Amazon Video Guide: Using Video to Boost Your Amazon Sales | SupplyKick

According to Amazon experience data, shoppers who watch videos on a product listing are 3.6 times more likely to buy the product. When developing your Amazon marketing strategy, video is now a must-have for brands and sellers. Video is the best and easiest way to tell your product’s story, and it’s the closest thing a potential buyer has to physically interacting with your product before making a purchase.

Amazon now prioritizes videos over photography on listings and has embraced Sponsored Brands Video ads and OTT advertising, in addition to rolling out Amazon Live, which allows customers to shop via livestream with influencers. Seeing a product in action is a crucial part of the buyer’s journey on Amazon now, as video legitimizes your product and brand amidst a sea of untrustable and unauthorized sellers.

SupplyKick has embraced video as our best practice, and it’s one of our six most important marketing tactics you should employ in 2022.

Video Is the Future of Amazon Marketing

From a potential ROI standpoint, an Amazon listing video is second to none. We’ve found that 40% of shoppers will click on a listing’s video, and of those shoppers, almost 80% will watch the whole thing. Couple that with the fact that those shoppers are 3.6x more likely to buy, and you have a recipe for sales success. 

So, where should you put your video? The answer: almost anywhere. Videos have the benefit of being extremely omnichannel—you can leverage product video on Amazon and your D2C website, as well as across your social channels and ads, too. The beauty of video is that you can create a few videos and have all your bases covered, from Amazon to your website, and everywhere in-between. We recommend that you build something in the longest form you need, and then chop it down for use across different channels.

• On Amazon, you’ll want to place your video in your listing, and Amazon will actually prioritize it for you, meaning it will be the first thing shoppers see when they land on your product listing.
• If you have a Storefront, you can place it there, too, if you are brand registered. Optimizing your Amazon Storefront can help increase your sales and sales per visitor like it has for SupplyKick’s partners, including Johnson Hardware, who we helped achieve a 42% increase in Storefront-specific sales. Check out our Storefront guide for more information on how to optimize, as well as more results.
• And you can use video in paid efforts, like Sponsored Brands Video, which are cost-per-click Amazon Ads (more on video ads later).
• Brands can also leverage user-generated content, such as YouTube and Amazon Vine reviews, in your listing efforts.

Types of Product Videos on Amazon

There are two main types of video that you can leverage for your Amazon listings: animated and lifestyle. Though Amazon allows up to six videos to be uploaded to a listing, we recommend limiting your uploads to no more than three per listing. 

At SupplyKick, we’ve found that investing in one high-quality piece of video content gives you the most bang for your buck, and can serve as the “hero” of your listing. Additional videos may be helpful if you can clearly differentiate between the video's purpose for your customer. For example, if your hero video is all about selling the product with marketing messaging, then a second video diving into installation, assembly, and/or setup may be beneficial.

First impressions can make or break a sale, so be sure to choose a method that works for your product, branding, and is as cohesive and straightforward for the customer as possible.

Animated Product Video

30-60 second animated videos are a highly effective way to provide an interactive experience showing off the utility and value of your product. If you are brand registered, be sure to feature product videos on your Storefront and in Video Ads, too. Here’s an example of an animated video we created for our partner Probonix:

Lifestyle Product Video

Lifestyle videos use real-world visuals and action shots to communicate how your product works and how it will fit into your target customer’s daily routine. We’ve found that lifestyle videos, typically 30-60 seconds in length, have a 30% higher click-through rate than animated formats. Here’s an example of a lifestyle video that was placed on Necklet’s Storefront:

Leveraging Video in Ads: Sponsored Brands Video

Amazon Sponsored Brands Video ads play automatically when 50% of the video is on screen. They link directly to the product detail page where customers can learn more and purchase. Video Ads help to build trust, show your product in action, and break up the monotony of static text and images customers see while scrolling Amazon. The optimum length for a Video Ad is between 15-30 seconds and keeps mobile in mind (make sure the product and any text doesn’t appear too small in mobile view). 

Within your Sponsored Brands Video ads, keep your customer’s attention by:

• showing the product and functionality within the first few seconds
• visually telling your product story
• using closed captions
• including a precise call to action

In terms of ROI, we’ve found that an effective Amazon PPC management strategy can increase sales up to 50% on average. Check out our helpful guide to paid ads here to learn more about best practices for your Amazon Ads.

Key Video Research, Best Practices, & Optimization Strategies

• Perform competitor research: Knowing your marketplace competitors is just as important as knowing your target market. Learning from your competitors’ videos will help you drive your video strategy as it pertains to your specific product category—and help you pinpoint how to outdo the competition with high-quality content that will capture customer attention.
• Conduct keyword and review research: Conducting thorough keyword research will help you understand your Amazon audience and what they might be looking for in your product, which will then inform what you call out in your videos. Take time to read through your customer reviews as well—reviews uncover the selling points that stand out most to your customers that can be highlighted in your videos as well. You can enlist the help of an Amazon seller consultant like SupplyKick to ensure that you’re targeting the right keywords.
• Tell a compelling story: Video is the best way to communicate your value proposition. Showcasing your product in a meaningful and memorable way will legitimize and differentiate you from other brands, even if your products are similar. Truly highlight your brand—your unique story, product quality, safety features or certifications (if applicable), and accolades.
• Put yourself in your customer’s shoes: Do they need to see a 360 view of your product? Maybe they need to see the application of your product in a real-life situation. If your product is technical, an animated video demonstrating product usage might be your best bet.
  
  Think about how your customer will be using your product when deciding what type of video to make. For example, maybe you’re selling a kayak. A lifestyle video showing an actor using your kayak on a river is bound to make an impression. Whereas, an animated video showing the setup process for assembling the kayak might make more sense than a lifestyle video. It all depends on how your product will be used, and what you think your customer should know.
• Quality is key: Much like the care you put into creating your product, quality is pertinent when it comes to video. While phone cameras have come a long way, using a professional camera like a DSLR will ensure that you have crisp footage and can captivate your customers.
• Track performance and iterate: Product videos on Amazon should never be a “set it and forget it” strategy. Track the impact of your videos over time to ensure they’re effective, and test new elements, formats, and video lengths that could further increase marketplace conversion and sales.

Take the Guesswork Out of Amazon Video Creation

An effective video strategy (organic and paid) is one of our best ways (if not THE best way) to thrive on Amazon right now. SupplyKick can create visually compelling, high-converting videos for your team and employ all of the above video marketing tactics on your product listings and Amazon ads.  

Want to take the guesswork out of your Amazon video strategy? Connect with our team.