A blog in collaboration with Veed

Back in 2015, Microsoft’s Consumer Insights team published a paper that got a lot of attention. The piece famously stated that the human attention span is now shorter than that of a goldfish by one second – 8 seconds for humans vs 9 for goldfish. This claim was quickly picked up and shared by a large number of publications, including Time magazine, the New York Times, and USA Today. Understandably this attention-span “revelation” had business owners breaking out in a cold sweat as they contemplated how to grab the attention of increasingly distracted audiences. 

In reality, they had little to worry about. Research has proven, we pay attention as well now as we did generations ago. You’ve likely experienced this in your own life where you have plenty of time for content you find inspiring, entertaining, or educational. It turns out you’re not alone. Over 60% of people say they binge-watch TV shows or films in a series in one sitting. (Try getting a goldfish to do that.) 

While it’s clear that people have no trouble paying attention to content that’s interesting and relevant to them, the biggest hurdle is getting them to actually notice that content in a world where multiple distractions are vying for their time. Adding video to your marketing mix is a great place to start. 

• In 2020, there were over three billion internet users watching streaming or downloaded video via any device at least once per month. This figure is projected to reach nearly 3.5 billion in 2023.
• 54% of consumers prefer to watch video content from a brand or website.
• 94% of companies found that using video improves user comprehension of their product or service.
• Social video generates 1200% more shares than text and image content combined. And viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to 10% when reading it in text.
  

When you further consider the meteoric rise of TikTok and the fact that other social media platforms, like Instagram, are prioritizing video in feeds ,investing in video marketing for your health and wellness business makes good sense. If you've never created videos, it might feel a little overwhelming to start, so we've put together some tips to help you get off on the right foot.

#1. Create Educational Videos

Delivering educational content through explainer videos, how-to videos, and point-of-view videos is a powerful way to show your audience that you are an industry expert who knows how to solve their problems. 

Sharing your professional knowledge through video content will help build trust between you and your audience so they become more likely to book your services. Need some inspiration? 

Check out how this scientist uses TikTok to educate his audience on the effectiveness of probiotics. 

You may already have content you can repurpose for video marketing (think blogs, online course material, or previous social posts). Here are a few examples of videos different practitioners could make to add value to people’s lives:

• A holistic nutritionist could make quick how-to videos showing herself making healthy recipes in her own kitchen.
• A mindfulness coach could outline five tips for incorporating meditation into each day in under 20 minutes.
• Any practitioner can share ideas for staying accountable to reach goals. 
• A naturopathic doctor could talk through the best way to introduce supplements into your lifestyle. 

You can also use educational videos as a tool for teaching your audience how to use certain products, such as a health tracker or a blood pressure monitor. You can post educational videos on your website and social media accounts, and even use them in email marketing or your consultation process.

Pro tip: Keep educational videos short and sweet. While social media platforms will allow longer video formats (TikTok is up to 10 minutes now), challenge yourself to get your point across in under 1-minute. The goal here is to create content so valuable it entices people to follow your account for more useful information and raise their hands when they’re ready to talk with you about your services.

#2. Go Live

There are a couple different ways you can broadcast live to an audience, including hosting an interactive webinar, going live on social media, or participating in a live summit. Holding a live session offers a few benefits that a canned recording doesn’t:

• Some formats (like webinars) require people to enter their email to sign up and attend which gives you analytics on who is interested in the topic. If you ask for opt-in permission at sign up, you can continue to target these folks with offers and information through email long after the webinar is over. 
• You can answer live questions from the audience. This not only provides them with guidance and expertise, it gives you a direct window into what’s on the minds of your ideal customers – valuable information you can use when crafting marketing messages or creating content in the future. 
• A livestream broadcast also gives you the opportunity to host guest speakers who can augment your expertise by offering their perspective on different topics related to health and wellness. Your guest speakers could be another industry expert, a partner, or even happy clients sharing their experiences.
• By recording your live sessions you can create once and distribute anywhere, repurposing the content on other channels.

Pro tip: Before you go live, remember to do an online webcam test to ensure your video feed is clear and your audio is working properly. 

#3. Repost or React to UGC

UGC or User-Generated Content includes video content created by your target audience. Many people are now posting daily routine videos focused on specific topics on platforms like Instagram and TikTok. By searching for videos that fall into your area of expertise (e.g., Here’s what I eat in a day to heal my gut health) you can easily add your reaction using built-in functionality like Stitch or Duet in the TikTok app. 

• Stitch lets you include part of the original creator’s video in your own video. This could look like starting your own video by featuring 10 seconds of an individual making a statement about gut health that you agree strongly with. You then stitch your own video on the back end to share why their perspective is valid and add more context to what they’ve said. 
• Duet is similar to Stitch except the original video is playing side-by-side with yours while you react to it. Here’s an example of a Duet video on TikTok where a registered dietician reacts to another user’s video promoting a “cure all” for gut health that the dietician doesn’t agree with.

