{"id":143954,"date":"2022-07-14T12:45:36","date_gmt":"2022-07-14T12:45:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.searchenginewatch.com\/?p=143954"},"modified":"2022-07-18T11:02:21","modified_gmt":"2022-07-18T11:02:21","slug":"using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2022\/07\/14\/using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys\/","title":{"rendered":"Using videos to optimize engagement in search-driven buyer journeys"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"well\">\n<h3><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-143957\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"Using videos to optimize engagement in search-driven buyer journeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"428\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-1536x1026.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-2048x1368.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-scaled.jpg 728w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/h3>\n<h3>30-second summary:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Videos engage and convert, and they also rank incredibly well in organic search, making them the perfect medium for converting searchers into buyers<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Videos can help guide customers to your brand at every stage of the buyer journey<\/span><\/li>\n<li>Here&#8217;s how to create video content that caters to each stage specifically<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The process of acquiring a customer begins with your first contact. There are several stages a consumer goes through before becoming a customer and then a loyal customer. A buyer&#8217;s journey starts with identifying or expressing a need. This need then has to be fulfilled in some way or the other.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oberlo.in\/blog\/google-search-statistics#:~:text=8.-,Almost%20Half%20of%20All%20Product%20Searches%20Begin%20on%20Google,Google%20(Jumpshot%2C%202018).\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">over eight billion<\/a> searches per year, real buyer journeys are complicated and may take weeks or months. However, to simplify things, here is a snapshot of the key stages a person goes through to become your customer. Since nearly <a href=\"https:\/\/videos.brightedge.com\/research-report\/BrightEdge_ChannelReport2019_FINAL.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">68 percent<\/a> of online experiences begin with a search engine all these stages can very well happen in Google itself:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Awareness<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: when a consumer finds out that you have a solution to a problem, they wish to be solved. In many (but not all) cases, this searching journey starts with a \u201chow to\u201d query.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Consideration<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: when a consumer adds you to the list of prospective solution providers<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Decision<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: when a consumer believes you have the best solution and becomes a paying customer.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Businesses need to help consumers make the right decision by providing information, assistance and instilling trust in your brand through the process.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With video content showing up all over search results, it makes sense to use videos for all these three stages in the consumer\u2019s journey. The best thing about <\/span>videos is that they rank incredibly well<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, especially if you host them on YouTube and practice <a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2018\/03\/02\/5-youtube-optimization-tips-to-improve-your-video-rankings\/\">video optimization<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The two distinct sections where video can assist your potential customers at each stage of a buying journey are:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2020\/10\/28\/googles-featured-snippets-how-to-get-your-youtube-video-featured-in-google\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Featured snippets<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: When Google includes a video in a featured snippet, that\u2019s a strong signal that people are searching for a video tutorial to solve their problem. If that\u2019s your target search query, creating a video is a must, especially when optimizing for the \u201cawareness\u201d stage in the funnel.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2020\/09\/11\/how-to-get-your-youtube-videos-appear-in-googles-video-carousel\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Video carousels<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Google includes video carousels when a video intent is implied. It is not at all difficult to rank your video there, especially when it comes to specific (low-search-volume) queries, like <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2018\/11\/06\/branded-search-vs-direct-search-how-to-optimize-for-brand-driven-queries\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">brand-driven queries<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here\u2019s an example of both of these sections ranking on the very top of the search result page, pushing organic results way below the above-the-fold part of the screen. Notice a very-well branded video by Lowes being featured for a very relevant &#8211; albeit longtail &#8211; query. I bet this generates quite a few leads for them. There\u2019s also another brand &#8211; The Home Depot &#8211; ranking its video in the carousel below. Looks like, both of these brands are doing their homework well:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-143958\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/The-Home-Depot-Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-683x1024.png\" alt=\"The Home Depot - Using videos to optimize engagement in search-driven buyer journeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"960\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/The-Home-Depot-Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-683x1024.png 683w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/The-Home-Depot-Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-200x300.png 200w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/The-Home-Depot-Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-768x1152.png 768w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/The-Home-Depot-Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-1024x1536.png 1024w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/The-Home-Depot-Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys.png 485w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are many different kinds of video content that can be used at each specific stage.\u00a0 These videos help to encourage the consumer to continue their journey with you rather than with your competitor.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Awareness<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As the name suggests, this video optimization strategy ensures that your target customers become aware of your brand.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The types of video marketing content that work best at this stage of the funnel include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How-to videos<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Q&amp;A videos (especially based on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2020\/02\/20\/how-to-make-most-of-googles-people-also-ask-results\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People Also Ask boxes<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Make sure your videos are well-branded to build recognizability: Use your logo and color palette on your video thumbnail, as it is going to show up in search results.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once the awareness has been created, it is time to consolidate all that effort and transition your consumer to the next stage of consideration.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Consideration<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can enhance your customer experience at this stage through videos that position your product in a way you want it to be positioned. A good reason to use videos at this stage is that they put your product in a real-life context, that is, they show exactly how other people are using your product.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The most effective videos for this stage are:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Explainer videos to introduce your consumer to the product and describe what you offer in detail. