How to use Hero-Hub-Help to improve your video content strategy

Whether you’re experienced in producing marketing videos, or are just starting out, choosing the right video content strategy is crucial to any campaign.
The first step is to decide which part of the customer journey you want your video to be pitched at. Are you looking to drive awareness, consideration, conversion, or retention? Over time you will likely create video across all these categories, but this step is necessary to isolate your message. The reality is you won’t be able to do everything in one video without creating a mixed message.
Luckily, YouTube’s Hero, Hub, Help strategy provides a structured approach to video marketing. It consists of four types of video which appeal to your target market at each stage of the sales funnel. You can use them to promote awareness at the top, encourage engagement in the middle, and drive sales at the bottom.
Here, we look at how you can start to break down video content that aligns with each stage.
Hero
Hero videos are all about making viewers aware of who you are and what you do. They inspire long term growth and are focussed around introducing your brand to your audience. If you want to catch buyers at the start of their journey the content needs to be bold; think brand films, new product launches and tv commercials. Typically they’re built around multi-channel video campaigns and can be associated with a specific event.
Hero videos need to make a big impact. This means they have high production values, and often require some investment. Be prepared to dip into your media budget if you want your videos to have the effect you’re looking for. Ultimately, the goal of a hero video is to inspire new audiences to engage with your brand through exciting, entertaining and sometimes emotional stories.
A great example of a brand who have nailed their video content strategy is Volvo Trucks – remember the Epic split featuring Jean-Claude Van Damme? Well here they go again! To commemorate the biggest launch in their history, Volvo came up with a novel way to release their new truck range with ‘The Tower’. A go-big moment (quite literally!) that demonstrates the strength of their machines.
Hub
Hub videos are all about encouraging interaction and engagement. The content focuses on nurturing relationships with anyone already interested in your brand. Therefore, it’s important to regularly schedule and release content, so that your audience knows when to expect it. Using cliff hangers or sticking to a consistent theme helps encourage viewers to check back and keep watching. This could be a video series, behind the scenes look at your business, or sharable news stories.
Hub content should be evergreen, and always relevant for new watchers. They should be educational but entertaining too and must address what your ideal customer is looking for and what they care about. An effective hub content strategy centres around your target markets needs and should aim to connect with their passions. In short, their purpose is to build a stronger relationship with your audience through commenting and sharing. Consequently, by inviting them to take further action you’re more likely to grow your reach further.
Blendtec is a great example of how you can have fun with your hub videos. Set up in 2006 the Will it Blend video series demonstrates how the company’s blenders can blend almost anything. From mobile phones to stormtroopers – you name it they’ve blended it! Since its inception the series has attracted over 860 thousand subscribers, won awards and has increased Blendtech’s sales by 700%. That’s rather good going for a company that sells blenders. Check out one of our favourites below!
At the opposite end of the spectrum, mattress manufacturer Casper takes a more traditional approach. Narrated from the perspective of their development team, Casper’s hub shows us how they make their award winning mattresses. The videos do a great job of building trust, by dispelling myths and describing the technology used to produce the products.
Help
Help videos are aimed at answering questions that your viewers are searching for. Often cheaper and sometimes easier to produce, it’s important to keep them more informative and less promotional. Keep in mind what you produce depends on your industry and customer persona. If you’re a flooring company, you’ll want to make videos about installation. If you manufacture mountain bikes, why not make a content about the best places to ride in the UK.
Beyond anything else, it needs to be sharable and optimised for the right search terms. This way, you can drive long term brand growth and hit short term sales goals whilst boosting your brand authority. The types of video you’d produce in this phase could include how-to videos, case studies and product demonstrations. It very much depends on what you feel would best benefit your audience.
Remember Alana Spencer, founder of Ridiculously Rich by Alana and winner of the Apprentice 2016? I think she’s done a great job of creating videos that reflect what her audience wants. Her baking tutorials are fun, engaging and ultimately helpful for anyone looking for baking tips and tricks. What’s more, she uses #bakewithalana to improve shares and encourage interaction.
…and action
This extra phase is all about nudging your prospects over the line. These videos are conversion focussed; designed to translate engagement into a purchase. Above all, the objective is to drive away final consumer doubts and incentivise the sale. It’s common to find these videos sitting on a product page, which isn’t surprising considering 73% of visitors who watch product videos make a purchase. You’ll produce much less of this content, but it can be key to reaching your sales targets.
Check out the example below from JML. Note how the video attempts to push the sale by inviting the viewer to add the product into their basket.
After you’ve made a sale you want to make sure you retain your customers. A combination a Hub and Help videos can help to keep your brand front and centre. Consider producing guides on how to use your product to keep customers engaged and drive them back to the top of the buyer funnel.
Want help?
If you need help aligning your video content strategy to the Hero, Hub, Help model, we’re here to help. At Humanoid, we have the experience, knowledge and creativity to make videos that significantly impact your sales funnel, no matter where in the customer journey you’re looking to target.