Everywhere you look everyone is talking about video. And it’s almost impossible to talk about video, any kind of video, without talking about one thing…. views. “Oh you did a video…. how many views did you get?” To some people, views are the biggest indicator of success and frankly, they shouldn’t be. Yes, if you are a YouTuber, views are everything, because views are how you make your living, but for the rest of us mere mortals that use video to grow our business and our brands, views don’t mean shit.
Heres why.
I uploaded my first video to YouTube on March 14th 2010, Back when it literally took an hour to upload a video to YouTube and that was after compressing the video with something like mpeg steamclip or Compressor. I was in to video early on, long before most of you that will read this post or watch the eventual video I will make out of this blog post (yes, I repurpose my content 🙂 ). Back then views were the furthest thing from my mind. Luckily.
In those days I was most worried about how to avoid fainting in front of my camera, my fancy Flip Mino HD camera (Google it), a far cry from the 4K and 6K Cinema Cameras we use today at Hub Media Company. Back then I was so nervous. I remember my heart pounding through my chest. I didn’t have then what you have today…. a road map for success. Today there are literally hundreds of thousands if not millions of videos by thousands of real estate agents, coaches, trainers, mentors, gurus, experts; all of them with their own take on video marketing.
I get it, you see another real estate agents video with 100,000 views on it and think “wow, I want that, he/she is killing it!” but who are those views from? It’s natural to think they are from buyers and sellers but are they? There is a good chance, the views are from other real estate agents especially if the video has been featured on a real estate blog, podcast or YouTube channel.
Not Always What Is LOOKS Like
Look, if you are going to go through the trouble of making a video you want it to be watched right? But the bigger question is by WHO? Do you even know? One thing I have become keenly aware of over the years is this: there is a strategy to video marketing, it’s not usually something you can wing and have success with.
Speaking of success, how do you define it? Success. How will you know when you get there? What it look like? Speaking of looks, they can be deceiving.
Did you know there are real estate agents out there driving $300,000 cars, living in multi-million dollar homes, eating at 5 star restaurants every night….. posting it all on Insta, YouTube and TikTok…..that are completely broke? I swear there is and even better, you know who they are (you just don’t know it). And did you know there are real estate agents that have videos on YouTube, Insta and TikTok that have hundreds of thousands if not millions of views that have generated absolutely no business for them and likely never will? Yes, another fact. Why? Because all views are not created the same. An example.
Let me ask you this. Let’s say you are a real estate agent here In Phoenix, Arizona. Would you rather have a video that has 60,000 views all from people outside of your geographic and target markets, that have no interest in you, Phoenix real estate or Arizona for that matter or a video that has 6 views from people in the Midwest interested in learning more about Phoenix real estate? The 6 views right? Why? Because in this instance you can clearly see the views are not the same. Yet there are those out there that would have you believe one of the most important metrics, if not the most important metric, should be views. As you can see I disagree. I think you do too.
Video is hard enough without putting the added weight of views on your shoulders. Your goal isn’t to go viral. In fact, no one can tell you how to go viral, there is no rhyme or reason to it, no secret formula. And I have a secret for you…. (come closer)….. if there was a formula to going viral, everyone with the means to do it, would. The truth is almost all viral videos involve some aspect of extreme humor or controversy.
The Who, What, Where & Why of Video Marketing
To be successful with video marketing you first have to understand who you are talking to. WHO are you making the video for? WHAT problems do they have? What questions do they have? What do they believe? Then you have to know WHERE they search. Is it Google or YouTube? (yes they are different) Then you have to know what they would search for when they are attempting to gather information online. Once you know this, you can then search for the keywords and keyword phrases they would use so you can use those same search terms in your video content to help them find your video and therefor, you online. If you have done this right this is when they watch one of your videos and say “I felt like you were talking straight to me!” (because you were). This is WHY you will be the go to agent in your market.
Speaking of videos and views, where you put your videos matters as well. By and large, social media…… Facebook, Instagram, Instagram Reels, TikTok, is where consumers discover content BY ACCIDENT. Not saying there is no value in that but it’s not the same as a platform where consumers go to specifically search out video content like “things to do in Phoenix” “homes in 85248 near intel” or “4 bedroom homes near Hamilton High School” which is by and large Google and YouTube, not TikTok and Instagram.
So whether you are starting out in video marketing or you are a seasoned pro that isn’t getting the attention you know your videos deserve, keep at it, up your video game by upping your content marketing game. Understand who you are trying to attract, the questions they have and how you can help. Create valuable content, optimize it to get found by your ideal client online and your ideal client will find you, I promise. Oh and for the love of Unicorns and puppies….. don’t just put your valuable content on social media and YouTube, make sure your videos get embedded into the pages and posts on your website as well 🙏
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