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/knowtechie.com\/10-reasons-why-your-explainer-videos-arent-performing-well-and-how-to-overcome-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The explainer videos present<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the problem, discuss how your company can prove the solution and highlight the features of the product and its benefits to the consumer. Think of these videos as <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/optinmonster.com\/9-lead-magnets-to-increase-subscribers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">lead magnets<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: You want them to provide value, not just talk about your product.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Product demo videos to explain how a product or service works in detail. They highlight all the advantages of using the product in an easy to understand format. They often use step by step instructions to show how to use the product and may include some innovative ideas about where to use it. A good script and excellent presentation make it a standout product demo videos of all time. It is a good idea to create an <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">on-site video gallery<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on your site to share these demos with your site visitors. Videos do slow down your pages, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">so mind your <a href=\"https:\/\/fixmysitespeed.com\/how-it-works\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">page load time<\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> when using embedded content.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Storytelling videos to show a lighter side of your business, humanize it to make it connect with the consumer. These videos tell a story about your business, its hopes, aspirations, and values. Usually, company employees and executives speak about the company, their experiences with it and their work. They are designed to create an emotive response that will strengthen the consumers\u2019 relationship with your company.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As all of these videos are supposed to be ranking in Google, make sure to match them to the actual search queries that have higher commercial intent.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Decision<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The third stage of the consumer\u2019s journey is convincing the interested consumer that your product or service offers the best solution to their problem.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is the stage where the consumer is already committed to buy and needs a gentle nudge in the right direction. This is the time when you need to emphasize on trust-building so the consumer trusts your brand and buys your product. The most effective videos at this stage are peer testimonials and reviews.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Video testimonials<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: These are the best types of videos for trust and confidence-building in your potential customers and a must for the final stage of customer acquisition which is lead conversion.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Customer-driven storytelling videos<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> showing how your customers use the product in a more creative context.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your target search queries for these types of videos include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Your product and your brand name<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: If you have an established brand (or if you are working towards that), your brand name is being searched in Google, and these videos will ensure you\u2019ll have yet another asset you control in brand-driven SERPs. If you are doing a <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">good job <a href=\"https:\/\/www.webceo.com\/blog\/why-online-brand-tracking-is-no-less-important-than-seo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">tracking your brand<\/a> in organic search<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, you already know your important brand-driven search queries.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Competitor-driven search queries<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: These are search queries exploring your competitors\u2019 alternatives and comparing two competitors.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These videos should also be reused in two important ways:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Embed them on your key landing pages<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Video content is a well-known way to boost conversions but in this case it is a good way to help your customers feel at home as they will see the same video on the page after clicking the link on YouTube. It is also a good idea to curate these videos on your <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wpbeginner.com\/plugins\/how-to-add-a-customer-reviews-page-in-wordpress\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">dedicated customer reviews page<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Use these videos for your remarketing campaigns<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. You can use retargeting <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">on <a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2021\/01\/22\/four-marketing-strategies-to-increase-app-store-downloads-and-engagement\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">YouTube<\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to serve them to people who already went through stage #2 in the buying journey but haven\u2019t converted yet.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Conclusion<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Using videos in your organic search strategy to engage customers at each major stage of their buying journey is one of the best examples of <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/seranking.com\/blog\/tie-seo-and-sales\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">how SEO and sales can help<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> each other. Include videos in both SEO and CRO strategies and you will likely see much better results on both fronts.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>Ann Smarty is the Founder of Viral Content Bee, Brand and Community manager at Internet Marketing Ninjas. She can be found on Twitter\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/seosmarty\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@seosmarty<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Subscribe to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/#newsletter-modal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Search Engine Watch newsletter<\/a>\u00a0for insights on SEO, the search landscape, search marketing, digital marketing, leadership, podcasts, and more.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Join the conversation with us on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/61126\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/sewatch\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twitter<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gain better control over almost every buying journey that starts, continues, and ends within organic search<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1092,"featured_media":143957,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,15],"tags":[12799,22,1112,406],"content_type":[],"class_list":["post-143954","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-seo","category-video","tag-consumer-engagement","tag-seo","tag-video-content","tag-video-optimization"],"acf":{"tad_independentcommercial":"Independent","tad_content_format":"Infuencer commentary"},"post_info":{"name":"idris.nagri@blenheimchalcot.com idris.nagri@blenheimchalcot.com","title":"","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Using-videos-to-optimize-engagement-in-search-driven-buyer-journeys-scaled.jpg","category":"SEO","timeago":"4y"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143954","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1092"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=143954"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143954\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/143957"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=143954"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=143954"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=143954"},{"taxonomy":"content_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content_type?post=143954"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}