07Jun

19 Reasons Why Video is the Future of Sales

June 7, 2022 Elle Werle 13

Discover how video has surged in global popularity, and the impact it’s had on sales and will have on the future of sales.

Until relatively recently video wasn’t exactly categorized as a “need” for most sales teams. The value of video has always been apparent, but it was more of an afterthought of a tool than a necessity. That has changed quickly and dramatically in the last decade. Quickly, it has become clear that video is the future of sales, marketing, and business. Specifically, video is now an essential part of selling remotely, along with email, chat, and phone.

You may be wondering why we need to add video in the mix at all. Sometimes in sales there is no replacing seeing each other face-to-face. Video accomplishes this, even for the times we cannot get an airplane and meet in person This is especially true for the end of the funnel when sales teams need to make that personal connection to push the deal through to the end.

Video has replaced meeting in person for countless teams, organizations, colleagues, and clients. Obviously the pandemic forced us all to conduct business differently, and a lot of what we tried has stuck. Video allows you and your client to ensure a sense of trustworthiness with that personal touch, without the need to meet in person.

1. Video is the Future of Sales Because it Dominates All Other Media

Video is also wildly popular across the world, and the surge shows no signs of slowing down. On the contrary, according to Cisco. Currently 82% of the world’s internet traffic is accounted for by video, up from 75% a few years ago.

82% is a significant amount of internet traffic! Right away you can see that if your brand is not included, then you really aren’t playing on a level playing field with the vast majority of other brands. That other 18% really isn’t on the playing field at all. After all, that’s less that ⅘ of brands choosing not to utilize video! Don’t be one of them.

In addition, imagine what this number will look like next year, or in 5 years? We are consuming more and more video each year. Every day it becomes more important that your brand jump in there and create valuable video content as well. The longer you take to get started, the more difficult the journey will be and the more time you are spending not capitalizing on this content and its benefits.

2. Proof that video dominates

Also according to Cisco, only 63% of sales and marketing teams used video just 5 years ago in 2017. That has increased to 87% of sales and marketing teams today.

You almost can’t imagine a sales or marketing team never leveraging video these days. It is a valuable tool of the trade! Video is the future of sales because it helps these teams demonstrate the value of your product or service much more effectively than other mediums. Writing a long email just doesn’t convey the message the same way as hearing it from a video.

3. Video is trending up still

Video shows absolutely no signs of slowing down. With data, user-generated content, live streaming, influencers, and more, there is no end in sight to the upward-trending explosion of video content being created and consumed.

There is no limit to what you can create with video. Content creators can be super creative, and there is always something to spin off or remake or even simply to inspire you. There will be no shortage of future trends and viral videos to work with!

4. Staying on cutting edge will make or break you

As I’m sure you’ve noticed online, there are limitless ways to use video for sales and marketing. It’s important to utilize the most important apps like TikTok and Instagram, and to know what kind of content is hot right now. Take note and advantage of trends, challenges, and what’s popular in the moment.

Look specifically for viral content that is being remixed and shared often. Follow content creators that make the type of content you find funny or interesting or compelling. Understand what your customers are seeing online and what they are comparing your content to. Read the comments, and even comment and become a part of the community! Know what the community is looking for and what they want.

5. Video is the Future of Sales Because it Creates the Highest Engagement

group of 3 people in an office looking happily at a cell phone

According to Hubspot, “Most marketers feel that video is a brilliant investment for lead generation. 86% of video marketers say video has been effective for generating leads, up another 2% from 2021 and up 5% since 2019.”

Time and time again, year after year, video proves to engage users more and more. These numbers continue to climb up and up, showing that video now reigns supreme for market engagement and prospecting. Make sure your team are leveraging video content creation in the most intelligent ways!

6. Reasons why video creates higher engagement

YouTube said it best: “If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth a million!” Video gives us more to interact with than still photos, text, and other mediums. We get audio and visual. We can sense the speakers’ tones, emotions, authenticity, personality, authority, and more.

We remember more from video than we do from reading text. Our emotional connection to the speaker affects our interpretation and memory in positive ways that can’t be recreated in an email. Nothing will re-create the engagement and connection that comes from video, as opposed to email or print or other types of media. Video is the future of sales because it creates incredibly high engagement.

7. Proof across different platforms

We need not look further than the current list of popular apps and platforms today to validate proof that video creates higher engagement. TikTok and Snapchat dominate the social media landscape, while Instagram created its Reels feature just to keep up. Its algorithm currently prioritizes Reels and video content as part of this effort. Content creators, in turn, have noticed and are pumping out more video content than ever before. Simply put, video is explosively popular and platforms have taken notice.

8. Video is shared exponentially more

Videos go viral. That’s not to say that there isn’t space on the Internet for memes and other viral content. The most memorable viral content tends to be videos, funny videos. Think “Charlie bit my finger” and “David after dentist” content. These are the timeless pieces of content that we remember and cherish, much more so than even a hilarious meme.

9. Video is the Future of Sales Because it’s Inexpensive

High quality video does not require a big budget. In fact, it doesn’t need to require anything besides the tools you already have, like a laptop with a webcam. Don’t stress that you haven’t invested in a mic, lights, or especially a fancy camera. None of that will be necessary to get started.

10. Necessary equipment

Don’t be fooled into thinking you need anything more than a laptop to get started. You don’t need a special microphone or light or anything else for that matter. While those items can help, they are not needed to get started. Simply begin with a laptop with a built-in microphone and video camera. Use a tool that does the rest for you, like Weet.

11. Lower-production quality (compared to top-dollar production-cost content) is relatable and often preferable to audiences

Not only is it not required of you to purchase equipment to achieve super high-end production quality, it can actually work against you to do so. Your audience will connect with someone relatable. Don’t sweat it if you stumble over your words once or don’t know exactly what to say. We all do that! You’re not a professional actor. It makes you approachable and causes people to be empathetic toward you.

