This past year and a half have played havoc with travel and tourism all across the world. If you have been lucky enough to take a holiday at this time or have managed to have some tourist traffic at your venue then we are delighted for you. But if you are like us then producing content, especially video content has been problematic during the pandemic. But never fear! There are a few ways to keep that content rolling so you haven’t stagnated before the borders start opening up and people start moving again.
Most of the advice in this article is good advice for producing any kind of video but there are a few tips around incorporating HD stock footage into your content that we think you’re going to love.
1 Think about the purpose?
The first thing you want to think about when you are considering including video on your website is why are you doing it in the first place. The reason you have for using video will inform the type of video you use and in which section of your website it appears.
There is an overarching reason to use video on your website in general; that is to keep people on your website for longer and engage with people more deeply. People live their lives in a visual and audible world, and so including video lends relatability and realism to your website.
2 Promote a specific product
So that’s why to use video in general but specifically, what are you trying to achieve with each video? If you are trying to use video to sell a particular product, service, or travel destination then you’ve got to put that thing front and center in your video. If this is your main product then you might want to put it as a background video on your landing page. If it forms part of your range then perhaps a better place for it is in a prominent position on your product page.
3 Tell a story
If you are trying to present a story then a more appropriate place for video content is in the blog section of your website. It should be shot in a way that focuses more on people and the advertising of the service should be much more subtle since you should be more interested in entertaining than selling with this type of video.
4 Come up with a plan
Once you have come up with a reason for producing video content, the next step is to work out how you are going to do it. You need to work out who you are trying to reach with your message and what kind of content is going to appeal to your target audience.
Are you looking to entertain the armchair traveler who wants to try to experience the world from the comfort of their own home? Or are you trying to line up your customers for 2022 and fill up with bookings? Each of those people is going to want slightly different types of content but they are both going to want to see footage of the places they want to go.
Here’s where the problems can start to arise. You can come up with all the plans you want but you might run up against a few barriers due to travel restrictions. There could be no visitors to your venue; you might not be able to shoot on location; you might not be able to visit many places due to staffing restrictions.
5 Use online resources to flesh out your content
One workaround for this is to rework your old video footage with some stock footage. Many websites have vast catalogs of videos covering all kinds of situations, people, and locations that you can take advantage of when sprucing up old footage.
Try using video of people enjoying the beach, cut with video of your branding, location, or amenities. Or if you are short of establishing shots, then grab yourself some drone footage and get creative. It’s easier to do this if your location is an incredibly popular place with plenty of ready-made footage out there but if not then creativity is your best way forward.
Closing remarks
Videos improve your ranking and create more engagement with your website but using the wrong video will add no value. You should put your focus on producing quality content that will add something to your website and not act against you. To do this you need to have a very clear idea in your head of why you’re making this content in the first place and also make a detailed plan about how you are going to execute it.
Test your site thoroughly after every update and also consult your analytics to gauge the success of each video, even a poorly performing video will give you something to learn from.