In B2B marketing, videos serve as a first-class alternative to blog posts or white papers. Thomas Hartmann explains which video formats achieve particularly good results.

Almost every company today has a YouTube channel; it is diligently produced and uploaded. But when does what type of video make sense? What effects can an image film achieve and what are the strengths of the product video? To answer these questions, we have compiled our many years of experience and the results of our customers and try to provide an explanation in this article.

We distinguish between the three basic video genres:

• Corporate film
• Product film
• Tutorial

1. The corporate film – the old iron in marketing

The corporate film is the veteran of classic communication. Mostly with little informative and very image-tinged content, emotional presentation and longer playing time, it shows its strengths in the area of ​​image, brand experience and brand positioning. In the concert of the three communication goals, however, he can only score affectively and emotionally.

The one-sided positioning is created by focusing on an emotional approach and long-term communication goals such as positioning, the emotional brand experience and changes in customer attitudes. These are goals in which the information content inevitably takes a back seat. On the Internet, information and real usefulness are in demand from the target groups, especially in B2B.

The corporate film is therefore important content, but not a “must-have” when it comes to perception, visibility, branding and economic goals such as sales promotion.

2. The product film – the stable all-rounder

A product film should arouse interest, convey information, maybe even create a little tension. In our opinion, he is the stable all-rounder who perfectly combines cognitive and economic goals such as brand awareness, product knowledge and direct motivation. The high information content makes it a welcome and valued information carrier; it only has to subordinate itself to the corporate film in terms of affective goals.

3. The tutorial – the strong, helping hand

Last but not least, the winner on points: the tutorial. Based on our evaluations, we have found that videos from this genre achieve the longest viewing time and the greatest reach in relative terms. This is also due to the fact that there is usually only one product film, but several tutorials. In terms of quantity, the tutorial is superior to the product film.

In terms of cognitive and economic goals, the tutorial is clearly ahead and shows the greatest possible benefit. It often results in immediate, short-term motivation of the viewer to seek contact and become a customer. The tutorial only has to subordinate itself to the other two genres when it comes to brand building and brand experience.

Video content is always customer service

There is no doubt that every genre has its right to exist. With media-friendly content designed for “pull” communication, product films and tutorials hardly give corporate films a chance in the fast-moving digital world. It is and will remain indispensable in the area of ​​emotional addressing, positioning and long-term image building.

The tutorial particularly stands out due to its high activation potential, as it offers the viewer immediate added value around the clock. It provides solutions to problems or answers to common questions, in contrast to corporate films and product videos. Tutorials receive a lot of and long attention because they are viewed in the context of an existing interest.

In terms of content, the tutorial does not really work for the image of the company, but indirectly, customer proximity and the feeling of availability can arouse sympathy in the customer, so emotion after all – one of the reasons for contacting the customer. Having the feeling of good service and a helping hand at your side is a decisive factor in establishing contact and, as a result, obtaining an offer. It binds customers through the service in the “after sales” area. Repeat buyers arise.

Success with tutorials, but how?

In order to explain in more detail how to achieve good results with tutorials in B2B marketing, we are constructing a use case. We use a manufacturer of industrial kitchen machines for gastronomy and large kitchens, whose products all need a lot of explanation and training. Questions that arise are: How do I have to set up the machine? How do I put it into operation and what should I watch out for in the event of a fault?

We assume that we have enough ideas and content for 20 small videos between 1:30 and 2:00 minutes in length. The videos can have different communication goals and address different target groups. For example, you can generate “awareness” and increase awareness in the target group.

Tips for more success with videos

With goals like this, it’s important to have the right keywords in the titles and descriptions of the videos. They should describe the product family and be sought after by interested parties.

Good support from the manufacturer is important for wholesalers. This can be a decisive criterion for getting interested in a new manufacturer. In order to reach this target group with suitable content, we should therefore also send tutorials with very specific assistance on the digital journey. You should also include the most important keywords in the title and description in order to communicate the direct benefit in the hit lists of Google and YouTube. The same applies to the target group of end users. You have specific questions about the operation and maintenance of the machines.

Accordingly, different content should be produced for both target groups, which can be placed for the corresponding search terms through clever optimization.

For tutorials to be successful, it is crucial to produce as many videos as possible, to optimize them skillfully and to distribute them on as many platforms as possible in order to generate high visibility in Google. In addition to the strategic work, the content distribution and the optimization of the videos, it is extremely important to really use every opportunity to be found by the target groups.

More platforms also mean more reach

YouTube holds around 70 percent market share, but giving away the other 30 percent would still not be a good idea. In addition to Vimeo, MyVideo, Dailymotion, Kewego and Businessworld are also relevant in the German-speaking area. The number of links is also crucial for a good ranking. With 20 videos on six platforms, we generate 120 backlinks for the company’s website – an additional benefit without any further effort.

When dealing with tutorials in B2B marketing, there are many variables that need to be considered. Taken together, they offer companies an extremely successful means of communication that fulfills all the parameters of a very important basic rule: AIDA. They offer “Attention” (visibility on the Internet), “Interest” (content for the target group), “Desire” (real help and answers) and “Action” (the possibility of making contact). With tutorials, companies can therefore gain market share and position themselves positively in the market environment in the long term.