By Matthew Yeoman on August 29, 2016 in Case Study
Calling Vat19 the best ecommerce business which uses video marketing is a big statement, but once you look into just how well they do you may agree. They have made their product videos enjoyable, even to the point of consistent virality, and they no doubt make sales from these videos.
Let’s look at what they do well, see what you can learn from it and apply to your own video marketing, and why not have a little fun, too? The Vat19 YouTube channel is full of great ideas that any ecommerce business can learn from.
Their most viral video
Vat19 have had many successful viral videos over the years. Their most successful of all time, at over 88 million views, is this one:
There’s no incredible CGI, no celebrity guest, and definitely no music from a pop star. There’s just one of their products, the fun and use of it, and the sharing of some ideas.
This video obviously benefits by the fact that they have a very interesting product to display. I think its secret is the same secret that they have in many of their videos: They show it off, but not in a ‘BUY THIS NOW’ way, more in a ‘Hey, we think this is as cool as you do’ way.
Another key differentiator of this video is how they push people to their website to actually buy it. There’s no mid-video popup with a neon ‘BUY NOW’ starburst. There’s no garish Annotation partway through distracting viewers. Nothing happens until the very end, and in the description.
This is a key thing to learn for any eCommerce company looking to do some video marketing. You have to entertain your viewers first and develop a likeable brand persona, because if you try to sell to them too early they’ll leave. Those who watch all the way to the end, or look in your description, are the ones who are the most interested.
Proper video marketing is all about information sharing. If you don’t share enough information, and include your sales pitch too soon or too prominently, you can wind up never selling anything and turning your viewers off. Vat19 is a good example, but I invite you to watch any successful ecommerce YouTube user and you’ll see the same thing again and again.
The most recent change to Vat19’s content
The viral video above is from 2013, and a lot has changed in the world of video marketing since then. It’s at another level in every sense, and Vat19 have grown with the times. Here’s a recent video that has been very successful:
Much of the content is still the same. It’s still a "we think this is as cool as you do" type of presentation. But if you’re observant you’ll notice these differences:
- The bottom right hand corner features the Vat19 logo in full color. This is a subscribe button. They use it as a long-term viewer acquisition strategy so that any videos which do go viral will help keep people around even if they don’t want that one specific product.
- The bottom left hand corner is a watermark logo that you can barely see. Anyone can mouse over it and see that it’s an Annotation which will open a new window to the product page. It’s about as "up front" as you can be with a sales pitch without turning people off to your content.
- They have added a video outro which helps push their video marketing further than either of the two points above. Let’s look at it in more detail:
This is the video outro they featured at the end. On the left hand side is their smartest marketing move, both from the sense of keeping people watching their videos, and making more sales on their ecommerce website:
- The subscribe button at the top is there for the same reason as the small coloured logo in the bottom right corner: To capture new viewers for the long term. This helps them get more views, and a little Adsense revenue, as well as keep viewers watching their video until they go ‘Yes! This is a product I need!’
- The Twitter and Instagram logos are not clickable, but they do let viewers know that Vat19 is active on those platforms, and that they can go check them out there if they want.
- Next are two videos of other products. These are clickable, and stream a preview while the outro plays. This serves many purposes. It keeps people engaged with their content for more views and Adsense revenue. It keeps people around until they click subscribe, it usually takes more than one video for people to see if you’re worth their subscription. And last it could show off that product that someone actually wants to buy.
- The "i" in the upper right hand corner brings up even more videos to watch with small thumbnail images.
A great video outro is such an essential for anyone looking to do any type of video marketing. The style which Vat19 have presented is an absolutely perfect template to model your channel’s outro after, especially if you focus on the first three points above. It will lead to more subscriptions, more social media followers, more videos views, be part of your channel branding, and lead to more sales on your website.
Their wide variety of content
The Vat19 team are, to say the least, a creative bunch. Having a creative team on board is the most important aspect of any content driven marketing campaign. We’ve seen the two videos above as being similar in their content, but now for something completely different:
They made a music video about a product! And not only did they make a music video, but they made one which shows viewers what they can do with their party bear. They have about 18 or 19 other music videos, and all of them are this entertaining.
Other types of content they create which have a different feel from their main video type are:
- The Hans Gretel recurring character.
- New employee introductions.
- Pranks.
- The long-running, over 100 videos, Awesome Time series.
- Outtakes and Bloopers.
All of these, and more, can be found on their Playlist page.
The last step in their video marketing and ecommerce website
Ok, great. A YouTube channel that sends people to your website in droves. Who wouldn’t want that, right? Mission accomplished. Turn off the lights. Head home for dinner.
Oh hell no, we’re not done yet! The last great step that Vat19 have taken with their video marketing is adding the videos to their ecommerce website, right on the products themselves.
Say you’re scrolling through a category and you think to yourself ‘Hey, I think my life will be improved greatly by the officially licensed Anchorman movie ‘Sex Panther’ cologne ...but I’m not 100% sure...’
You can then click on the ‘Play Video’ button to watch this video as a pop up window right there on the website:
I’d say that 60% of the time, that gets viewers to buy it everytime. In all seriousness, this content saturation is designed to keep people on their website for longer, and hopefully give them that one last push to make a purchase.
Incorporating your videos into your website, in one form or another, is a step that you must take as you build your channel. Your video marketing should not float on an island over in YouTubelandia. It must be part of your website, either directly on product pages or in blogs, to minimize bounce rates and maximize conversions.
What Vat19 taught us about Video Marketing and eCommerce
Vat19 are the best in the video marketing/eCommerce business, IMHO. Not only do they have over 2 billion views (2.3 billion as of this writing), but they have gotten there using videos which directly feature their products.
They have done this by using these tactics:
- Focusing on the entertainment value first, and the sales pitch second.
- Adding a great video outro which keeps people watching, clicking, and involved with their content.
- Using a wide variety of content.
- Adding their videos to their website as an integral part of the customer sales journey.
Nearly every company can add aspects of these points to their business. You may not personally sell 26 pound gummy bears, which are always a party starter, but your products will appeal to someone out there (I hope!) and they will want to see them presented in an entertaining manner.
Start crafting your video marketing plan with these tips in mind, and I guarantee that 60% of the time they work every time.
