What Is a Brand Video?
There are different types of branded video. From product demos and explainers to show people how to use your product, to company culture videos to give people a taste of what it’s like to work with you or for you, it’s a brilliant way of creating engaging content to get a point across.
We’ve been working in the branding space for a decade, and have seen first-hand the impact branded videos can have on creating brand awareness, increasing sales, building trust. Well-crafted brand videos have one thing in common, regardless of the type of video. They communicate one key message to a company’s target audience and potential customers, whilst representing the company’s core values.
What Makes a Successful Brand Video?
A successful brand video will only be a powerful tool in your marketing if:
It is in-line with the company values
If the company prides itself on being helpful, the main element should be helpful in some way, or if the company is known for being friendly, the visuals, accompanying music and the tone of voice throughout the video should reflect that value.
 It achieves something
The number one thing to consider when creating any type of video is: What are we trying to achieve here? Is the goal to increase sales? What do you want your audience to take away from it? Is it a marketing video with the goal of making them take a next step? What is that next step, and is it communicated clearly? We work backwards from the end goal to make sure you’re achieving what you set out to do, otherwise you’re wasting your money.
You know your audience
You can only create an emotional connection through video content if you know who you’re talking to. Your target audience will be set out in your marketing strategy, so don’t stray from that. From there, you can put yourself in the shoes of the person you know is watching, and you can ensure it’s relatable, helpful, and appealing to that target audience.
It is simple
Simplicity is difficult to achieve. Too many times we see people trying to add multiple messages into one video, stuffing it with information and messy visuals. The key to an effective brand video is focussing on one core message. To make it a powerful marketing tool, you need to strip things back as far as you can whilst still getting the message across, whatever that may be. People have a short attention span, and it’s getting shorter every day. So, know what you want to achieve and what you want to say, and then go ahead and create your video content.
3 Examples of great Brand Videos
Some of these you may have seen, some you may not have, but these are a few different types of video that we feel achieves the goal it set out to do, whether that’s boosting sales, increasing brand awareness, or something else. Here you go:
1. The Cadbury’s Gorilla ad.
We love this for SO many reasons. The sheer weirdness of it, the originality, the simplicity, and the fact that the creative behind it had to fight so hard for it to be signed off. It ended up increasing revenue growth by 6% in Britain. (source)
2. The GTA6 launch trailer
The anticipation for this trailer, which gamers have waited 10 years to see, had to be good, and it was. It gives, in a very short time frame, an insight into what the next world is going to look like, and shows how far the technology has come since the last game. Completely un-rendered (unlike many other game trailers) the video shows real in-game footage, setting a realistic expectation of what you’re going to experience when you play the decade-long-awaited game.
3. The Jodrell Bank Rebrand Launch video
Johnson Banks launched the new identity for Jodrell Bank, and the launch video is a work of art in itself. The video uses sound waves collected by the telescope from beyond our atmosphere in an incredible way.
4 Types of Branded Video
1. Case Study Videos or Showreels
We do a lot of these. They’re a brilliant way of showcasing a certain project, and can be used across and and all industries. Kitchen companies can show off their latest project. Marketing agencies can show people the results of their efforts in a visually compelling way rather than solely writing up another blog or posting screenshots. Whatever type of company you are, creating video content around a project is always a good idea.
2. Explainer Videos
Show, don’t tell. As well as giving you an SEO (search engine optimisation) uplift through different types of content on your site, people usually find videos easier to digest than text-only posts. Watching is easier than reading, and branded video is a great visual communication technique. You can share these videos on your social media accounts and through email marketing as well as on your own website to give current and potential customers compelling content, showing them exactly how something works.
3. Useful videos
Things like product demo and training videos can be another brilliant way of communicating with your audience. These are usually created to communicate with existing customers or staff members, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have to be on-brand and well-crafted. Choosing a reliable video production partner is key to making sure everything you put out there, regardless of the target audience, reflects positively on your brand.
4. TV ads
If you have the budget, TV commercials are another perfect example of branded video. The same rules apply as all the other videos, in that you need to know what you want to achieve and work backwards from that, whilst keeping it as simple as possible.
Want to speak to us about creating your next branded video?
Get in touch with the team at Dawn today, we’d love to support you.
