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Marketing John Ritskowitz on 31 Jan 2008 10:24 pm
Message In A Bottle
I’ll admit it.
I’m one of the first ones to jump on the bandwagon of a successful trend … but only if it works. Only if it truly is successful.
Now contrast that with something that has weathered the passage of time–a real gem in an “overhyped” world.
An example might help: would you rather own 10,000 shares of stock in some “boring” blue chip stock? Or the same number of shares in Pets.com, Furniture.com, eToys.com, or one of the other failed–but “trendy”–dot com stocks of the late 1990s?
Ok, obviously that’s a no-brainer. The “Royalty” of Wall Street may not be glamorous, but ask Warren Buffet whether or not he cares about being “hip.”
My point is, sure, we want to capitalize on current trends, especially when they boost our bottom line. But let’s not forget about the proven time-tested formulas either.
Right now online video is on the rise and shows no signs of stopping. Everyone seems to be getting in on the action, and I think that’s a good thing, because online video–when done right–works.
But saying video by itself works is like saying a sales letter works. The more intricate answer is: it depends on the message.
Remember the ‘ol message to market match?
Well, it’s no different in video.
Of course this is old hat to a lot of successful marketers, especially some of the ones who helped to pioneer infomercials on T.V. And video sales letters have been around long enough now to have a track record of success.
But I’m not here today to talk about video…
I’m here to talk about the message. Whether it’s a radio script, infomercial, written sales letter, or online video…the message is your key to the kingdom.
And that means taking the time to craft some killer substance…before you ever hit that record button. (Of course this applies to audio also–the core message is independent of the media, although the way in which the message is delivered should be designed around the strengths of that media).
So in the end, your message needs to be a cohesive sales structure, built from the combined efforts of the media used.
Meaning…don’t add audio or video to your website just because you’ve heard it’s converting better. Use the audio/video to reinforce your message, or to perform some other specific task designed to advance the sale.
For example, I’ve found that a simple call to action using audio works well for a squeeze page. Let your sales copy and bullets do their jobs. Then add the audio telling them to go ahead and put their name and email address “in the box below right now.”
Or maybe it’s a video of you pointing directly to the box for them to fill out. There’s no need to give your entire sales pitch in the video. Just tell them what to do!
The point is, the audio/video has a specific purpose, and the message it portrays is designed to get them to take the desired action, whatever it may be. And before you start recording, you need to know up front:
1. What it is you want them to do.
2. What message to use to persuade them to do #1.
Then you can figure out how to structure and relay that message through your choice of media.
In the end, just remember that the same concepts of copywriting apply to audio, video, even sign language and Braille!
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