“The medium is the message.”
– Marshall McLuhan
Before going into video prospecting, let’s check out a small scenario. Imagine that you have the next best idea that can change the face of the world. You want to sell the idea in the form of a product/service. You know who to target. Only crafting the message & selecting the medium for passing it along is left. In today’s age where every single prospect is bombarded with marketing messages, it’s important that your message stands out from the crowd, grabs attention & ignites a response, or your idea will remain just an idea forever. ” So what are you gonna do? “ “Are you gonna sit & call up everyone or do an email blast like old schoolers? “ ” Or you want to try the best practice in the market? “ As the great Marshall McLuhan has said “The medium which the message comes through is every bit as critical as the message itself.” Go to the nearest bar or snooker club which are salesmen friendly (pun intended) & just ask talk to them. You will be hearing the ramblings & rantings about the decline of getting the prospect’s attention via traditional methods. B2B Sales is an unpredictable job which is full of ups & downs. You can expect only one thing to be constant in sales, that activity is needed to hit numbers. In today’s marketing world it’s essential that you think a bit creatively & find innovative ways to reach out to prospects because sales is not a job to turn around & run if you get a block in front you, which says “stop”.

Rise of Video Prospecting

Technology has opened up revolutionary opportunities for the modern sales team. In the recent years, video prospecting has become a key part of this change. Breaking it down, video prospecting is the most modern means for reaching out to prospects & targeting accounts in a more human way. 70% of B2B buyers & researchers are watching videos through the entire path to purchase & 48% are watching more than 30 minutes of video – (thinkwithgoogle) Today there is nothing better than video to personal connect with prospects. It’s true that it takes much more time than usual to get personal with video but it has the power to appeal to human beings on multiple biological levels. When a prospect receives a video message with energy, sincerity & a warm smile, their brain will start firing the same positivity. Moreover, video gets processed by human brain 60,000 times faster than text & is more memorable. Video prospecting (or video conferencing) is also the best alternative to a face-to-face conversation which is the most powerful medium & it is one more way to show the prospect that you are not just writing random emails to anyone & everyone who pops on the CRM view. A video is also more visual than textual messages & it’s easier to give someone an idea of how your product is when you can use your screen. There are certain prominent things to keep in mind here that are similar to any other form of prospecting.
  • Winning the attention – Use the term video in email subject lines & include thumbnails (the image that appears as the cover of the video) in the email body.
  • Demonstrating integrity – Sales guys should give a reason to their prospects to engage with them rather than being enthusiastic to take their money.
  • Personalization – From the beginning of trade smart salespeople have spent time learning about their prospects & their business and then using the information to connect with them. The same goes for video prospecting.

How to use?

Video prospecting has been in use in the B2C marketing world for a while now. Yea, it’s true that it’s easier for them since they are targeting a vast audience of list subscribers or landing page visitors at once. But as always personalization is the key to B2B marketing to get through hard to reach decision makers working in SME & corporate businesses. It’s important that you film a heartfelt, highly targeted video for the prospect or you might as well post a generic video on YouTube & see how many leads you get. You need to pull your prospect’s attention & build value on it. This is the way to turn their curiosity about what you have to say turn to interest in buying the product. The video shouldn’t be long enough that the person loses interest. It should be made sure to pick the right setting with adequate lighting & a presentable backdrop. Also, don’t forget to use props to make it more entertaining & memorable. Remember, the prospect doesn’t know who you are.

How to start?

Kick start your sales with video prospecting in the following simple steps:

  • Create your lists – This will help you in identifying who to target. Spend some time on it so that you don’t waste time in going back & forth between identifying prospects & creating videos at the same time. In the learning phase start with prospects you have never engaged before. This will help you to see the impact & will provide a clear picture in moving forward.
  • Get the materials ready – There are few things that you will need for recording video. Free software like (ViewedIt) or (Loom), a computer with webcam & microphone (both that works) & a place to record.
  • Prepare a script – Scripts in video prospecting are as much important as they are in cold call. It will help in decreasing the training time, avoiding mistakes, promote consistency & goes a long way in retaining information. Learn your scripts, role play to create effectiveness, don’t be afraid to change the script when needed & know when to go off script.

How to send?

Currently the most favored platform for marketers for video is email. It’s simple & easy to insert video into messages especially with the availability of many supercool software in the market. Moreover you are already communicating with prospects over email. But that ain’t the only platform where video prospecting can be effective. Today’s marketer should be creative enough to identify the mediums that can be taken advantage of in the war of video prospecting, comprende. It’s damn simple to send a video to a LinkedIn connection. Just upload the file to YouTube & send the link via InMail to your prospect. Most Marketers think, Facebook is just for cat memes & funny dog videos. Many are using it for professional use also. If your prospect is your Facebook friend, simply upload videos to Facebook Messenger or just record them within the app itself. Since Facebook is relatively an informal platform, marketers can use it for funny & casual messages. You can either record a video on the app or import one that’s already been created to the followers of your choice. It’s great for prospects that are following you on Twitter but haven’t responded to your emails or calls.

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Final Cut

Sales strategies have been evolving according to time from the dawn of trade. Technology has reached its peak today & marketers across the world are adapting to it. Remember to mix the right technology, common sense & originality so that your video prospecting efforts pay off. Also read on: 7 BEST PRACTICES TO IMPROVE B2B SALES PROSPECTING