Video marketing is the most popular medium on the planet. Just look around. All those heads buried in their phones are watching videos!

The dental marketing firm Dentainment explains that by 2022, 82% of online content will be video. That’s 15 times more than it was back in 2017. With people consuming more than a billion hours of video every day, on their phones, laptops, and smart TV screens, it’s vital that your video content stands out from the crowd.

Granted, easier said than done. But don’t worry. The smart people at Dentainment have compiled 17 incredibly helpful tips that are guaranteed to make your video content powerful, relevant, and most of all, noticed.

1. Shoot a Story, Not a Commercial

The number one goal when making a video is engaging your audience. How? By telling a story. Make it personal and relatable. Create a hero. Pull at the heartstrings. Connect with your audience, and you’ll see an increase in your bottom line.

Share a story about your dental practice and dental team, and don’t be afraid to go live to capture real-time events. Live reviews and testimonials from patients are extremely powerful, as word-of-mouth is always the best advertising.

2. Be Clear with your Intention

A vague, meandering video is the fastest way to lose viewer interest. So make sure your audience understands what your video is about from the very first frame. Organize your story beforehand. Outline your shots. When shooting, be sure to keep the plotline tracking in a linear, logical fashion. And don’t forget to make it entertaining! There’s no law that says you can’t be entertaining and educational at the same time.

In other words, be creative and innovative, but make sure it’s clear, logical, and to the point.

3. Pay Attention to Length

Benjamin Franklin once said that houseguests are like fish. After three days they begin to stink. The same can be said of videos. There’s nothing worse than a video that overextends its stay. So don’t let your fun social media clip turn into a boring 5-minute slog. The rule of thumb: keep it to roughly 2 minutes. Unless of course you’re shooting a long-form video, say a half-hour show about dental implants intended for Vimeo or YouTube. For all others, keep ‘em short and sweet.

4. Production Values Count

While you don’t have to be Steven Spielberg, your videos nonetheless should look professional. And that means paying close attention to lighting and sound quality.

The first step is investing in basic production kits—namely lighting and audio gear. The second is familiarizing yourself with basic production techniques. How-to videos on YouTube are a good place to start.

5. Optimization for Video Marketing

Search Engine Optimization is essential for video marketing, as it boosts your SEO ranking and drives traffic to your dental website. The right keywords make all the difference in a high ranking.

Share your videos on the social media platforms that best suit your demographic. Be sure to include a call to action at the end of your video. Don’t forget to write your descriptions and titles with search engine optimization in mind.

6. Make Your Script User-Friendly—and Search Engine-Friendly

When crafting your script, of course write it for your audience, but also keep the search engine in mind. Develop your narrative and video content so that search engines will be able to find you. Use relatable keywords and phrases that are popular.

Because Google and YouTube index descriptions, it’s imperative to include well-researched keywords and keyword phrases.

7. Alternative Formats for Video Marketing

Here’s a little-known fact: 75% of all videos are viewed on a mobile device. That’s something to consider when shooting your video. For instance, you’ll get better results shooting in portrait mode because most people are watching in the vertical. But it’s not just videos on phones—there’s streaming live on social media, 360-degree tours of your practice, vlogs and video eblasts, and many others.

Think outside the box—or outside the phone!

8. Use Social Media for Video Marketing

As mentioned earlier, video posts should be both educational and entertaining. With so many fun filters available on social sites such as SnapChat and Instagram, you have the opportunity to show the fun side of your practice.

Don’t be afraid to let your hair down. Fun, mixed with a sense of humor, is the best way to engage viewers, as they’ll be more likely to like, comment and share your video posts.

9. Show the World Your Personality

Building on the previous tip, showing your personality is key for engagement. But even more practical, a fun, lighthearted video can go a long way to easing the nervousness and anxiety patients often feel about dental visits.

Shooting a video full of personality can help relieve that anxiety. Get your whole team involved and have fun with it. Interview patients or do a fun Q & A. The important thing is to have fun.

10. Join in a Challenge Video

Challenges on sites like YouTube and Facebook are always popular. Get in on the fun and come up with a great challenge that will entice your patients and followers.

Come up with something enjoyable and unique. Something related to dentistry. And make sure it’s not too challenging, as you want as much engagement as possible.

11. Educational Dental Videos

Educational videos by their very nature aren’t as fun as Tic Tok dance posts, but they can still be entertaining. It all starts with a good script. Pepper it with moments of comedy. Avoid sounding like a college professor giving a lecture. Make sure it’s personalized, speaking on a one-to-one level with the viewer.

There’s no limit to what you can do to be creative. Just don’t be boring!

12. Live Q & A with Your Dentist

Going live is an excellent way to build your audience. It’s also an incredible way to gain trust and credibility. Try going live with a Q & A session with your patients, current and potential.

Prompt some audience members to ask personal questions such as, “What made you become a dentist, and, “Where did you go to school?” “What do you do on your days off?” These types of questions show the human side of your practice.

13. Show off Your Dental Products and Services

People are always eager to learn about new products and services. If you have just added a service such as CEREC® or another type of cosmetic dentistry service to your menu, shoot a video and tell the world.

Not only are you marketing CEREC®, you’re also marketing your dental practice as a state-of-the-art operation, current and up-to-date. Plus, highlighting products and videos doubles the chances of a sale.

14. Office Updates with Video Marketing

Keep your audience current with news about your dental practice. Share updates on team members. Make it a weekly or monthly event. Just like weekly blogs, audience members will get used to the regular schedule and start to look forward to your videos.

Creating engaging videos on a regular and timely basis is an excellent way to convert viewers. By conditioning them to a regular video event, they’ll be eager to head to your website to catch the latest installment.

15. Going Live on Social Media

Don’t assume that going live means ad-libbing. If anything, live-streaming requires even more forethought and planning. That’s because it’s impossible to predict what will occur. But with solid planning you can keep a tight hold of the reigns. Draw up a storyboard and write your script, including essential keywords, and keyword phrases.

Don’t forget to promote your event well in advance so that fans and followers will tune in.

16. Prerecorded Video

Unlike going live, prerecorded video gives you complete control of your end product—which is necessary when shooting informational videos, commercials, and more formal messages. Pre-recording lets you start, stop, reshoot a line, or reshoot the entire thing.

Unlike live-streaming, prerecording patient testimonials and reviews offers not only a measure of control, but also eases stage fright. Why not make a party of it and ask five or six patients to drop by and film a fun review—complete with food and drinks?

Pre-recording patient testimonials are a powerful marketing tool, as potential patients always refer to reviews before visiting a new dentist.

17. Keep Your Focus

A lot can go wrong on a video set. Equipment can malfunction. Lines can be forgotten. Tempers can flare. The trick is to keep your focus. Stick to your script. Follow your plan. Some may have a natural talent for improvising, but for most of us, that’s not the case.

And don’t worry if nerves act up—that’s only natural. But the good news is that the more videos you shoot, the less nerve-wracking the process becomes. Over time, it’ll be just another part of your job. (But probably the most fun part of it!)

Video Marketing for Dental Practices

If you’d like to learn more about video marketing, schedule a chat with a team member from Dentainment.

Lights, Camera, Patients!

17 Video Tips for Powerful Dental Content

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