SaaS Video Marketing: 3 Types of Videos You Must Create

Any effective marketing strategy today must include video marketing. SaaS businesses aren’t exempted from this. 

With the help of video marketing, your SaaS business can showcase its software in an interesting and captivating way. Video marketing can also help connect with a much larger audience than with other types of advertising.

Think about this for a second; 82% of people say they’ve been convinced to buy a software or application by video.

However, it can be difficult to know where to begin if you’re new to SaaS video marketing. This guide will give you the knowledge you need to implement SaaS video marketing.

Let’s get into it!

Why SaaS Video Marketing Is Important

Your software as a service business can benefit hugely by introducing video into your SaaS marketing strategies. 

First of all, videos are engaging. Modern consumers are more likely to watch a short video than read a paragraph of text. Think about this; when was the last time you read an article from start to finish? Exactly.

But I’m sure you can remember the last time you ended up watching an entire TikTok or Instagram Reel.

Video can capture and maintain the attention of your target audience. This type of content on social channels generates 1200% more shares than text and image content combined.

Also, video is a highly entertaining and memorable ad experience. It allows SaaS companies to showcase their products in a visually compelling way. This helps to improve brand awareness. 

Because video content is so immersive, it also helps create strong brand recall. Consider this, 80% of people can recall a video ad up to 30 days after watching it. 

Surely, you’ll remember reading this article when you associate it with the below countdown timer video. 

Video marketing can be a powerful tool for driving conversions, too. Ultimately, that’s the main goal of any business. In a video, you can highlight the value of your SaaS product. According to Wyzowl, 88% of people surveyed said they’d been convinced to purchase a product or service by watching a brand’s video. 

Videos can also enhance the customer experience by providing potential customers with helpful information in an engaging and easy-to-consume format. 

For example, explainer videos can help customers understand how to use a product or service. Plus, 91% of consumers want to see more online video content from brands they support. This demand shouldn’t be ignored!

3 Major Types of SaaS Videos

Now that we understand why SaaS video marketing is important let’s explore the three major types of SaaS videos that can help your software businesses achieve its marketing goals.

1. Training and Marketing Videos

Training and marketing videos can educate and engage your target audience while building trust and driving conversions. 

One example of training videos is product demos. 

Demo videos provide an overview of a SaaS product’s features and benefits. After watching your demo video, customers should be able to visualize the product in action and understand how it can solve their problems. 

Many companies, like Grammarly, offer a product demo video in exchange for an email address. This way, the user learns how the tool can help their business, while Grammarly gets another email address for sending email campaigns.

Onboarding videos are also a type of training video. These are designed to help new customers navigate and use the SaaS product effectively. Onboarding videos can cover everything from basic product features to more complex workflows, ensuring customers get the most out of their investment. 

You can create an onboarding email campaign and include videos that walk new users through setting up their software for the first time.

Having a library of training videos on your website that users can refer to as needed can help reduce customer service inquiries. This allows SaaS companies to focus their resources on other areas, like lead generation. 

Apart from training videos, a SaaS company should create marketing videos, like case studies and homepage videos, to promote their products and services. 

Case study videos highlight how customers have successfully used the SaaS product to achieve their business goals. These videos build trust and credibility with potential customers and show them how the product can deliver tangible results. 

For instance, a marketing automation platform might create a use case video that showcases how a customer was able to increase their email open rates and drive more conversions using their product. 

You should share them on your website and social media platforms. Use them in email marketing to push the subscribers into buying decisions. Surf offers a selection of case study materials, including videos, in exchange for an email address.

Homepage videos are short, impactful videos prominently featured on a company’s website. For example, Mailchimp placed this homepage video highlighting how their app can help businesses market smarter.

These videos play on the homepage and can provide a high-level overview of the company’s value proposition and showcase the benefits of their product. You can also use customer testimonials for this purpose.

2. YouTube Channel Content 

Creating a dedicated YouTube channel is an excellent way for SaaS companies to engage with their audience and showcase expertise in their niche. The channel’s focus should be to provide valuable content that aligns with the target audience’s interests. 

How-to videos are a great way to showcase the features and benefits of the SaaS product. By providing step-by-step instructions on how to use specific features, SaaS companies can demonstrate the value of their product and help customers get the most out of it. 

In addition to tutorial videos, SaaS companies can create educational video content that aligns with the interests of their audience. For example, a project management software company might create videos on time management, productivity tips, and team collaboration. 

These videos don’t directly showcase the product but establish the company as an expert in the niche and build trust with potential customers.

Ahrefs, a company that sells SEO software tools, does a great job creating video content for its YouTube channel. The channel has over 500k subscribers and features videos on topics like keyword research, link building, site audits, etc. 

Ahrefs also created video SEO courses and tutorial series for different marketing skill levels. The company offers a separate YouTube channel for its SaaS marketing vlog and product updates.

3. PPC Video Ads

Pay-per-click video ads are a highly effective way for SaaS companies to reach their target audience and drive conversions. The two main channels for PPC video ads are YouTube and Facebook. Both platforms offer smart targeting options which allow SaaS companies to reach users based on specific demographics, interests, and behavior.

