How to utilize video in the retail real estate industry

It's no surprise that video drives purchases. In fact, 60% of consumers watch product videos and shoppers who watch videos are 174% more likely to purchase than viewers who did not. Though the concept of utilizing video seems much easier for products vs. retail real estate, there are still many ways to incorporate video. Globally, online video traffic will be 55% of all consumer Internet traffic in 2016, so you might as well get the camera rolling now. Other than video being "kind of a big deal," the best part to note about video is that it's the easiest way to create an emotional connection with your audience. For example, think about a testimonial. Which seems more credible - a string of quotes with titles and company names or videos of clients talking about their experience with your company? Testimonials are just one way to utilize video in our industry. Other ways include leasing, announcements and events, informational, showing your company culture, news releases, blogging and how-to videos. Once you shoot a few videos, create a free YouTube channel. The great thing about having your own YouTube channel is that it allows you to incorporate your branding and group your videos together. YouTube is used as a search engine so be sure to tag your videos correctly and choose titles that incorporate keywords. The hosting service is also a social network and a community site, so having your videos accessible on this platform helps them travel even farther with social sharing buttons built in on each page. To maximize exposure of your videos, embed them onto your website (homepage or property pages are perfect), share them on your social networking sites (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Vine), add them to landing pages (forms that people have to fill out on your website) or you can even save them on USBs and hand them out. Some tips and tricks include: * Create video for a specific use * Determine the goals of your video * Keep videos between 30-60 seconds * Use a script * Be natural * Buy a professional camera - recommendations include Canon Rebel T2i, Cannon Mark, Sony NEX-6 or Nikon D3200 * Buy a wireless mic * If you are shooting others, remind them that its video and you can do as many takes as they need in order to get it right * If you are going on camera, get pumped up first so that your enthusiasm comes through (jumping jacks? Music?) * If you have a tight budget, shoot your own video and then give it to a freelance videographer to do the editing. Social Media Fun Fact: One of the most viewed videos of all time on YouTube is "Charlie bit my finger" with 558,467,434 views. Sources include: Invodo, Cisco, Wistia, YouTube. Diana Podaski is marketing and social media manager for Linear Retail Properties, Burlington, Mass.