After two decades of creating video content, both personally and professionally, there are 5 common reasons many company videos get no views. Use this as a checklist when creating your next piece of video content for your business, and I promise you that you will get more views and engagement.

Most of what I am about to share with you is very simple. Yet on every commercial project, these 5 view killers crop up in some way, shape or form. If you avoid these 5 mistakes, your content will get the attention it deserves.

1- Self-Serving Video Content

Most of the video content that companies tend to make is self-serving. What I mean by this is, they talk about how good their product is, how long they’ve been in business and how much better they are than the rest of the market.

If you’re making content like this, imagine this scenario. We’ve all been at a party, and there is one guy and all he does is talk about himself. I mean, he just won’t stop. It even feels like he only listens to come back with something better to say. 

Our usual response to this is to find the nearest exit and get out of there! This is your viewer. 

We want our viewers to feel welcome and not drive them away. Imagine if the Nike slogan was “We did it” instead of “Just do it”. 

2-  Lack Of Value

I know companies understand value, yet when it comes to video, it seems to go out the window. Video is no longer a novelty and is produced in mega numbers each day, so why would a prospect want to watch your video? Does it offer them any value?

I know businesses understand the concept of value when it comes to money. A customer gives you money, and they get something of value in return. The same is true with their company video.

With video, they are choosing to spend their time. If that time is not met with value, they will leave and not convert. 

Imagine your video content as a marketing asset. It should give value to the viewer so it can generate leads for your business. 

If content is made with value in mind for the viewer, it should bring in leads for many years to come. How do you create value for your customers now? Can you make content around that?

3- Video Positioning

This is the biggest downfall for all companies. Most companies make videos that are positioned so badly that they will never get views. Positioning, by far, is the single most important thing in content creation. 

If I’m being honest, only content creators who have done it for themselves will understand positioning. A scary fact is that most businesses’ content is hidden from their potential customers because of bad positioning.

Positioning needs to happen before the content is even created and should determine the style, script and information in the whole video. 

There are so many misconceptions when it comes to creating content, but I never hear people talk about positioning. 

If you want to learn about positioning your content, reach out, and we would be happy to help. 

4- Company Video Sterilisation 

This is extremely common when dealing with many people within a company who all want and need a say. This can render a once good piece of content into a dull and boring, sterile video with no emotion.

Sterilisation usually starts with the script. How we write and how we speak are two very different things. When we write, we write with heirs and graces, and this completely misses the point of video. 

We need to be humble and down-to-earth so we can connect with our audience. By using small words and simple language, we raise the chances of the viewer understanding what we are talking about.

A major part of sterilisation happens in post-production. It usually starts with music choice and then moves on to cutting the human elements out of the video. Companies usually think that these human elements make them look weak, but I disagree completely.

These can be some of the most natural and engaging moments in the video. This sterilisation process can render a video useless. 

Your end viewer is a human. We love emotive content, drama and excitement! Nothing bores us more than over-scripted, edited content that lacks a soul.

5- Story

We have been conditioned from childhood to enjoy stories and storytelling. Yet, when faced with a camera and a chance to create some content, there is no story in sight. This causes one of the biggest issues in content: boredom.

There is an out and out lie going around that attention spans are now shorter. This is complete nonsense. We binge-watch TV series and go down rabbit holes on YouTube because they entertain us and give us what we want.

Who is going to stay and watch a boring video with no story when they have every piece of content imaginable in the palm of their hands?

Conclusion

People talk about the algorithm and how it is out to get them, but the reality is that they are making content that doesn’t connect with humans. We are emotive beings who love content. As long as you remember that and pack your content with value, you will connect with humans.

If you have read this far, fair play. Send me an email and we’ll have a coffee. 

I hope by now you understand that we really want you and your business to make valuable content that attracts an audience, and I truly believe if you avoid these common mistakes, you will make great content.

If you would like to learn our 6-step framework to create content for your business, please reach out, and we’ll be happy to help.

In summary 

Story is king 

Make your content a welcoming place for viewers and prospects

Make your content valuable for the viewer and yourself. It should be an asset to your business

Position your content before you shoot, or it will never get the views you want

Remember, we are human; do not sterilise your content