12. Video is the Future of Sales Because it Creates a More Personal Touch

Video allows you to connect with your audience because they can see your facial expressions and hand gestures, as well as hear your tone and emotion. Add all of this together and you get a much richer and more clear picture of the story being told than you can with text alone.

13. Video humanizes your brand

Video allows the story of your brand to be told – from your own words. Imagine signing up for a new online service or product. Rather than receiving a welcome email with text – per usual, you receive a customized video for you. Which would you prefer?

The video would likely resonate with you more, just as it will with your clients, teammates, colleagues, students, and more. This is because video is ore personal and humanizing. Viewers of your video content will make that connection with your brand!

14. You can ask customers to create video testimonials - crazy high value!

Nothing packs a punch quite like authentic customer video testimonials. Invite your customers to use a super simple video tool that doesn’t require anyone to download software. (like Weet!)

Think about times when you heard genuine positive feedback from a happy customer about a brand’s products or services. Think about times you made the decision to give someone your business because of said recommendation. Try to create that feeling for the viewers of your video content.

This is another opportunity to point out that you really do not need Hollywood-level production quality here. Not only is that asking a lot for your customers to do (who are already kind enough to film a video review of your product or service), but you also want your brand to appear relatable. A short, simple, well-constructed, honest video review will work wonders.

15. Employees can connect more directly with customers - Founders, Execs, CSMs, Sales, etc…

Video allows anyone in an organization to connect with your brand’s audience. Does the CEO want to address everyone in a thank you video message? Does the Customer Success team want to troubleshoot a complex issue via video rather than email? Does the sales team want to connect more directly with leads?

Sales teams can leverage all of this video content for prospecting. Share video content that your colleagues have created, if it’s of value in any way for the client. These assets exist and were made for customers, so you should utilize them if and when the time is right.

16. Video is the Future of Sales Because Consumers Love Video

17. 88% of consumers cite brand videos on social media as part of their decision-making process when purchasing their products.

professional woman looking at cell phone

Think about the last few purchases you’ve made. Did you do any sort of research before making any of them? Did you look up reviews for a restaurant, doctor, veterinarian, hair salon, or more? Most of us do employ a web search or two for some of our purchases.

The research above shows that more and more of us are allowing brand-created video to factor into our decision making. 88% is a huge number! Video is definitely something that brands should not overlook or underestimate.

18. The most popular apps make it easy to see that video is more popular than still photos

Video has consistently been on the rise over the last decades, but recent apps have demonstrated and ensured that video is an enormous part of most peoples’ daily lives.

Between TikTok, Instagram Reels, Snapchat, and others, most of the content we consume today is video. Instagram, founded upon and once famous for being a place to share still photos, is actively pushing video content over photo content.

There’s just no denying that video is reigning supreme, and we know that this trend will continue. Content creators become more creative, cameras get better, videos go viral and are remixed – the content never ends.

19. Mobile is absolutely taking over video consumption - so you should optimize for that

Again, think back to your own experiences. We’ll go with the one above – researching product or service reviews. Did you use your phone to do that? Chances are you did, because most of us use our phones for just about everything.

You should plan your video experience accordingly. Optimize viewing for the mobile experience. Better yet, use analytics to find out where most of your traffic is coming from and optimize for that. We are willing to bet it’s mobile. Remember that video is the future of sales and you want to be where your prospects are.

Choose the right tool for your video selling experience. Check out Weet!

04Apr

The Ultimate Guide to Creating Customer Testimonial Video that Converts

April 4, 2022 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

Short marketing video best practices OPTION 2

We all do it: read reviews before making a purchase. In fact, 82% of respondents surveyed by Brightlocal reported reading online reviews before buying a product or service. In fact, a whopping 77% report ‘always’ or ‘regularly’ reading reviews when browsing for local businesses. That’s up from 60% in 2020.

No one will ever do as convincing of a job at selling what your company has to offer than a genuinely satisfied customer. The best Sales and CS teams in the game won’t hold as much weight in the minds of your future customers as a customer testimonial video will.

Customer Testimonial Video is Invaluable: McQuivey’s Equation

As we know all too well, you do not have a generous amount of time to capture your audience’s attention. To hold that attention, communicate a message, and have them retain it is an even more daunting task.

This leads us to Dr. James McQuivey who begged the question: if a picture is worth a thousand words, how much is a video worth?

In short, his answer? A one-minute video is worth 1.8 million words. Huh?

Let’s break down his line of thinking.

If 1 picture = 1,000 words, and video shoots at 30 frames per second, then one second of video = 30,000 words.

30,000 words x 60 seconds in one minute = 1.8 million words.

In summary, you can communicate more information in a video than email, images, and any other form of communication.

Why Does This Matter for My Customer Testimonial Video?

Just because video is effective, does it mean you should be sinking time, effort, and resources into it?

Of course! Video is such an in-depth form of communication that you can’t afford to miss out. More people use video today than ever, and those numbers are growing steadily,

We have good news: lucky for you, getting a customer testimonial video does not have to be difficult. You don’t have to spend a ton of money and dozens of hours on these projects. Use our tips below to make creating your customer testimonial video a breeze.

Tips for Creating Your Customer Testimonial Video

As seasoned vets, we have some invaluable tips and tricks for you when creating your customer testimonial video. Follow these steps to keep your teams and customers happy throughout this process!

1. ID customers who are particularly happy with your product or service.

Perhaps these customers have voiced their opinion to your CS team already. Maybe you actively dive into your databases to find the most highly-engaged customers.

2. Don’t ask customers for a video testimonial too soon.

Whatever you do, don’t rush into this too early in the customer’s relationship with your organization. Make sure they are an experienced, veteran customer with known positive experiences with your product or service.

3. Once you ID ideal customers, ask them right away if they are willing to film themselves to participate.

It is possible that someone else in the org would be more willing to speak on camera about your product or service. That’s great! Trust that they know the best person for the job.

You don’t want to waste time researching and planning for an org or team that is unwilling to provide this favor, and that’s okay if they don’t want to.