UGC is also a fantastic source of inspiration for new content ideas. Social media platforms are the best place to find user-generated content related to your area of expertise.

Pro tip: Make sure you get the most bang for your buck by repurposing videos across channels. For example, if you create a video on TikTok, you can easily share it as an Instagram Reel. You’ll just need to remove the TikTok watermark before you post. There are a variety of third-party tools –like Repurpose.io or  Hopper – that can get the job done.

#4. Post Video Testimonials

Testimonials are content created by happy clients who have benefitted from your services. This content could take the form of a short video where the customer talks about how they feel about the experience of working with you or a written statement that you can then add into a video.

Video testimonials are powerful because they provide social proof, which you can post on your website, share in emails, and even pin to the top of your social channel feeds to help convince potential customers to try your services. Use them to boost the credibility of your practice and encourage others to follow suit. Keep in mind that not all licensed professionals are allowed by their regulators to post, or even ask for, testimonials, so as always, check with your regulator to ensure this practice is allowed by your profession.

Pro tip: If you’re expecting clients to spontaneously create testimonial videos you’re likely going to be waiting a long time. Consider different ways you can incentivize happy clients to provide an endorsement, like holding a promotion where they get a small token of appreciation (like a $5 coffee card) for recording a testimonial. If you offer virtual sessions, you could also quickly ask a client at the end of a positive interaction whether they would be willing to say a few words about your services while you record them. 

Pro tip: Make sure you get formal sign off from clients to use their testimonials in your marketing.

#5. Send Personalized Video

You don’t always have to create a video with mass consumption in mind. Personalized video is a fantastic medium to improve client experience and deepen engagement by providing information that’s specific and relevant to each client.

Here are a few examples of how to incorporate personalized videos:

• Send new clients a welcome video as a part of their onboarding experience
• Send a short reminder video about what to prepare for an upcoming appointment 
• Add video to your marketing email cadences
• Did someone send you a message on social media? Try sending your response in a video

#6. Done is Better Than Perfect

Adding video to your marketing mix doesn’t have to be a costly endeavor. You don’t need to hire a professional video team and spend big bucks on production and editing. When you’re shooting videos that are meant to share your expertise from a place of empathy and knowledge, showing up as your authentic self will resonate more than coming across as overly formal and scripted. People want advice from other people (it’s why influencers have become so popular).  With 51% of consumers saying less than half of brands create content that resonates as authentic, there’s a big opportunity to grab more attention by taking a very human approach.

Pro tip: Here are some things you can do to create the most authentic content: 

• Remember: It’s not about you; it’s about them. Consider the top questions on the minds of your ideal customers and answer them in video. You are subtly promoting your brand by association and sharing helpful content. You don’t need a hard sell.
  
• Planning out what you’re going to say is helpful to keep you from going off on a tangent, but don’t read your outline or storyboard. Speak naturally to the camera.
  
• Invest in good lighting. You don’t want to look like you’re sending a ransom video. You can get a decent ring light for under $150.
  
• You can get started recording videos on your smartphone. If you want to expand into other equipment down the road, here are some expert recommendations for tools you can add to your video-making toolbox.

#7. Create Once, Distribute Everywhere

“If you build it, they will come” might be true in the movies, but in the real world you need a solid distribution plan to get lots of eyeballs on your carefully crafted video content. We’ve already covered some repurposing ideas earlier in this post, but here’s a more comprehensive list for you to consider: 

• Repurpose the same video across channels - from your email marketing campaigns, to your website, to your organic social channels.
  
• Use short snippets of video in your paid ad campaigns. For example, if you have a strong testimonial on video, ask the client to sign off on you using it in advertising and test performance (Instagram video ads are reported to receive 3x more engagement than static image ads).
• If you have multiple client testimonials, stitch them together into one longer video and add it to your website for the ultimate social proof.
  
• Create a YouTube channel where you can upload relevant videos you create and even build playlists that group similar themes together. As the largest video platform on the Internet, YouTube is a popular search engine on its own. That means potential clients looking for answers might start their search for answers right in YouTube. Get tips on how to optimize your videos for YouTube search over here.
  
• If you create a longer video you can break it up into smaller chunks to use as organic social posts or include in an email nurture campaign.

Get Started with Video at Your Own Pace

With the rise in popularity of video marketing and its effectiveness in reaching new audiences and building credibility, it's a perfect time to incorporate this content into your marketing strategy.

You don’t have to go all-in with video in order to get started. Rather than trying to be in all channels with multiple video types, start by choosing one. Perhaps you’re intrigued by TikTok and want to give reaction videos a try. Or maybe you’d like to build up some client testimonials. The key is to squeeze as much juice as you can out of each video you make, sharing it in the appropriate channels, then measuring and tweaking until you find the approach that feels comfortable to you and drives success for your health & wellness business. 

Practice Better is the complete practice management platform for nutritionists, dietitians, and wellness professionals. Streamline your practice and begin your free trial today.