Video content has long been revered as one of the most engaging methods of capturing a user’s attention online. In fact, the appeal for this type of content arose long before the TikTok tidal wave engulfed the minds of marketers and business owners. 

So, it only makes sense that search engines prioritise high quality video content when ranking websites. Despite this, creating and marketing video content remains one of the most challenging areas of business promotion, so how exactly can you leverage it to ensure you gain the most effective result for your efforts? As marketers ourselves, Infoserve’s SEO team has a few tricks up our sleeves to help you leverage video content for higher rankings. 

Types of video marketing 

Video marketing covers a broad range of content that you can use to boost your rankings and overall visibility online. 

These include:



• Testimonials 
• Product videos
• Webinars 
• Case studies 
• Behind the scenes videos 
• Youtube content 
• How-to/educational videos
• Introductory videos 
• Paid ad content 

How video marketing can boost your rankings 

Video content on your website primarily increases time on site, which is a top ranking factor for Google. Likewise, sending additional traffic to your website through carefully curated social media videos and paid ads will positively impact your website’s rankings. 

It also increases trust with your audience and is more appealing to mobile users. 

Where to apply video marketing

Video marketing should be relevant to your business. Therefore, where you apply video marketing should be tailored to not only your product/service, but the overall feeling of your website too. 

For example, if you were a luxury holiday provider then introducing videos that provide a tour of your available accommodation could be an effective strategy for boosting SEO and sales, however, how-to guides would not apply to your industry. 

In contrast, a small, family run business selling indoor plants might benefit more from educational video content providing expert advice on how to care for your newly purchased shrubs. 

We would recommend taking a look at your target customers and making a list of content that they would find useful. 

In 2023, online video accounted for 82.5% of all web traffic - Lemonlight

How to create a video marketing strategy 

1. Evaluate your target audience

In order to gain any traction from your video marketing, you need to understand exactly what kind of video content your audience is engaging with. Whether it's on social media, ad response, or website analytics, keep an eye on their online activity. 

Do they want educational content? Are they more interested in down to Earth, personal videos? Are they lured in by humour and lighthearted entertainment or do they respond to bite sized videos that get straight to the point? 

It can also be useful to pay attention to the platforms they use as this can inform the decisions you make. If your audience primarily uses TikTok then short videos are more likely to catch their attention. If they’re YouTube oriented, then longer, educational videos or even company vlogs might be more likely to keep them interested in your brand. 

2. Create a plan that aligns with your messaging 

Once you have a clear understanding of your target audience, develop a comprehensive plan that aligns with your brand messaging. Clearly define your goals, whether they are to increase brand awareness, drive website traffic, or boost product sales. 

Craft a compelling narrative that communicates your brand story and values consistently across all your videos. A well-defined plan ensures that your videos contribute cohesively to your overall marketing objectives.

3. Choose your platform 

Different platforms cater to different audiences, so it's crucial to choose the right ones for your brand. Whether it's your website, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok, each platform has its unique characteristics and user demographics. 

Consider where your target audience spends the most time and tailor your video content to fit the platform's format and style. This ensures that your videos are not only seen but also well-received by your intended audience.

If you’re using a platform outside of your website, make sure you find a way to subtly lead them back to it as this will help boost your website’s sessions, which leads to higher rankings.

4. Set a budget 

Effective video marketing doesn't always require a massive budget, but having a clear plan is essential. Determine how much you can allocate for video production, promotion, and any other associated costs.

5. Create the video 

It's time to bring your vision to life. Whether you're creating educational content, product demonstrations, or storytelling videos, ensure that your videos are visually appealing, emotionally resonant, and aligned with your brand identity.

You should always strive for quality and ensure you have multiple options for your videos. Remember, raw footage can always be edited and cropped to suit your needs.

6. Track your metrics 

The success of your video marketing strategy relies on continuous evaluation and improvement. Track key metrics such as views, engagement, click-through rates, and conversion rates.

Whilst social media offers its own analytics tools, these will not be helpful in measuring the impact on your website’s rankings so opt for software like Google Analytics and find correlations between social media redirects and an increase in the page’s traffic.

Tips for leveraging video marketing for SEO

Our SEO experts have compiled the following list of tips on leveraging video marketing for SEO: 

1. Consider the context

Context is everything when it comes to video placement. Nothing will confuse your users more than a video on a blank page, so make sure it has a purpose and fits in with your existing content. 

2. Educate, don’t stipulate 

52% of people reported watching more than two instructional or informational videos each week - TechSmith

Use your content to educate and entertain, rather than to push your product. Users are far more likely to engage with, and keep watching, this kind of content. By keeping your audience interested, you’re increasing the time they spend on your site which will boost that page’s ranking ability. 

3. Consistency is key 

As with any form of SEO, consistency is the key to ensuring success. Be sure to continue optimising the value of the video content you create, and don’t give up at the first hurdle. Video content is undoubtedly one of the most difficult pieces of media to get right, and it might take some time to discover exactly what engages your audience. 

4. Insert alt text

As with images, video content requires various technical optimisations to ensure it is crawlable. 

One of these is alt text. This refers to text describing the content of the video so that Google and other search engines can find and identify the video. This will skyrocket your chances of ranking closer to page 1. 

5. Make sure the video is accessible 

Making your video accessible is vital to ensuring ranking potential, whilst creating a truly inclusive brand that appeals to people of all abilities. You can improve the visibility of website video content by: 



• Including text transcripts 
• Providing audio descriptive options 
• Adding visible captions to videos
• Removing autoplay options
• Allowing playback using assistive technology 

6. Quality over quantity

Don’t simply create a video for the sake of creating a video. Your video content should be of high quality and high value to your users. Otherwise you risk them losing interest quickly. This will reduce the time they spend on your site, and decrease their overall opinion of your brand.

7. Create videos with meaning

Your users will notice if a video is misplaced on your website, or if it was created with the sole intention of having video content. Video content should have meaning in its placement. They should be there for a specific reason or purpose, and if you can’t find one, then that video might not be valuable enough to warrant space on your website. 

8. Leverage paid ads 

Paid ads and SEO often work together in online marketing. If you can drive traffic to your website through an effective ad campaign that utilises video marketing then your organic rankings are likely to improve alongside it. 

Not sure where to start? 

Here at Infoserve, our web design experts are on hand to help you create and build a unique, functional and responsive website, and our PPC and SEO team help your website get found.