4. Only ask in an email

Don’t ask in a meeting or on the phone, as this will put the customer on the spot and may make them uncomfortable. You don’t want them to agree to something they don’t actually want to do.

You will find customers who are truly thrilled about your product and will be happy to create a short video for you.

5. Once the customer agrees, send guidelines for them to consider.

Make sure the customer knows details about what you are looking for. Consider details such as:

Preferred video length (usually :30-:60)
Ideal light settings (bright, overhead)
Ideal topics to speak about
How to structure your ideal testimonial

6. If you have them, send examples for customers to reference.

If you have existing examples on your website, share those links to give customers a sense of what you are looking for.

As soon as you make your first customer video testimonial make sure to share it with everyone you ask to create one after.

7. Use a single tool to record, share, store, and organize your customer video testimonials.

This will make a world of a difference for you and your helpful customers willing to record a video testimonial for you. Not requiring 11 different tools to create a short video will save you time – and time is money!

Use a tool like Weet as your one-stop-shop for all video recording, sharing, and organization needs! Your customers can even update their reviews after they’ve been published. You can record multiple testimonials from multiple people in a single video as well!

Examples of the Best Customer Testimonial Videos Online

In this example we from Ascender HCM, we see testimonials from a few people. We chose this video for its thoroughness, diverse cast and their connection with the audience.

Here is another example from Omada Health. We chose this one for its simplicity. Everyone sits in front of an orange background and simply describes their lovely experience in working with this particular organization. It is simple, easy to recreate, and effective.

In this example from Yieldify we see an excellent use of screen recording.

Clocking in at 3:10, this video is a bit long but stands out because Yieldify shows in the video what the customer sees on their computer screen when using their digital product.

We chose this example because it plays like a movie! It keeps you engaged, interested in the story, and wanting to tune in until the end to find out what happened!

Conclusion

A solid customer video testimonial can make or break the decision-making process for future customers. Don’t make it harder than it needs to be! Create these invaluable assets with a tool like Weet today!

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20Mar

9 Best Funny Customer Service Videos

March 20, 2022 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

There are countless ways that video has been used in Customer Service. From training videos to television commercials and everything in between, video is the perfect medium to connect with your customers over and over again.

Perhaps without realizing it, we have witnessed countless customer service moments on TV and in movies. Some of our examples on this list are famous pop culture moments!

1. Chill Out With the Bureaucracy

This clip depicts Ben Stiller’s character Greg Focker in Meet The Parents. Here we see what the poster describes as the “perfect exaggeration of how some companies rigidly hold on to their policies and protocols.”

Of course, the company in question doling out the less-than-stellar customer service is an airline. Albeit a fictional one, but hey, we’ve all been there.

Every airline employee that Focker meets along the way is apathetic.

2. Play on Words

Any 90s kid – or adult – will recognize this instant classic. The Orbit “Dirty Mouth” commercials were just about as fun as tv commercials can get. Hilariously, one of the actresses in the commercial, Jesse Meriwether, posted the link herself and had this to say about it:

“The writers were on set all day giving us different things to say. It was a lot of fun. The Orbit people were in the back room and they kept calling via radio “We want more chewing! More chewing!” It was pretty hilarious. My jaw was about to fall off by the end of the day. There was a lot of laughing on this set. As you can imagine.”

3. What Customer Service Does NOT Look Like

No list of funny customer service videos would be complete without examples of what not to do. There are just so, so many of them.

Listen, you’re going to want happy employees if you want to provide great customer service. Think about it: employees who despise their jobs or managers won’t be motivated to promote that company in any way. Quite the opposite.

Employees with a sense of pride in their work, who feel heard and well-paid, will be proud to work for that organization. It will show in how they represent the company when the manager isn’t around!

4. Dealing with Difficult Customers

Every. Single. One. of us in Customer Service will deal with crazy customers. It’s just the name of the game. When in this situation as the CSM we can choose how to react: we can calmly use what is at our disposal to make the situation better, or we can let others’ poor behavior infect us too.

Rise above it. It’s hard not to see the humor in things with this next clip.

The concept of difficult customers is depicted hilariously in the 2011 movie Bridesmaids. In this scene we see Annie, played by Kristin Wiig, intoxicated and acting inappropriately on an airplane. An understandably irritated flight attendant handles the obnoxious Annie with… we’ll call it stern grace.

5. Read the Room

Customer service means being reactive while doing your best to anticipate the customers’ needs. Think about some everyday situations you’ve been a part of, even if you’re not in customer service.

For example, if you walk into a bar and see a achelorette party at one table and an elderly couple at another, most would deduce that these different customers will have different needs. They will be looking for a different experience, despite being at the same place (or purchasing the same product).

Hailing from Saturday Night Live, this is one of our most funny customer service videos. It depicts a front desk employee (Kumail Nanjiani) frustrating a man (Mikey Day) trying to check in to a hotel.

Rather than anticipating, or even simply listening to what the customer wants, the employee is pushy and insistent on what he thinks the customer should do. It’s a cringey situation that unfortunately most of us have been in.

6. Practice Makes Perfect

Before working with customers one-on-one it is helpful to practice with your colleagues. You can create case studies and role-play scenarios where a colleague is posing as a customer. The “customer” will ask questions and proceed through the mock sales process to gain insights into how it works.

Next is our most famous funny customer service videos, from a little show called The Office. In this scene we see Dwight, Michael, and Jim practice a mock sales call for practice. Of course, things go awry and chaos ensues.

7. Be Clear & Concise

There is an imbalance of information between every salesperson and customer. Obviously the salesperson or CSM will know more about the product, service, price, discounts, problems, etc.

Your job as the customer-facing person in the organization is to represent the company and product to the customer. You want to communicate with clarity and effectiveness. Don’t let the customer feel confused and defeated when you have all of the tools to help her!

For this funny customer service video we had to bring back Kumail Nanjiani, this time from one of his many stints on the always-hilarious Portlandia. Here Nanjiani plays a an unconcerned cell phone store employee who does everything in his power to be the least clear and concise he can be with his customers.

