SELECTING

CONTENT TYPES
FOR VIDEO

HOW-TO GUIDE
 Selecting Content Types for Video
HOW-TO GUIDE

“If a picture is worth a 1,000 words, then a video is worth

a 1,000 words, 25 times a second”
www.distilled.net

As we have all experienced, images speak louder than words. Is this because an image produces a
more powerful message than words? Not necessarily. However, due to the actual time invested in
viewing an image versus reading a page of text, our brains are able to process the meanings and
emotional responses associated with viewing an image much faster.

Video content functions in much the same way, with much more depth and complexity than a single
image. Videos string together a potent combination of elements (ammo) – audio, cast/speaker(s),
images, graphics, and text. The addition of each element in a video exponentially increases the
power of the video itself, which explains why a one-minute video is worth 1.5 million words.

While the production elements (ammo) are critical to a video’s success, video content must be
engaging and relevant to your viewers in order to make an impact. For this reason, selecting the
proper video content to align with your target viewing audience can be the most powerful ammo
for your video.

This How-To Guide discusses how to align your video content choices with your audience, the
most successful types of video content, and the benefits associated with each content type.

Understanding Your Audience

The key to selecting the proper content type for your video(s) is to truly understand the needs and
behavior of your target audience. Many organizations conduct demographic studies to understand
key target markets for their product/service.

The information retrieved from those studies is very useful for the purpose of marketing your video
content. However, it is even more important to take those demographics a bit further to understand
the behaviors and personas of your clients and prospects.

2 SELECTING CONTENT TYPES FOR VIDEO

Here are some key questions you and your video marketing project team should ask yourselves
about your target audience at this stage:

What does your audience need? Do they need information, education, advice, and/or fun/diversion?
What are the key challenges your viewers are trying to address?
At what stage in the buying process are the majority of your viewers?
What buyer persona(s) will you encounter through this video?
What are the media (Internet, TV, radio, etc.) habits of your audience?
What are the social media habits of your viewers?

Video Content Types

Once your project team has settled on the answers to the questions above, you will be prepared
to discuss the different content types that may align with your audience.

While you can view a wide variety of video content types on YouTube and various websites, there
are four main content groups that have the most success for organizations. These video content
types are as follows:

Promotional – A promotional video typically involves an advertisement for a product/service.

This content type can be comparable to a television ad in all aspects including message,
images, and branding. Organizations create promotional videos to focus on new products,
product updates, and/or overall company information in order to engage existing customers
and gain more interest from prospects.
Benefits: can be used for targeted campaigns to specific demographics, enhances brand
perception, and assists in lead generation
Fills Need For: Information
Example.

Instructional – For an organization, instructional videos can be used to educate customers

and prospects on a specific product, or on new features for an existing product. This content
type can be promotional; however, it is more beneficial to focus on how your product/service
functions to ensure viewers gain knowledge/skills after watching the video. For professionals
with little time for attending workshops, instructional videos are a convenient and flexible way
for them to learn new skills.
Benefits: supports customer learning and enhances customer experience
Fills Need For: Education.

3 SELECTING CONTENT TYPES FOR VIDEO

 Thought Leadership – Becoming a thought leader in a particular industry/market is one of
the main goals of a video marketing program. The purpose of thought leadership videos is to
provide your audience with insights and best practices in a given industry/market. Typically,
organizations engage subject matter experts (SMEs) in their industry/market to speak about
important topics for their audience.

Benefits: positions organization as an industry leader, helps clients/prospects understand key

topics, and supports viewers in an effort to optimize best practices
Fills Need For: Advice

Entertainment – This category is where you will find your “viral” videos. Videos that are
deemed “entertaining” or “humorous” are usually used to draw attention to a company/brand.
These videos tend to be more outrageous and creative than the other three content types
listed above.

Benefits: attracts attention to an organization/brand and enhances an organization’s intended

brand perception
Fills Need For: Fun/Diversion
Example: View one of the most viral animated videos of all time, a professionally produced
video that made customers smile and a low quality viral sensation from the beginning of
YouTube that shows that entertaining through videos does not need to be high quality to
succeed.

