A few days ago, we finished filming a series of instructional videos for one of our regular clients in the installation sector. We really enjoy productions like this, where the strength lies in their simplicity and the message is clear and easy to take in. For businesses, this is also an attractive format, not least for budgetary reasons – instructional videos are one of the most cost-effective options when it comes to corporate video production. This is one of the reasons why we’ve decided to tell you a bit more about them, to encourage you to produce them and use them to enhance your own offering.
Everyone can see it, but not everyone understands it
Have you ever read the instructions for a piece of equipment and understood (almost) nothing? Exactly… We have a theory that some manufacturers deliberately make the instructions so confusing so that repair technicians have their work cut out for them ;). Even if we read the manual thoroughly and fully understand it, it can still happen that some steps have been omitted, or that something is explained but there’s no illustration to go with it, making it easy to get confused because the description is too brief.
Of course, simple instructions are enough to explain how to switch on an iron or start a washing machine, however, problems can arise when we move into slightly more specialised areas, where the operator of a cutting machine or forklift truck must strictly follow certain guidelines to prevent accidents. And here, a paper manual may not be enough: a) because it is impossible to demonstrate how the machine operates in action, b) because the employee may not understand the content of the manual.
In this respect, video beats the written word hands down. If we ask an employee whether they have understood the instructions they have read, they may give an evasive answer. However, if we ask them whether they saw the actor in the video pressing the power button, and they reply ‘no’ or ‘I don’t know’, it’s clear that our employee has a problem – either with their eyesight or their wits. And if they answer in the affirmative, we can rest assured that we have trained our staff properly, because even if they haven’t understood something, the video clearly shows them what to do and how to do it.
Showcase your features and boost sales
Instructional videos are also a great way to boost sales of the products on offer. Before we decide to buy a product, we want to know its pros and cons – and, ideally, see exactly how it works. Whether we’re saving up for a coffee machine, a pram, a gas cooker or a washer-dryer, there’s a whole host of appliances that catch our eye whilst we’re out on casual trips to shopping centres or browsing online shops.
We find loud advertising slogans and far-fetched promotions irritating, yet we’ll watch with interest a video that demonstrates the features or how to use, say, an electric scooter. Watching such a video will probably take us no more than 2 minutes, and it will provide answers to most of the questions we have. This will subconsciously bring us closer to buying the product on show, because once we’ve seen how it works, it’s almost as if we’ve already used it – in other words, almost as if it were already ours ;). If the competition doesn’t have such a video, it automatically loses credibility and leaves the consumer with a simple choice. They buy the product they’ve just learnt about in a short, unobtrusive instructional video.
If your range includes devices and products that are worth – or even essential – to familiarise yourself with before use, we encourage you to include the production of instructional videos in your budget for promotion or sales support. Get in touch with us, and we’ll create an instructional video for you that will enable you to reach hundreds of thousands of viewers, strengthen your company’s image and significantly boost profits from the sale of your products.