8. Be Nice!

This should go without saying, but we should always be nice to our customers! Even if you are having a bad day, or are frustrated, never take it out on the customer. It would be better to take the day off (mental health days are real and very necessary, people!) and step away than to treat customers badly.

This next on our list of funny customer service videos is a classic example from Seinfeld. In this clip we see George and Jerry legitimately afraid of a business owner after being berated publicly. They return back over and over only because the soup is so good, but always at the cost of stress and usually embarrassment.

9. Do Everything in Your Power to Improve the Situation

Customer Service teams often have varying degrees of flexibility to help customers out. Perhaps you are able to discount certain items or provide free express delivery. Whatever the case, use these tools when necessary! They can save customer relationships.

Things do go wrong in any organization, and it’s the CSM’s job to discuss that with the customer. Be prepared to do all you can to help them.

Conclusion

Funny customer service videos give us so many great examples of what to – and not to – do in customer service situations. Use these, along with your own expectations of how a customer should be treated, to have fun with guiding your own customer experiences!

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07Mar

Your Guide to Creating the Best Customer Service Videos

March 7, 2022 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

Customer service videos are becoming more and more prevalent as time goes on, and for good reason.

Organizations have gotten increasingly creative with customer service videos. Meetings have been eliminated, customers can easily understand the product at their own pace, complex troubleshooting issues can more efficiently be resolved, the list goes on.

How your organization leverages customer service videos can greatly impact your success. With video, you have the ability to create personal connections with your client base in ways that email doesn’t. Your expertise Customer Success team can spend less time reiterating basic product functionalities and more time troubleshooting higher-level requests. It’s a win-win situation if executed correctly.

List of Best Customer Service Video Ideas

Check out Weet’s curated list of customer service videos that every CSM team should begin with:

Customer Service Video Idea: Basic Product Demos

Every customer-facing team needs a concise, effective video demonstration.

Don’t go through all of the bells and whistles here (perhaps mention them to pique viewer interest), but you won’t have time to cover everything. Try to keep this video under 5 minutes, like in our example above that clocks in at 4 minutes.

Another point to stress here is that you don’t have to strive for perfection with this video. You are presenting a real, human side to the product and company. It’s okay if your cat walks across the background or you stumble over a word or two. We’re human, you’re not a Hollywood actor, and people aren’t looking for that.

The focus of this video is to present your product quickly, efficiently, and effectively. Like an elevator pitch where the elevator got stuck for a few minutes.

Since you have such a short amount of time to present all of this info, order your information in logical sections and chapters that are named and easy for viewers to navigate. Look for tools, like Weet, that can do this for you.

Customer Service Video Idea: Video Tutorials and How-tos

Customer Success teams know how invaluable a pre-made, shareable, and effective how-to tool can be. These assets are so valuable because they both help customers and allow CSMs to prioritize their time and expertise on higher-level matters. Just like with product demos, video tutorials and how-tos are a win-win: for customers and for the CSM team.

Customers love to be able to watch a short video that solves their issue by walking them step by step. No need to pick up the phone to chat or call a support team member. It’s all about saving the customer time and providing the most convenient and fast way to fix their issue. Give them as few hoops to jump through as possible.

Customer Success teams often get repeat questions and find ourselves explaining the same topics over and over. Sure, we have canned email messages for such occasions. But you can have a canned video response that is way more clear and personable than that email could ever be.

Customer Service Video Idea: Knowledge Base

If you don’t have a Knowledge Base, it’s time to create one. Hubspot defines a Knowledge Base as “a centralized database for spreading information and data. Knowledge bases support collecting, organizing, retrieving, and sharing knowledge.”

Many organizations have internal KBs and separate, external KBs for clients and customers. A lot of time a customer-facing Knowledge Base is really the support page, particularly of a SaaS company. Here we see Apple’s contact page and Weet’s help page as examples of Knowledge Bases.

Video has the power to give your Knowledge Bases incredible value and leverage. Do not make the mistake of creating a long, dry, all-text Knowledge Base. In Weet’s KB, every page links to a weet video with a screenshare example of a CSM guiding the viewers through a step-by-step process. Video KB content has more value than the written instructions because

It can be transcribed
Viewers can see the demonstration for themselves
With the right tools, videos can be updated after being saved and shared
Also with the right tools, videos can be divided into sections and chapters so viewers can jump straight where they need to
Videos can change playback speeds to save time
Studies show that 72% of consumers prefer to learn about a product or service via video

Customer Service Video Idea: Troubleshooting

Video is a great way to troubleshoot customer issues. You can create videos to preemptively prevent issues, like our example above, or you can respond directly to customers with weets of helpful screnshares.

Video is so important and undervalued for troubleshooting. As a CSM, what is more valuable than being able to see the customer’s issue and showing them the solution directly. Your customers will appreciate the personal touch of your customer service video.

And even better news, you can re-use these videos! Duplicate weets to save certain sections that you want to use again in the future.

Customer Service Video Idea: Communities and Forums

In today’s remote world, more than ever, we need ways to bring together people remotely and asynchronously. (No one in their right mind is suggesting more Zoom meetings).

Yet we want to foster the connections we would have in an office or client meeting, just outside those settings and on our own schedules.

Video makes this possible! Use tools, like in our example above, that allow you to record with multiple people, collaborate with video, audio, and screenshare in the comments, and provide time-stamped emoji reactions.

Customer service videos oriented toward communities and forums can be fun and inviting and interactive! You just need the right tools.

Customer Service Video Idea: Product Release Updates

Keep your entire customer base up-to-date with your product and service updates! Don’t lose business because customers don’t know that your product or service has improved in some way. Communicate this to your customers through dedicated channels like newsletters, social media, and email lists.

Use video to actively demonstrate these updates. As we’ve mentioned previously, studies show that people by far prefer to learn about these things via video as opposed to text.

Customer Service Video Idea: Employee Training

Incorporate videos into your onboarding process for a smoother experience.

