Analogies are powerful communication tools. They clarify the nuances of concepts which are otherwise tough to grasp when considered "as is". Let's see how we can apply the car analogy to B2B video marketing strategy.
What type of a car does your business need for content marketing? Which of the video marketing tool "cars" should you drive to best achieve your company's digital marketing goals?
This is the most common and the safest type—the sedan. The original four-door cars come in a wild variety of chassis types, sizes, colors, and build quality. However, we all realize that they are everywhere around and our communication lanes are thick with this kind of traffic.
Your typical performance-driven video ad can just as well be cheap or expensive. Regardless of the budget spent, or how aggressively targeted those are to a specific audience, almost everyone usually sees them—and then glances over, trying to skip them. The "sedans" of video ads are often used as pre-rolls in front of other video content, often as attempts to redirect the user elsewhere than they initially intended. People see them and often immediately close the tab, back away. The engagement is minimal.
This workhorse of a video is a specialized version of the car, but not something extremely niche.
Everyone knows what they look like, but only a specific audience finds real value in them. They do the heavy lifting and get down and dirty without breaking a sweat.
What else could it be in the B2B marketing world, but the explainer video? Every respectable B2B company has at least one of those floating around. It's the backbone of B2B marketing content that has its use for a very specific group of people, at a specific time (during their buyer's journey).
Not everyone needs a truck, just as not everyone buys B2B products or services. Just like the pickups, those videos can be super cheap and minimal (like the Honda Acty, which has similar cargo space to a Ford F150, but at a much lower cost)... but on the other side of the spectrum, it can be a video equivalent to a fancy six-wheeled gas-guzzling behemoth.
Create videos your customers would trust and really want to drive!
The bulldozers, the excavators, the loaders—all the heavy-duty vehicles—usually do just just a single thing, but man, do they do it well. Their target audience is relatively small, but super into the technical details. Sounds familiar?
Good, that's just what your technical product demos can do. A technical demo can be a simple 2-minute video or a super in-depth 30-minute one, going deep into the product's inner workings and settings. Laymen will skip out after a few seconds, but the target audience will appreciate them and want more.
Just like the heavy-duty machines, those videos requires some knowledge and skill to appreciate - but are certain to come through for you if you use their strengths well.
And now, something you've probably considered from the very beginning. How do the sports cars fit in this analogy? Which marketing asset do they match?
The sports cars are fast and loud. They are considered "cool" and expensive. They are rarely seen on the streets, but you just can't miss them when one roars by. They do everything they can to stand out.
Those are your brand videos. If done correctly, they make your brand as recognizable and sought-after as these four-wheeled head-turners.
Just like true sports cars, brand videos are rare, but they get a hold of the imagination of more than just your narrowly defined target market. They require special treatment and are usually on the more expensive side of things, but what you are getting in return is high quality and the ability to remain in the memory of your audiences, so that's a fair price.
Is that all that is there to the sports car analogy? Nope.
There's one more type of a car—the supercar, also known as an exotic car. This is a type of an automobile generally seen as a complete luxury item, an extreme performance sports car in terms of power, speed, and handling.
They are super rare. Super fast. Incredibly expensive. Really hard to drive, to the point some of them can't even be legally driven on the streets.
However, it's exactly their pictures that hang on the walls of boys and girls who can only dream of ever driving one. Although many know they want one, only few will grow up to have the means to make it a reality. These cars are what dreams are made of and it's those top-tier brand videos that make your marketing dreams come true.
As every B2B video company that specializes in technology, we have done our share of explainer videos, product demos and performance videos. However, brand videos are truly one of our favorite types of B2B video content. Here are a couple that we are especially proud of:
A branded, 90-minute sci-fi web series video created to promote and expand on the thoughts of Trend Micro's white paper on the future of technology, society, and crime.
A choose-your-own-adventure interactive video experience that puts the viewer in the shoes of a hospital CISO trying to stop a crippling attack.
One of our latest projects combining cybersecurity with... Dungeons & Dragons. It's a crossover you didn't know you needed!
So, what could the equivalent of a current-year Lamborghini model be? It's the video content that generates such strong brand attachment that the audience's price-sensitivity becomes irrelevant. It's what makes people want to work with you for years. It's content that immediately has a positive impact on your share price. People see it and feel like they would miss out on not giving your company a chance.
Tough one, right? It's called Branded Entertainment.
It's the marketing message wrapped in an interesting and entertaining blanket that the audience can't take their eyes off of. The content is so good, so amusing, so thought-provoking they will not stop thinking about it. If they realize they don't have the budget for the product it advertises, by golly, they will spend years trying to allocate that budget. Those kinds of content build brand love, but they also bring in the revenue.
I have two favorite examples:
This animated show helped create a loyal fan base for the toys, comic books and other related goods. However, it also helped generate interest in the brand among audiences who had not previously been aware of it.
The brand love has spread like wildfire. In 1984, Hasbro's sales had reached $843 million, tripled from $282 million just four years earlier.
Most of modern media consumers are aware that CD Project's launch of the Cyberpunk 2077 game was a bit rocky. After a while, the share value tanked.
Two years after the game's release, in September 2022, Netflix premiered "Edgerunners," an animated mini-series set in the game world.
The show was good. It had great characters, a great story, action, emotional investment, and epic set pieces. It made you want to relive this experience, only doing it yourself in the game.
This immediately impacted the game's sales. The average number of players on Steam rose from just shy of 19k a month to over 120k in September and October.
Additionally, CD Project Red stated in their earnings report that the long-form branded entertainment was responsible for buffing their revenue by 70%... and increasing their stock price.
So, there you go. Get yourself that blazing red Ferrari and watch people fall in love with your brand.
The next time you start planning a video marketing strategy, try and consider which car it represents in your marketing garage. This approach could redefine how you engage your audience and drive better sales results and conversion rates!
No matter what tool you choose as your brand's vehicle, your business always needs proper video marketing with the right core message. There needs to be the emotional connection, and high-quality video content your target audiences and potential clients would love as much as a new black BMW. You need this content to generate leads and improve your brand's perception of authenticity.
Does your business have a proper car for making positive ROI?
Maybe you just can't yet decide which types of a car your business needs. How-to videos, training videos, product demos, live videos, pain-points videos, or case studies?
You've gone further into to depths of the footer. You're an adventurous type.
I like you :)
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