How changing buyer behaviours are transforming traditional industries

 The experience economy isn't just about pop-up shops and Instagrammable wall quotes (although both of those are big trends). B2B buyers are demanding more human, personalized experiences at every touchpoint from search to purchase to support. As their needs evolve, so too must the industries serving them. Financial Services, real estate, and retail – traditionally laggards in innovation – are being forced to adapt.

Here are ideas on how to use video to capture an audience's attention, build trust, and deliver more personal experiences.

1. Banking and Financial Services

 

Customer experience is important in every sector, but it's often overlooked in traditional industries such as banking and financial services. An EY Global Consumer Banking Survey found that customers cited their experience with financial service providers as their top reason for opening a new account or starting a new service.

Just over 41% of customers cite "experience" as the top reason for opening a new account.

When banks fail to meet customers' expectations it leaves the field wide open for fintech startups to poach customers. Companies like Venmo and Mint come in with simpler, friendlier services that appeal more to todays buyers. On the investment side, dead-simple investing apps such as Wealthsimple and Betterment steal young investors from traditional wealth managers.

 

Look to Wealthsimple for video marketing inspiration

Wealthsimple was quick to jump on the video bandwagon. They knew that they could better educate, connect with, and highlight what they do through video. Their videos garner over 1 million views on average and are just people discussing money (and investing). Their brand messaging "Investing for Humans" is amplified by using video to bring real faces to the story.

Banks and other financial institutions that want to reclaim their relevance have to make a personal impression. Video is a great way to do that. According to Forrester, video allows financial services companies to showcase their brand's unique value proposition. It also allows them to easily explain products and services, provide financial education, and offer better customer service.

 

See why Financial Services needs to adopt video in the latest report from Forrester

 

Personal bankers who send short videos featuring a prospect's name make a human connection that apps can't match.

And wealth managers can leap the coming wealth-transfer chasm by using video to educate and engage younger generations who PwC estimates will receive $30 trillion from ageing family members in the coming decade.

2. Real estate

The Great Recession did more than push back home purchases for younger buyers – it rewired their thinking around real estate entirely. They're more likely to see home ownership as a financial investment than as a life milestone and are more likely to be interested in the granular details of the home – green and energy-efficient amenities, low-maintenance yards, and neighbourhood "vibe."

In short, agents need to capture the attention of detail-oriented buyers who expect to have questions answered 24/7 yet whose inboxes are bursting with a collective 281 billion emails. Video is one way of doing that.

Real estate agents can harness the power of video by filming personalized mini-tours of potential properties to highlight the details that matter to each client. When prospecting, they can send selfie videos that earn 4x higher open rates, and help showcase their personality and expertise.

Don't just take my word for it, check out this great video by RUHM Destination Marketing:

Try messaging consumers with GoVideo, free

3. Retail and e-commerce

Today's retail and e-commerce buyers may not live up to the stereotypes of entitled, lazy, gleeful killers of traditional industries, but they are different. Personable customer service is critical to their purchase decisions and most expect brands to share their ideals, which makes video a great format with which to reach them.

Brands with easily demonstrable products such as software, kitchen gadgets, or tech gear can use video to show off their wares, but also to communicate their shared values – as Nike did with its latest Just Do It ad campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick. And one-to-one personalized videos – possible at scale with the right video technology – help build trust early in the sales process so customers feel like they're connecting with a person instead of a faceless corporation.

Video is also great for support. Today's buyers are often reluctant to call customer service and nobody likes navigating a phone tree or sitting on hold, so video offers an elegant alternative. Customer service or tech support agents can record quick, personalized videos showing them how to troubleshoot a purchase.

Try messaging consumers with GoVideo, free

Video closes deals

Video also offers traditional industries a path to premium profits. Like a handwritten card, many people assume personalized videos take time, effort and investment to create. Leaving the buyer more impressed by personalized video than mass marketing. This can boost the company's public perception in a way that leads to sales.

¾ of late-stage prospects who received personalized videos purchased.

PwC's Global Consumer Insights survey found that consumers are willing to pay more for personalized services, so personalization could also help brands price and position products as premium. Vidyard research also found that three-quarters of late-stage prospects who received personalized videos purchased, many of them by the end of the quarter. As buyer expectations evolve, so many companies and video is a great way to make the transition easier.

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from Vidyard http://www.vidyard.com/blog/new-generation-of-buyers-want-video/