Whether in office or remote, new employees can watch these videos on their time, between the inevitable new-job meeting storm. They can reference the videos again in the future, unlike in live trainings.

When using the right tools, training videos can be updated even after saving and sharing, without altering the original link at all. This saves time for the trainers and helps the trainees hone in on what they need help understanding most. It’s an individualized plan vs. a one-size-fits-all track.

Conclusion

Customer service videos are an invaluable resource for clients and colleagues. Leverage video to positively impact the success of your company by creating personalized connections, focusing your teams’ expertise where it makes the most impact, and demonstrating directly to customers new features and product troubleshooting issues.

The possibilities for customer service videos are endless!

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22Feb

10 Reasons to Share Your Knowledge

February 22, 2022 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

Knowledge is what drives every organization. We all know what happens when we silo it and make it difficult to access. You wind up with frustrated teams, an imbalance and bottleneck of information, and chaos ensues.

Organizations Are Better When You Share Your Knowledge

Sharing your knowledge is the easiest way to cause an organization to run smoother. Think about it: you have dozens, hundred, maybe thousands of employees each with their own brilliant ideas, minds, training, and backgrounds.

Imagine what can be done when people work together within an organization. There are so many benefits. We outline ten below:

10 Reasons to Share Your Knowledge

1. Close the Skills Gaps

Any team is only as strong as its weakest member. When new people and junior members have access to conversations about decisions and procedures, important knowledge is shared and new skills are acquired.

It’s up to you to create an environment where all feel encouraged to ask questions. Ask everyone for their opinions and ideas – not just the execs and directors. Close skills gaps by sharing knowledge with your colleagues and your customers.

2. Create a Sense of Purpose

I would bet that most of us can agree that we prefer to feel a sense of purpose in our work than not to. Nobody wants to grind away doing work that feels pointless each and every day. We universally seek a sense of purpose and meaning in our lives, work, relationships, and more.

This is a great thing in a work environment. Create an environment where people feel like they make a difference when they share their knowledge and ideas. People will have the opportunity to see how their work impacts the bigger picture of the organization. This is key! Help your employees create a sense of purpose by sharing their knowledge, and acknowledging it.

Give people an open platform to share. Keep in mind that different people are comfortable sharing information in different ways. For example, maybe reconsider requiring people to share feedback by grabbing a microphone and sharing in front of a live audience. Give everyone a chance to share their ideas, whether discreetly or not.

3. Increase Operational Productivity and Efficiency

This is one of the top goals of every organization. Yet how often do we acknowledge that sharing your knowledge is one of the best ways to make it happen! Increase team productivity and work smarter (not harder) when everyone puts their minds together.

Give colleagues easy access to internal (and external) expertise and resources. Create Knowledge Bases that are easily searchable and reliably up-to-date. You will be amazed at how smoothly projects go and silos disappear.

4. To Look Good

People want to look good and appear intelligent in front of others. We all do this, and the technical term for it is called “impression management.” In the workplace we have a natural tendency to want to share our knowledge and expertise – and we should! Lean into this inclination and share your knowledge with your team, your boss, colleague, whoever.

This benefits everyone. Not only do you get to shine like the expert in your field that you are, but everyone who hears your message gets to join in the benefit of knowing it. Or considering it, if you are brainstorming ideas.

Every time you share input it will serve you well, regardless of the outcome of your sharing the input. In other words, what you say doesn’t have to be earth-shattering. Just say it.

If you are nervous that people will have a negative reaction, consider how many times that has actually happened when other people said something silly. Did it end their career? Do people think less of them for it? Chances are, that’s not the case. Go for it!

5. Become a Future Leaders

If you want to create an impact and make a difference – within your organization or not- you will need people to notice you. When you share your knowledge you will accomplish just that.

Think back in history about how many boardrooms were and are filled with old, white men. How many of the same ideas have been brought to the table for decades or more on end because no one else was at the table?! Be at that table. Better yet, speak up at that table.

Leaders and inspirations can’t live in their own minds. They must share their ideas in order to make the world a better place.

6. To Persuade Others

You’ve almost certainly shared your knowledge to persuade others in the past. You learned this at a young age because it works. Being educated about a topic is great information to share with others when you want them to form an opinion about it.

A lot of times we share information in order to feel good. It feels good for others to share the same opinions we do.

7. To Connect and Bond

Sharing information bonds humans together today just as it has for millenia. It is often the case that we enjoy talking to each other and exchanging information. If you look back on your life, you probably enjoyed several opportunities to share your knowledge.

An article from the American Psychological Association explains it this way:

“Without that instinct to share the latest on a friend, peer or family member, there would be no sophisticated society, Dunbar claims, suggesting that societies depend on the individual’s ability to rely on others and understand something of the workings of another’s mind.”

In other words, we need to talk to each other! We like it because we need it.

8. To Help and Teach

You have the power to teach others everything you know when you share your knowledge. This is so valuable at work! We have all been that indispensable person who knew all the processes and “secrets” at work. This is really dangerous because it puts a lot of pressure and creates an imbalance of information.

Ultimately you want everyone on the team to know the best processes and most effective workflows. Do this by having that indispensable person (or people!) create video tutorials and SOPs for their respective teams.

Each individual has unique ideas and attributes to bring to the team. When you can capture those unique ideas and share them quickly and reliably, everyone learns and is better off for it.

9. Learn From the Best

How often are we surrounded by industry veterans, teeming with knowledge and insight, but never get the chance to really benefit from that? Very often in our jobs we are surrounded by astounding experts in their fields. It makes sense to compile the best of what everyone knows and to share it!

Organizations hire for the best expertise, and people work hard to learn that knowledge and love to be recognized for it. Share your knowledge so we can learn from each other, share expertise, and sharpen everyone’s skills.

10. To Feel Good

As we’ve mentioned a few times already, it feels good to share your knowledge! We like to talk to people and help them out. It’s natural, and it’s a great thing.

