How to Maximize the Value of Your Video Assets

Seeing results from your video marketing efforts takes planning, creative thinking, and careful execution. At every stage of development, there are techniques you can use to make sure you get the most out of your video asset. Paying attention to the details in each phase will help carry your campaign over the finish line with real, measurable results.

Use these tips and techniques to make the most of your video marketing efforts and maximize the value your videos bring to your business.

Speak to your audience

When you’re investing your time and resources in your first piece of video content, it can be tempting to want to reach as many people as possible with your message. But casting the widest possible net doesn’t guarantee the biggest or the best catch. Instead, focus on your specific goal and the defined audience you’re trying to reach to improve your chances of achieving real results. 

Include a call to action

What do you want your visitors to do as a result of watching your video? Be sure to include a call to action, or CTA. A call to action is the set of instructions you tack onto a campaign to encourage people to do a specific thing. CTAs are usually brief and to the point so you can communicate your goal in the simplest possible terms, like “visit our website” or “sign up today.”

Including a CTA will encourage viewers to stop and engage with your brand instead of scrolling past your video and onto the next one. It will also help you identify key performance indicators (KPIs), which are the metrics you use to determine the success of your efforts. For example, if your video CTA directs viewers to visit your website and you see a boost in site traffic that matches your video views, you’ll know you’re successfully enticing people to take that action.

Optimize for each channel

Even the most beautiful video asset can seem out of place if it’s not viewed in the right context or on the right platform. Before you create your video, identify the channels where you plan to share it and then make sure your video is crafted to resonate on each one. This may mean creating slightly different versions of your video for each platform. Afterwards, assess what works best on each channel. 

While Instagram now supports multiple image orientations, for example, it started out as a square-only platform. Many creators still default to that orientation even though it’s no longer a requirement. Shorter videos do better on feed-focused social media platforms like Facebook and TikTok, while YouTube supports landscape-oriented videos of any length. Setting up your video asset for success wherever you share it will help increase its value in the long run. 

Tools like Squarespace’s Unfold app help optimize your content across social media channels to drive more consistent engagement. You can use Unfold’s Reels templates, for example, to quickly stitch together your video assets for a professional, branded piece of content perfect for Instagram and TikTok.

Experiment with paid ads

Social media offers unpaid advertising strategies through organic posts: When you share a video to your own page, both your existing followers and new viewers are able to find, like, share, and comment on it. But if you have the budget, try experimenting with paid advertising strategies. Popular platforms offer basic audience targeting so you can make sure you’re reaching the right people at the right time, and sponsoring or boosting posts through those platforms helps increase the number of new people who will see your ad outside your existing network. 

Other paid strategies like influencer marketing can also be a good option for small businesses, whether that means featuring an influencer in your video itself or partnering with a well-known person in your community to share the asset and introduce their followers to your brand.

Analyze your performance

You can use tools like Squarespace Analytics to analyze how your assets are performing. Did sharing your video on a particular channel or at a specific time of day lead to a spike in results? You can also post multiple versions of your video and track performance with analytics on your social media platforms to see which version is more impactful. 

For small businesses, every ounce of effort counts. That’s why tracking your results and learning from your experiences makes such a big difference. If you identified key performance indicators or other metrics in the early stages of planning your video, assessing your progress toward the specific goals you identified will be a breeze. This kind of analysis will empower you to maximize the value of your video asset in the moment, and also to improve your video marketing efforts in the future.