Demo Duck & ViralGains: Video Marketing and Data Strategy

This post originally appeared on the Demo Duck blog. Visit Demo Duck to learn how you can solve business challenges through video.

We recently sat down with Lauren Garcia from ViralGains and had a fun chat about world of video. We discussed how data and the ViralGains platform enhances video marketing performance. We also talked about how we use data during the video production process and, of course, some of our favorite viral videos. Check out highlights from the conversation in the video above or read the transcription below.

Colin Hogan: Hi, I’m Colin Hogan, Managing Director of Demo Duck, a video production agency in Chicago. And today, I’m joined by…

Lauren Garcia: Lauren Garcia from ViralGains.

Colin: So tell us a little bit about ViralGains.

Lauren: Well, we’re actually a video-based ad journey platform. We sit on top of existing, beautiful, glossy, video inventory and we help tee up brand messages to people in a very personalized way.

Colin: So the audiences are actually going to interact with the marketing video in some way? And what do you do with that interaction?

Lauren: That interaction allows us to not only optimize towards their personal signals, preferences, if they like the brand, etc., and we can share that information back to the brand. Then also help kind of sweep customers intuitively down the purchase funnel by sharing more content that makes sense.

Colin: We just make video [laughs].

What are some example content strategies that you’ve seen clients use to keep viewers engaged?

Lauren: One of the video content strategies we have seen was with a pet medication brand. They were testing different creative approaches so they made three different videos, and using the platform, we were able to surface insights and share back whichever was the most meaningful for the consumer.

Colin: I’m gonna guess it was the funny one.

Lauren: Well, you’d actually be wrong. People are very sentimental about their pets and it really tugged at heartstrings. So we were able to share that back with them and then give them additional insights from an audience’s perspective to move forward with.

What should businesses be measuring when it comes to engagement?

Lauren: Well, you have your old standbys like viewability, click-through, just general engagement rates, which a lot of places would consider vanity-metrics. We’re trying to shift brands attention away from the old stand-bys of measurement and look towards stuff that’s actually powering their business, like lift, sales, and those sentiment-based signals.

What is your favorite viral video of all time?

Colin: I’m a simple man. My favorite viral video of all time is, I believe it is, San Diego when this guy has the jetpack on next to this newscaster and he says “It starts right now,” and then he goes immediately into the water.

Colin: I reference it two to three times a week. I watch it once a week. And it is my favorite viral video of all time.

Lauren:  I mean, I still stand by “Double Rainbow.”

Lauren: I mean, it was just magical in every sense of the word.

Colin: Have you ever seen a double rainbow in real life?

Lauren: I have seen a double rainbow, although it was outside of a Kroger so it was less spectacular than in Yellowstone.

What role does data play in developing a creative concept for a video?

Colin: Data plays the lead role, if you will, for our video concepting phase. During our discovery process and throughout the creative brief, we ask several questions around the data that our clients currently have on hand. We also do our own analysis within the industry and competitors to see what’s resonating with the client’s target audience. Data also can help determine what video we even make for them. Is it a testimonial video to help tell a little bit more about that company because people need to know more about who they are? Or is it just one and done explainer video because customers don’t want to read all the copy on the homepage.

What’s the key to creating effective video series content?

Colin: Three things, the three S’s if you will, (I just made that up but let’s go with it) can help you produce an effective business video series. First, there has to be some scalability. If you’re gonna make an entire suite of 10, 20 videos, especially if they’re animated videos, you want to think about how they can scale over time because you may just start with five explainer videos and they perform really well, so then you’ll want to make another ten or so. I think another thing that we like to think about is strategi- No, it wasn’t. I did have three S’s earlier too. Stra-, scalable? Oh. I know what it is. Standalone.

Lauren: Hm, that’s interesting.

Colin: Because even though it’s a video series, you want every video within that series to work as a standalone video because you don’t know how people are going to come across them. And the last one is, they have to be Stupendous. Or any other adjective that means cool and good. They just have to look great. Even though you’re creating a series of videos, don’t skimp on the quality. They can be simple but they should still be of high quality.

Colin: Once again, I’m Colin from Demo Duck. I’d like to thank Lauren from ViralGains for stopping by. Any parting wisdom for our viewers?

Lauren: There’s no denying the power of sight, sound, and motion. So, brands should just be embracing it and excited by what the future of video holds.

Colin: People are yearning, so you keep on churning. We’ll see you next time.