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07Feb

6 Reasons Why Video is the Best Way to Share Your Knowledge and Expertise

February 7, 2022 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

Sharing knowledge within an organization is pivotal to its success. Contributors spend a lot of time, effort, and money to improve valuable databases and information within organizations. Information needs to be accessible, up-to-date, easy to find, and searchable if it’s going to make an impact within an organization.

Nowadays there are seemingly infinite ways to share your knowledge and expertise. There’s always a new app or platform or medium to choose from.

So how do you determine the best way to share your knowledge and expertise? It’s all a matter of effectiveness. Sharing knowledge ineffectively practically guarantees you’re not sharing any information at all. Certainly not to the depth you need your recipients to comprehend what you’re sharing.

Video is far and wide the most effective way to share your knowledge and expertise. According to research conducted by TechSmith, 83% of people prefer watching videos as opposed to accessing instructional or informational content via text or audio.

Here we dive into exactly why video is the best way to share your knowledge and expertise.

Sharing your knowledge and expertise via video is:

1. Personal

With video, your recipients and audience can physically see your facial expressions and pick up on your tone and energy. The importance of this can’t be overstated.

There are so many social cues and messages we pick up on when we communicate with someone face-to-face. Video is the medium that best captures the subtleties of this communication without actually being physically together in the same place at the same time.

Relationships are built upon these subtle communications. There are instances and occasions where an email or a phone call simply does not provide the personal touch needed when you still can’t get on an airplane and meet in person.

2. Clear

Communication is an art form that, for better or worse, can leave a lot of room for interpretation. In any organization it’s incredibly important to be crystal clear when you share your knowledge and expertise.

Spending time and money for a contributor to help the organization, only for them not to communicate this clearly, is an enormous waste of resources for the organization and the people involved in the processes.

Video allows an expert to communicate clearly. Not only can they demonstrate and show their own selves and faces, but they can demo any software or physical processes as well. There is basically no limit to what you can demonstrate and communicate via video, which is not the case with any other medium.

3. Asynchronous

It is simply not cost, time, or energy-effective to host every meeting live and in-person these days. The pandemic has certainly collectively caused us to see how wasteful meetings can be.

With teams more commonly spread out all across the globe, the senselessness of synchronous meetings cannot be ignored. Droves of organizations are embracing asynchronous communication. In other words, management teams and executives across the world are realizing that employees not only don’t require regular meetings, but thrive.

Asynchronous communication means replying on your own time. It empowers employees to get the job done and takes the stress and unproductivity out of constantly answering emails and attending live meetings.

4. Collaborative

Video does not have to be a one-way conversation. In fact, the best tools will prevent that and foster an openly collaborative environment.

When you share your knowledge and expertise with Weet video, users can comment with video, audio, emojis, and text. All contributions are time-stamped, so everyone knows what exact part of the video the commenter is referring to.

You can get the same collaboration as a live meeting, even when your entire team is spread across time zones. A lot of users even report chiming in more than traditional meetings, because the stress of physically speaking up in front of others is eliminated!

5. Demonstrative

Video allows you to share your knowledge and expertise by showing your audience. You can’t do that with email, text, or the phone.

Even live meetings can present a challenge of transporting expensive, large materials to a board room for a short meeting. Why not film a comprehensive video demo instead?

Your audience often needs to see what you are describing to them for themselves. The demonstration of a client or sales meeting is absolutely crucial. Record your perfect demo and share it, duplicate it, edit it, embed it, and distribute it as many times with as many people as you want! There are no limits to what you can create and demonstrate with video, especially as opposed to other mediums of communication.

6. Eliminate Confusion

We’ve all misinterpreted the tone of a text message, or written a well-intentioned email that accidentally sounded harsh. It is a harsh reality of communicating with limited sensory input.

Sharing your knowledge and expertise with video communication eliminates an enormous amount of confusion. Your audience will make no mistakes about what your intended message is, what tone you are conveying, or what emotion you are feeling.

This is not the case with text, email, audio, and other mediums. Every sense we leave out of communication creates more and more confusion. Video is the closest medium we have to communicating face-to-face.

Conclusion: Reasons Why Video is the Best Way to Share Your Knowledge and Expertise

Organizations’ success depends on their ability to effectively communicate. Developing a great product is meaningless if no one finds out about it. Having a great customer service team is pointless if the customers can’t reach them.

Video bridges the gap between expensive, unrealistic in-person meetings and dry, open-ended text-based communication. To share your knowledge and expertise in any organization you must master the art of asynchronous video.

Video is not going anywhere, either. On the contrary, video will make up 82% of Internet traffic by the end of this year. That’s up from just 75% in 2017 (Techsmith). It is imperative that organizations empower contributors like you to share your knowledge and expertise effectively – with video.

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25Jan

The Ultimate Guide to Knowledge Share Techniques

January 25, 2022 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

“Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.” – Robert Noyce, Co-Founder of Intel

According to a report from the Society for Human Resource Management, Fortune 500 companies lose about $32 billion each year by simply failing to share knowledge. And these are the most effective, efficient, and profitable companies out there!

We challenge you to find a situation in which knowledge shared would not improve things. Whether it’s at work, home, school, in your relationships, or elsewhere, knowledge truly has the power to change dynamics, motivate, correct, and help people thrive.

Knowledge Share Techniques

While a lot of knowledge sharing is done informally via chats and Slack, we can make an effort to formally schedule into our workflows. Benefits include a better understanding of each other, teams being on the ‘same page’, fewer meetings, more comprehensive understanding, and more.

Here we present and discuss ways that you can infuse knowledge sharing into your organization.

1. Culture

Create a culture where everyone can talk to everyone else. Where everyone wants to talk to everyone else! This can be done in a few ways. First, and so simple it sounds silly, you can start by physically removing barriers. For those of you at the office, an open-plan concept (or at least open-door policy) can make higher-ups more approachable.

For remote and hybrid teams, managers and C-levels can make themselves available with an ‘open-door’ policy on Slack, email, and/or other communication platforms. Video is also encouraged as it creates a much more personal touch, and can take less time than it takes to type up an email.