The approach and style of PPC video ads will vary depending on the platform and the target audience. 

For YouTube ads, the focus should be on providing value to the viewer while marketing SaaS products. Ads that are too “salesy” or pushy can turn off viewers and result in low engagement rates.

Monday.com provides one of the best examples of SaaS marketing campaigns utilizing YouTube ads. Monday.com offers management software for project, marketing, and sales teams. Its YouTube ads focus on showcasing the features and benefits of its product while using humor. 

The ads feature bright colors, engaging animations, and a clear call to action.

For Facebook video ads, the focus should be on capturing the viewer’s attention quickly and providing a clear value proposition. Facebook video ads autoplay on the user’s newsfeed, so it’s important to make the first few seconds of the ad super engaging.

Another successful SaaS company that invests in PPC video ads is HubSpot. HubSpot promotes its CRM software through PPC Facebook ads to reach its target audience and drive conversions.

As shown above, SaaS companies can attract new customers and grow their businesses by creating engaging and value-driven ads.

Best Practices For SaaS Video Marketing

If you want to maximize the effectiveness of your SaaS video marketing efforts, it’s important to follow some best practices. Here are some key strategies to keep in mind.

1. Have a Long-Term Strategy

One common mistake many SaaS companies make with their video marketing efforts is not having a long-term strategy. Without a clear plan for the future, you can quickly lose sight of your goals and fail to provide value to your audience.

You need to understand your target audience to create a successful long-term strategy for your SaaS video marketing. Who are you creating videos for? What are their pain points and challenges? Understanding your audience helps create videos that speak directly to their needs and interests.

It’s also important to focus on creating a variety of video content that aligns with your long-term strategy. Creating different types of videos keeps your audience engaged and builds a strong relationship with them over time. 

My recommendation is to treat video marketing the same way you do blogging and content marketing. Create a list of target videos to create and add it to your content calendar. You also want to remain flexible to create new video content around relevant trending topics. 

2. Define Your KPIs

You must establish business goals and identify Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). What do you want to achieve with your video marketing efforts? Are you looking to increase brand awareness, drive conversions, or improve customer retention? 

Knowing these things is essential to evaluating the performance of your SaaS video marketing campaigns.

For instance, you want to monitor metrics like views, likes, shares, and comments on your videos if one of your KPIs is to raise brand recognition. However, to increase conversions, you might want to monitor metrics like click-through rates and sales generated by your video ads.

Setting goals and tracking your progress toward these goals is crucial after you’ve identified your KPIs. Examine the effectiveness of each of your videos. You can determine what video content resonates with your audience the most by looking at stats like average watch time and interaction rates. 

Doing so helps you evaluate the effectiveness of your video marketing efforts and change your plan accordingly.

3. Set Up a Video Marketing Team

To succeed in video marketing, you’ll need a team of experts who can manage all aspects of the video production process. You can either hire them in-house or outsource to a professional agency. 

There are many moving parts involved in video production, including:

• Scriptwriting
• Storyboarding 
• Filming
• Editing 
• Post-production

Therefore, it’s essential to have a team with experience in video marketing. You want your videos to appear professional while meeting your marketing goals.

Building an in-house team is excellent since it gives you more control over the entire process. However, it can be costly, especially the initial cost. This is a good option for enterprise SaaS companies, in my opinion.

For SaaS startups, outsourcing video creation is the better choice. It’s cheaper and gives you access to state-of-the-art tools.

If you choose to have a presenter, it’s essential to consider who will appear in the video. Will it be a charismatic host or just a narrator? Choosing the right person to appear in your videos can make a significant impact on how well they resonate with your audience.

Having a dedicated video marketing team allows you to have a consistent and coherent brand message across all your videos. They can ensure your video content aligns with your overall marketing strategy and reflects your brand’s voice and values.

4. Invest in Retention & Storytelling

Retention and storytelling are two key elements that can make your SaaS video marketing strategy super successful. When it comes to retention, it’s essential to grab your audience’s attention and keep it throughout the video. 

One effective way to increase retention is by using storytelling in your videos. Stories have a powerful impact on people. They will make your content more relatable and memorable. With storytelling, you can connect with your audience on an emotional level, which can help to build trust and brand loyalty. Just like Airtable did in this video clip:

To create engaging and effective SaaS videos, it’s crucial to have a team with strong storytelling skills. This includes writers, directors, and editors who can work together to craft compelling narratives that resonate with your target audience. 

Wrapping Up

Today, any digital marketer’s toolkit must include SaaS video marketing. You can use video to improve brand visibility and engagement, boom conversion rates, and enhance customer experience.

Training and marketing videos, YouTube channel content, and PPC video ads are the three main categories of SaaS videos. To succeed, set up a long-term strategy, specify your KPIs, and create a video marketing team. When developing engaging content, it’ll be useful to take retention and storytelling into account.

So don’t put off creating videos for your SaaS marketing any longer. You can produce effective content that engages your audience and propels business success with the appropriate strategy and team.