. Consider arming them with the tools for creating day-in-the-life videos to provide users with a truly authentic experience.

Employee spotlights, volunteer efforts, and company get-togethers can also be a great way to involve your employees while creating highly valuable video branding content. Remember, your employer brand is an important part of overall brand perception.

Video Branding Drives Lasting Benefits

Whether you’re new to video marketing or have a content library full of video assets, effective branding will help drive lasting benefits. Done correctly, it can lead to long-term revenue by generating ongoing sales and increasing the overall customer lifetime value. With a strong focus on creating quality content and delivering a seamless viewing experience, you’ll boost your brand perception and continuously engage your most important audiences.