3 Things You can Learn about Video Marketing from Wipster’s CEO
Video marketing is a dynamic field full of great opportunities and hidden missteps. Wipster’s CEO tells you what you need to know.
Cover image via Shutterstock.
For the past six months, Rollo Wenlock, the CEO of video review service Wipster, has been creating and sharing a YouTube video series called The Daily WiP. He’s almost hit 100 episodes, so it’s not quite a daily video, but it’s pretty close.
There’s a lot to learn from Wenlock, not only because he’s practicing what he’s preaching (creating content, sharing ideas, and not worrying about the polish) but also because he’s also connected to a lot of media agencies, brands, creatives, and influencers — thanks to his role at Wipster.
In this post, I’ve highlighted three of the many things I think Wenlock can teach video producers (editors, directors, producers, etc.) about video production and marketing.
Offer More Than Video
If you’re looking to improve your video production game in 2018, then you need to start thinking beyond your standard creative skill set. For example, how can you deliver an end-to-end solution for your clients — one that provides better outcomes for them and better income for you?
This is the essential point Wenlock makes before jumping on a plane at the airport in episode 51 (remember sharing ideas is what matters, even if they’re unpolished).
This kind of thinking could be especially profitable for anyone working with smaller clients who don’t have their own in-house teams or agency handlers (who might traditionally handle most aspects of the content pipeline after you’ve delivered the final files).
Instead, can you take responsibility for the delivery and distribution of the content you’ve created? Wenlock gives the example of asking for the keys to their social media accounts.
As Wenlock points out, this opens the door to deepening your client relationships through more regular contact on the basis of metric-based reporting and offers the opportunity to draw out lessons that could apply to their next commissioned video.
I know that, as a freelance editor, I most often have no idea if a video turned out to be a success after I’ve handed it over. I just know that my clients come back for more, so something must be working. But really, that’s a very shallow view to take, especially when there is so much data to mine when it comes to audience engagement.
If I got to see the viewing stats, how far into the video people watched, the comments, etc., I’d have a lot more information to draw upon for the next video for that particular client.
Freelancers Working with Brands
Brands aren’t buying videos from you, they’re buying outcomes. —Rollo Wenlock
In episode 21, Wenlock tackles the evolving relationship between brands and freelance creatives when every brand is turning into a content machine.
He has some interesting suggestions to make about how you can better serve your clients, from up-skilling their in-house staff to switching to a subscription-based business model.
If you can switch to a subscription model for which they pay you a monthly fee, then there’s a chance you might make more money — if you can handle all of your clients’ demands. The client may well be delighted to no longer sign off on per-production budgets. They might prefer to simply receive online content to share with their customers on a daily or weekly basis.
There’s definitely a lot more nuance to this, but it’s worth taking the time to consider which of your own clients might be up for testing something like this. (Especially if they have designs on regularly engaging with customers via video.)
A blend of subscription-based and per-production clients might bring your freelance business steadier cashflow, as you’ll have regular income to fall back on.
The main challenge will be juggling all of your clients’ demands so that they feel like they have constant access to you — while also producing great videos within the subscription price.
Look Back Before You Move Forward
In this episode of the Daily WiP, which Wenlock says marks 80 videos in a row, he makes an important point about auditing your video history.
Wenlock’s really talking to the brands producing video content, but as a creative serving these clients, this is a really useful thing to do, too, so you know what your client has done (and its impact) before you arrived.
This can help you identify a few different things, which might include the following:
- Which videos were the most successful?
- Does an episodic approach work?
- What are the realistic benchmarks to measure against?
By examining these things, you can develop any number of ideas:
- Topics that resonate with the client’s audience.
- Whether you should deliver a teaser or follow-up content — or a regular series.
- How many views or engagements are a realistic benchmark.
Learn More
There’s so much more to learn from Wenlock’s Daily WiP series, so I’d highly recommend browsing this playlist.
Looking for more information on online video production? Check out these articles.
