Videos are great ways to show a user content while diversifying a page. Diversifying a page is important because instead of just words on a screen, the user will see pictures or a video to show what the site is trying to get across. In addition, it is more aesthetically pleasing to the eye of a user as well as how a website looks. For landing pages it is all about the conversions, and videos are a great way to guide users to conversions. However, it is easy to do the opposite by following the wrong practices. To avoid a video that does not lead to conversions, here are six practices to avoid so you do not lower your conversions.
- Not Educating – The reason people are drawn to videos is because they prefer to watch than to read, as some people learn better that way. If your video does not have valuable information to share then what is the point of the video being on the landing page in the first place. You want to intrigue your audience into going further into your site as well as giving them what they want; information. Make sure your video is valuable because if it does not educate, it will be useless.
- Making It Complex – To tie into the previous practice, people do not want to get bored. Hence why having a video is better than a bunch of words. If you have a valuable message, make sure the point gets across. If your video ends up being more 4 minutes or longer, there is a high chance the audience will not watch it fully. This could lead them to missing the important information or just leaving the website completely. A great video will get their valuable content across, include simple language that is easy to understand, and is within a reasonable time limit (usually two and half minutes).
- Lack of Story – A good landing page video will be educational and bring value. To do this effectively there needs to be a story or message to get to the user. Your audience is there to learn something, whether its about your services, products, your business, etc. How can you help them? This is where the video comes in, to make sure they understand that you are the answer. Make sure your video states your mission, a problem that they can relate to, and the solution ( your service). It may seem like a lot to fit in a time limit, but with the use of simplistic language and getting the message across, this goal can be achieved.
- No Call To Action – Whether it is telling the visitor to call the business or to go into the website, there needs to be a call to action. They are the icing on the cake for a website. If there is no call to action, then about two minutes of their time was wasted. To have a CTA that leads to conversions, it needs to be intriguing, whether it is in the video or outside the video. Instead of it just saying “call now” or”click here”, make it different. If the video institutes fun, write “Join the Fun” or “Learn More”. It gets the user interested in what is in store if they continue.
- Out of Place Design – When adding the video to the site, make sure you keep in mind of how the website is designed. You do not want the video to stick out so much it looks like it does not belong on the website. You want to have the design of the surroundings of the video to flow with the rest of the site. If it is on the landing page, make sure it sets the tone for the rest of the site. Do this by matching the color scheme, font, etc.
- Not Disabling Auto Play – Yes, auto play is great because audiences can jump right into the video. However, it can seem intrusive to some, as in ” YOU HAVE TO WATCH THIS” some people don’t like that. They want to venture where they please. In addition, not having the video play right away gives it a sort of mystery. As some users can think “hmm I wonder what is on this video” then they have to play it to find out.