5 Ways Videos Can Help Your Firm Get Seen

The financial services industry, and advisory firms likes mine, Barnum Financial Group, are always striving to capture the attention of clients and prospects.

At my firm, we have found one of the most effective ways to do this is through the use of videos. Our overarching goal with videos is to help our advisors generate more business while branding Barnum as a source of expertise – a problem solver. Along with clients and prospects, another key audience we hope to reach is fellow members of our industry, with whom we want to share ideas and have a dialogue that can make us all even more relevant to our clients.

(Related: How to Write a Great B2B Video Script)

Not only is visual content one of the most popular trends in so-called inbound marketing, it has proven to be highly effective, too. Consumers retain 95% of the information in a video after 72 hours, as opposed to retaining a mere 10% of the information in a text they’ve read, or 65% of the information in an image they’ve seen, according to Grey Sky Films.

Here are five ways a firm can use video to make itself more visible:

1. Keep the tone and content of the videos informative and educational.

This is very important. A firm’s videos need to be more personal in tone and feel than a television ad.

2. Respond to real needs.

People of all ages are interested in investing, saving for retirement or college, possibly planning for a child with special needs, or, perhaps, leaving a legacy. Of course, there are many more possible topics. Go with your strengths.

3. Dress for the occasion.

Our video presenters are required to dress in traditional business attire (e.g., jacket and tie for men), not business casual. The appropriate attire helps establish the credibility of the speaker.

4. Leverage social media.

You Tube is the second most used search engine after Google and is a good place to launch a video. In an average month, eight out of ten 18- to 49-year-olds watch YouTube, according to Hub Spot. Video marketing outreach is self- reinforcing – – videos are viewed by clients, often passed on to their friends and colleagues, and eventually appear on a range of sites and networks.

5. Track responses.

This helps you know what messages are hitting home.

For example, we check the number of views on YouTube, and “likes “on Face Book. Our advisors can also track open and click-through rates on their emails.

—-Read NAIFA Launches Video Series on ThinkAdvisor.

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