Why Nobody Watches Your Company Video (and what to do about it).

An audience-first video is built around what your customers want to watch, with your message carried inside it. A video that only says what you want to say tends to get approved internally and ignored everywhere else.

You'll have seen this happen. The brief is agreed, the video comes back, the key messages are all in there, and everyone in the room is happy.

Then it goes live, and almost no one watches it.

The money's spent and the video's finished, but it hasn't done anything for you.

We've been making video for brands for a long time, and we've seen what goes wrong. It's nearly always the same mistake: the video is made for the people who signed it off, then judged by them, on the assumption that if it's good enough for the room, it'll work for customers. We call it "build it and they'll come". Spoiler… they don't.

Your customers vote by switching off.

Nobody has to tell you your video isn't working. Your audience just stops watching, and if the video only reflects what you want to say, that's what they'll do.

One side is what your customers want to watch and the other side is what you want to say.

Where they overlap is what you want to make bigger. You don't water your message down, you just make sure to put it in a format your customers choose to watch.

A smaller message that's seen beats a complete one that isn't.

A video with all your messaging that no one sees is almost worse than one built around your audience with just a little of your messaging in it. The second one gets watched, so it's still doing something for you.

How to fix it

Once the brief is audience-first, four things decide whether anyone presses play.

Does the first five seconds earn the next ten?

Think about what the audience wants to hear, not what you want to say.

Most people decide whether to keep watching almost immediately. Chucking a slow fade logo, a CEO greeting or just talking about your brand gives viewers a reason to leave immediately. Make sure you open with the question your customer is asking, an impactful statement they can relate to, or the most useful thing you can tell them. The introductions (if needed) can come after you’ve won their attention.

Would anyone click on it to begin with?

Your video or film might be absolutely brilliant, but people will scroll past if the title, thumbnail and description don’t make it clear what’s in it for them. Check that all three say what the viewer will learn or get. Remember, viewers don’t owe you their... well, viewings!

Is it going where your customers actually are?

This may sound like common sense, but we so often see great video being posted in entirely the wrong places for the intended audience and then brands blaming the video for the campaign not working.

Where are your customers? Getting that small piece of market research done first will not only make sure you’re showing up where you need to, but that the type of video or film you’re creating matches the channel for maximum impact.

Does it make anyone feel anything?

Flat, formal videos get approved easily and remembered by no one. People finish and share videos that made them laugh, nod along in passionate agreement or feel heard/seen. Ask yourself what you want the viewer to feel at the end of watching your video and check the video does just that.

Three questions to ask before you approve a video brief:

• Who is this actually for, and would they choose to watch it?
• What do they want from it, as well as what do we want to say?
• Where do those overlap, and what would make that overlap bigger?

These work whether you're briefing an agency or your in-house team. If the answers aren't clear, it's cheaper to sort that out before the shoot.

Planning a video and want a second opinion on the brief? Get in touch with Eight Engines.