We all want to be a part of a workplace that is fun and effective. A place where you actually want to be. The very basis of this culture is a workplace where people communicate freely.

2. Knowledge Bases

We’re just going to come out and say it: knowledge bases are awesome.

Most of us see them on websites of products and services we use (here is an example). Typically these are customer-facing, and generally include a list of FAQs and troubleshooting guides for clients to self-serve before having to reach out to a customer service team member.

But there are so many other amazing applications for a knowledge base. Create one internally, as an ordered repository of information. It is a place where knowledge is shared organization-wide and indexed. You can include video tutorials, step-by-step guides, flowcharts, and more.

Dismantle information silos in your organization with knowledge share tools like knowledge bases.

3. Use Multiple Knowledge Share Tools

Do not limit the people within your organization with a lack of tools. People learn in different ways, and you want to make sure everyone is on the same page. People generally share knowledge through email, Slack, text, or just chatting with each other.

We encourage you not to forget video. Video is an indispensably effective tool for knowledge sharing. Specifically a tool that allows you to record yourself and your screen simultaneously. This way you get the personal touch and tonality of a video, with the demonstrative ability of a screen share.

Whatever tools your organization decides to use, encourage the use of them tirelessly. Everyone should use them (see below point). Ask your colleagues what tools they use the most, find to be most effective, and enjoy using.

4. Lead By Example

Whether remote or not, culture and mindset should be modelled from the very top. Senior stakeholders should practice what they preach by demonstrating the value in knowledge sharing.

This means that collaboration will be more important than hierarchy. Senior colleagues shouldn’t be willing to co-author, share, collaborate, co-create, and move toward a goal as a unified team. A vibe and culture that normalizes knowledge sharing from the top down will lead to more of it.

5. Manage Information Silos

According to Investopedia, an information silo is “an information management system that is unable to freely communicate with other information management systems.” Within an organization this plays out as departments that don’t share information.

Some reasons that information silos are formed are because management doesn’t see the benefit of integrating a system with others, or because it does not want to or can’t afford to make the necessary changes.

There are a few key problems with information silos. First, they can create redundancy by making multiple people look for the same info in different places. Second, they create confusion when information from different sources doesn’t match. Gone unchecked, this can lead to frustration. In the end, misinformation due to the lack of transparency ultimately creates preventable inefficiencies.

6. ID Internal Communication Barriers

Clear communication and the natural ability to communicate with colleagues is key to preventing barriers. Online forums or activities to facilitate communication can be helpful, especially to ‘get the ball rolling.’

Whenever knowledge sharing is not a seamless, simple process, a communication barrier exists. Provide tips, feedback, suggestions, and guides for colleagues to improve their communication skills and remove these barriers. Informed and communicative employees have the headspace to help your business grow.

Conclusion

Sharing knowledge within your organization is imperative, but likely won’t come naturally. With a purposefully designed workplace culture, the right tools, and effective leadership, any organization can become a “knowledge share” institution.

Understanding the importance of sharing knowledge is a great place to start, both for senior and junior stakeholders. For happier employees and a more profitable bottom line, make sure knowledge can flow through your organization seamlessly.

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10Jan

How to Use Video for Sales Part 2: How to Close a Deal Tips

January 10, 2022 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

In Part 1 of the “How to Use Video for Sales” series we discussed why video is important for sales and what to look for in sales communication tools. The article advised steps to take to leverage video at the beginning of the sales funnel.

Taking the concept of video for sales a step further, we will learn how to close a sales deal tips with video for the end of the funnel. This will require a totally different approach than the beginning of the funnel. Rather than trying to cast a wide net, you will want to hone in to your final prospects individually.

Sales video for the end of the sales funnel is much more personal and collaborative. You may have to explain complex components of your offerings, or offer an FAQ. Whatever your needs, video is absolutely crucial in closing a sale – both remotely and traditionally.

Make it Personable

To make a sale you want to make your content personable and personal. Your audience is much more likely to respond to your message in a positive way if they feel they know and trust you. Think about how you feel when you see an advertisement or know you are being sold to.

Building trust like that is especially true for video. Luckily it’s extremely easy to create a personal connection with video format, thanks to the combination of video and audio.

Any “how to close a sales deal” tips will mention how important it is to build a relationship with your prospects and clients. You can record introductions for specific prospects or groups, and share the same demo with everyone. This creates a win-win for everyone involved, because you all get the personalized touch for your client without having to create fresh content for every prospect.

Use a video recording tool that allows you to record your face along with whatever you are presenting. A helpful video cam and screen share combination tool works miracles in this case!

Share Testimonial Videos

You have hoards of happy customers. Put their avid love for your product or service to great use in the form of short video testimonials!

Ask the customer to take just a few minutes of their time to share how their lives have been genuinely improved after purchasing what you have to offer. The video can be as short as :30 and be extremely effective! In fact, any longer than that and you may risk losing the viewers’ attention.

Surely, your happy customers will be willing to spend a few seconds to tell others about your product or service. To get their feedback, kindly ask via (video gives you that personal touch!) Be sure to make it easy for them to provide you with the feedback you need. Provide a direct link for testimonials.

Stay Product-Focused

In addition to showing your face in the sales video, you’ll want to share your screen. This allows you to primarily focus on the product or service being presented. Scroll through your website or share a video as part of your presentation. Let the customer get a multidimensional view of what you are pitching.

The most important aspect here is to demonstrate the product. Show your clients and prospects how it works, what it does, what to expect. That’s the beauty of video! No “how to close a sales deal tips” list would be complete without a reminder that the product is what’s most important!

Eliminate Confusion

It can be difficult to explain complex ideas and processes via text, like email. Taking this route often leaves a lot of room for confusion and questions, which only takes more time to communicate.

With the webcam and screen share combo you are sure to create a concise message for your target audience. Your demonstration will be thorough and immersive, with no stone left unturned. Your prospects will not only connect with you, but also see the product or service in action for themselves.

