When you want to establish trust and build credibility, visual content is key.
Photos, illustrations, infographics, and the king of them all – video – can create an instant positive impression that stops scrolling thumbs. Visual content tailored to your brand’s message makes a difference, not only on a social media platform but within your own website design.
When people visit your website for the first time, they make snap judgments about who you are and what you do. When they see unique visuals selected with care, they’re more likely to be engaged by your message and choose you for their solution, no matter what industry you’re in.
Service-based businesses with complex offerings benefit the most.
So, what are the best ways to use custom photography and video in your website design and marketing?
It’s an important question to ask because custom really does mean custom: Something that was intentionally, thoughtfully composed, designed, and executed by an expert who understands your business. Not even giants like Amazon and Microsoft have unlimited custom content.
But you can still make the most of what you have. And hiring a marketing agency helps. The right marketing agency not only produces photography and video but integrates them into a marketing strategy that moves the needle on your goals. That starts with your website design but doesn’t end there.
Let’s take a closer look at how it might work:
1. Enhancing Your Content with Custom Visuals
Content marketing refers to any useful, informative content you post online. The content helps address your customers where they are, answering their burning questions and assisting them with their biggest problems.
As a result, you find your voice as an expert they can trust. The earlier this happens, the more likely it is you will ultimately earn their business, even in an industry like real estate where decisions often take weeks or months.
What does this look like in website design and content?
New York Ave has its own Media Production team. When you launch a marketing strategy with us, we look at the topics of your blog posts, social media posts, and email newsletter and ensure each one is paired with the right photo or video – a compelling visual that underscores your message.
This adds no overhead to your day-to-day work since our expert content marketers also handle topic selection, editing, page design, and your editorial calendar. Your brand can publish high-impact content around the clock without extra effort. You always have the last word on whether a piece meets your approval.
Custom visuals add color to your brand.
You end up with:
- Blog and social media posts: Your posts are more likely to prompt “likes,” shares, and comments.
- Branded stock photos: Your brand story comes across clearly with images no one has seen before.
- B-roll and video loops: Over time, video storytelling becomes faster and easier with these assets.
- Q&As: This content keeps viewers on your website and delivers answers to common questions.
- Talking heads: This custom content helps your videos look more professional and polished.
Research into website design shows content with custom photos is more likely to prompt a response. It’s also more effective: Users remember your message better and are more likely to act on it. Both these benefits are further enhanced for pieces that incorporate video.
2. Telling Your Story with Media Commercial Production
To really unlock the power of video, you can take it to the next level.
A commercial video production empowers you to tell a story, capture interest, or teach something new – exactly the kind of content that gets shared among your core audience and leads to a knock-on effect of qualified traffic back to your YouTube channel or website.
We help you elevate your marketing with objective-oriented, slightly longer-form content. Content usually runs between 30 seconds and 90, and can be as long as three minutes. More than a decade of experience has shown shorter video content is more likely to move our clients forward.
We work with you to develop an idea that resonates.
Our media team handles the tough stuff:
- Pre-production: That includes planning and storyboarding the idea to maximize each frame of footage.
- Production: This centers on filming – we bring in and utilize all the best professional video equipment.
- Post-production: At this point, ideas are cut together; sound, lighting, and other factors are optimized.
- Delivery: Our job isn’t done until you’re 100% satisfied. We can even handle the launch of your video.
That’s only a brief overview. The production process can include a lot of other enhancements we plan and discuss with you. Just like producers on the great movies of old, we source talent and shooting spots, build custom props (no wonky CGI here) and do whatever it takes to bring your idea to life.
3. Combining the Two to Transform Your Content Marketing into Video Marketing
Traditionally, most content marketing comes in the form of text – the blog post is still the most common piece of content on the internet, even though it’s not the most effective. But if you’re enthusiastic about what video can do, it can become the cornerstone of your marketing campaign rather than a way to spice it up.
You’ll still need some text content to start with. We call this evergreen content because it addresses the most common questions and concerns your audience has when they first reach your website. It needs to be easy to find and aligned with their needs. We help you keep your finger on the pulse of your ideal customer.
After that, video content can become even more powerful as you slot it into the different places in your digital marketing strategy where it can make the most impact. Here are just a few of them from recent engagements:
Engaging Email Marketing
Once someone decides to click on your email message and read it, what then? Video is more enticing than plain text. It can get them moving immediately to whatever special offer you want to draw attention to today.
Viral Social Media
Shorter videos are usually better on social media. Rough, “behind the scenes” footage – think of grainy shots on a low-end cell phone camera – often play better than high-end pieces and might rouse users to action quickly.
Bottom of the Funnel
As would-be customers get closer and closer to making a decision, they need content that shows not only that your solution works, but that it will work for them. Video helps them feel you are talking directly to them now.
Video content can be intimidating for small and mid-sized businesses. There are lots of moving parts, and you aren’t a videographer. But with New York Ave you can have one – and more – at a fraction of the cost. After you’ve unlocked the power of custom photography and video, your results will speak for themselves.
Contact us to find out more or get started with video marketing that works.