Video and E-Commerce: Using Video to Sell Your Products Online

There is no doubt about it - a well-produced video sells products. In an A to B study by online retailer eBags, conversion rates increased 50 percent on pages with video when the play button was clicked over pages with no video. That conversion rate increased to 138 percent when the user watched the entire video. Video turns shoppers into buyers.

Video helps your customers understand what your products are, how they can use them, and what they need to do to make the purchase.

1. Video can show what a product does when words and photos fail to illustrate. The less time it takes for your consumer to understand what your product does, the more likely they will purchase it.
2. Video can show how a product or services solves a problem, giving the user more motivation to make the purchase to solve their own problems. This is especially useful if you are able to craft a story line about your products use. This story line doesn't have to be too complicated - it could be as simple as setting up a problem and showing how your product solves it. Our Potlifter video is a great example of this. By showing multiple uses for the product, we give the audience more ways to apply the product's use to their lives.
3. With video, you can deliver a complete sales message - from problem, to solution, to call to action - all under a minute. Once you are finished telling your product's story, tell them how to order it. If the video is on your product detail page, tell the viewer what button they need to click on to add it to their shopping cart. If the video is on YouTube, include a link to where they can order the product on your website. You've made it easy for your viewer to understand what your product does and why they need it, now make it easy for them to actually buy it.

There are a few things to consider if you are going to produce videos of your products for your e-commerce site. First, just like how you wouldn't post poor-quality photos on your site, your videos shouldn't be poor quality either. They should be well produced, so hire a professional to help you if you don't have the equipment or a producer to do it in house. They should also be well written - prepare a script for each product or hire a writer to help you.

And these videos can be used offline as well. Burn them onto a DVD to include with your media kit, or loop them to play at a trade show. With some planning and professional help, you can create a library of videos to help you sell your products or services both online and off.