Bottom Line
Videos are an extremely powerful marketing tool that can ignite interest in your company/brand,
generate quality leads and provide a new line of revenue for your organization.

Therefore, selecting the proper type of video content to attract and engage your viewers is vital
to any video marketing program.

In order select the video content best suited for your audience, your video marketing team
must have a deep understanding of the audience, comprehend the different types of video
content and align the audience’s need(s) with the related content type(s).

4 SELECTING CONTENT TYPES FOR VIDEO

 Action Plan
STEP 1 - Obtain Demographic Study Results

Obtain Access Demographic

1 Demographic
Study Results Results and Create Plays

As a marketer, you most likely

Define your already have access to this
2 Audience information.

If you do not have immediate

access to the study results,
you can most likely contact
Understand someone in your Market
3 your Audience Research or Product
Development department to
acquire this information.

Align Content
4 Type(s) with
MARKET RESEARCH
Playbook & Toolkit

Audience Need(s)

Follow this simple step-by-step guide to build an efficient market research process,
a comprehensive market research report and an engaging presentation.

Manage your
5 Video Content Market Research Playbook

VIEW RESOURCE

5 SELECTING CONTENT TYPES FOR VIDEO

 Action Plan
STEP 2 - Define your Audience

Obtain
A Customer Profile
1 Demographic
Template Helps You Shape
Study Results
Your Video

2 Define your
Audience Use our Customer Profile
Template to organize the
demographic information you
have retrieved.

At this stage, you should have

Understand
3 your Audience enough information to choose
which customer profile your
video will be geared toward.

Align Content
4 Type(s) with
Audience Need(s)

Customer Profile Template

Manage your
5 Video Content
VIEW RESOURCE

6 SELECTING CONTENT TYPES FOR VIDEO

 Action Plan
STEP 3 - Understand your Audience

Obtain
The Buyer Persona Template
1 Demographic
Gives You Audience Insight
Study Results

Download and complete our

Define your
2 Audience
Buyer Persona Template.

These two templates allow

you to assess your potential
audience and gain a deep
understanding of your

3 Understand
your Audience
viewers’ needs.

Align Content
4 Type(s) with
Audience Need(s)
Buyer Persona Template

VIEW RESOURCE
Manage your
5 Video Content

7 SELECTING CONTENT TYPES FOR VIDEO

 Action Plan
STEP 4 - Align Content Type(s) with Audience Need(s) 

Obtain
Match Your Videos to the
1 Demographic
Right Audience
Study Results

Once you establish

Define your
2 Audience
your audience need(s) –
information, education, advice,
and/or fun/diversion – review
the video content types listed
above to see how they align
Understand with the associated need.
3 your Audience

Align Content
Type(s) with
4 Audience
Need(s) Buying Process Stage Template

VIEW RESOURCE
Manage your
5 Video Content

8 SELECTING CONTENT TYPES FOR VIDEO

 Action Plan
STEP 5 - Manage your Video Content

Obtain
Manage Your Content with
1 Demographic
the Video Assets Database
Study Results

As you engage in your video

Define your
2 Audience
marketing program, it is
important to remember that
the needs of your audience
may be different for each
video you produce.
Understand
3 your Audience
In order to manage the
different videos and video
content in your program,
utilize our Video Marketing
Assets Database.
Align Content
4 Type(s) with
Audience Need(s)

Manage
5 your Video
Content
Video Marketing Assets Database

VIEW RESOURCE

9 SELECTING CONTENT TYPES FOR VIDEO

 About ANA

The ANA (Association of National Advertisers) makes a difference for

individuals, brands, and the industry by driving growth, advancing the
interests of marketers and promoting and protecting the well-being of the
marketing community.

Founded in 1910, the ANA provides leadership that advances marketing

excellence and shapes the future of the industry. The ANA’s membership
includes more than 1,000 companies with 15,000 brands that collectively
spend or support more than $400 billion in marketing and advertising annu-
ally. The membership is comprised of more than 750 client-side marketers
and 300 associate members, which include leading agencies, law firms,
suppliers, consultants, and vendors.

Further enriching the ecosystem is the work of the nonprofit ANA

Educational Foundation (AEF), which has the mission of enhancing the
understanding of advertising and marketing within the academic and
marketing communities.
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