Make sure your viewers are left knowing exactly what you offer and how it works – all with the added trust built with video!

Choose Distribution Channels That Fit Your Needs

There are countless avenues to share your information – YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, direct email, text, the list goes on. Make sure to identify what channels your target audience can best be reached.

Use a tool that allows you to share in all of these different channels. Just because it’s not right for your marketing plan to use certain channels now does not mean you won’t want to pivot in the future. In fact, expect it! Be prepared and flexible with your sales video distribution.

Thank Your Customer

When you ultimately close that sale, send a personalized message to your client. With tools like Weet you and your recipient can even collaborate with video, audio, screen share, and text! Your customers will be impressed with your thoughtful message, and have a place to contact you.

You can even record an introduction “thank you” video as a template, then add a personalized message to individual clients or prospects. This will save you so much time and energy, all while providing an incalculably higher personal touch for your customer. Surely they will remember your product or service above the competition after such a unique and sincere message.

How to Close a Sales Deal Tips Conclusion

Video is an extremely important part of the sales process – both the beginning and end of the sales funnel. From sharing testimonials to creating concise content, you will want to leverage video to close sales deals. Video creates the personal touch of an in-person meeting, without the scheduling and hassle. Close a sales deal tips aren’t complete without taking video into consideration.

Never underestimate the power of video testimonials. Think about how many times you’ve seen these on television yourself? There is a reason for it!

Create, edit, share, and collaborate in one place. Use Weet video messaging today for your sales video content!

Thank your customers and show them you care with customized, thoughtful messages made just for them.

Video can be leveraged in countless ways at the end of the sales funnel. There are many close a sales deal tips to consider. Leave your mark and get started today with Weet!

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03Jan

How to Use Video for Sales Part 1: Sales Team Communication Tools

January 3, 2022 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

In the last several years we’ve seen video skyrocket in popularity. Research shows that the average viewer remembers 95% of a message when it is watched, compared to 10% of messages that were read. That’s an enormous difference!

To create content that people will remember, make it a video. How do you capture attention at the beginning of the funnel with video? Just remember the 5 Ws.

Who are you talking to? What form of communication do they prefer to receive?

Chances are, your audience prefers video. On their cell phones, specifically. According to Invisia, mobile video consumption rises by 100% every year. Reflect on your own life and experience about how much time you spend watching videos on your own cell phone each day.

Furthermore, Cisco reports that this year online videos will make up more than 82% of all consumer internet traffic. That’s 15 times higher than it was only 5 years ago in 2017. Video sales team communication tools are here to stay!

And if you want your message to go viral, over 90% of viewers share videos with others. That’s 1200% more shares than text and images combined. Your video content is exponentially more likely to gain internet attention than any other type of media content.

What knowledge are you sharing with your sales team communication tools?

Are you reviewing, explaining, describing, showing, or demonstrating something? Is your message best communicated with long paragraphs of text? Likely not.

Most of us want to be shown how to do something, not read steps. Likewise, most of us don’t want to type all of that up, usually multiple times if at work, either.

Enter: sales team communication tools and video! Record it once – your real, live, human face demonstrating something in real time – and send it as many times to as many people as you want. This saves you time – all while communicating your information more effectively.

When do you want to communicate with your viewer?

It is a pain to schedule meetings, whether in-person or online. Nobody wants to make time for another Zoom meeting. Nobody.

Thankfully, organizations are starting to recognize the benefits and importance of asynchronous communication in the workplace. What this means is that you can send your video, either via a link or native with a tool, and your prospect can view it whenever they want. They will receive your message when they are ready to give it their full attention.

Great sales team communication tools will allow the prospect to collaborate with your video. Weet offers video, screen share, audio, and text commenting options.

Where are your videos going?

Whether you choose to post your videos on your website orYouTube channel, send them directly to clients or colleagues, or share a link, you need a solution that allows you to do all of these things.

Even if you believe you don’t want to share your videos via all of these channels now, you very well may in the future. Give yourself options with your sales team communication tools. Take your valuable visual asset and leverage it to make sales, both now and in the future!

Why is video perfect for sales team communication tools?

By now hopefully it is clear why video is the ideal knowledge vehicle for sales professionals. With the right tools sales videos are easy to make, share, and collaborate with prospective clients. You will eliminate confusion and breeze through complex topics in ways that would not be possible with text alone.

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20Dec

6 Tools to Create Video Tutorials

December 20, 2021 Elle Werle 4

Elle Werle

by Elle Werle

How-to videos are powerful ways to generate both views and revenue, and you’ll need the right tools to create video tutorials.

Did you know that 71% of people reported watching two or more video tutorials each week? All of us have watched them, and statistics show that we’re watching more and more as time goes on.

To drive viral views and high revenue, follow Weet’s guide to find the right tools to create video tutorials.

1. Determine What Viewers Want

Research shows that most viewers prefer instructional and informational videos between three to six minutes in length.

Aim to create videos that fall within that time frame, and definitely not longer. Nobody wants to sit through a 20-minute video when they’ve got a task they’re eager to finish.

2. Show What You Know

Eliminate confusion and clearly set the tone by recording webcam video while you share your screen. Viewers will see your face along with your screen! This provides a personal touch along with your clear demonstration.

3. Organize The Info

Trim and edit your videos. Create chapters to organize the information presented. Users want the option to jump to the information they need when they need it. Make this clear and easy to navigate for them.

4. Tools to Create Video Tutorials

You don’t need fancy lights, microphones, and cameras to create killer content. You just need a platform that does it all for you.

With a tool like Weet you can create high-quality, interactive, instructional videos in a snap. Choose between filters and virtual backgrounds for high production quality.

5. Get Your Message Out There

Creating your video tutorial is only half the battle – you need to share your video message as well!

Share your video on social media. Embed it in a webpage or knowledge base. Send it in an email. With Weet, you have options.

6. Track Viewers

See who is watching your videos, and when. Use this information to tailor your videos more to your audience’s needs as time moves on. More views = more revenue! Rinse and repeat.

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