Using Long-Form Video to Help Music Brands Build Brand Loyalty

An in-depth video gives your audience more to love about your brand.

If it were up to the internet, everything you see there would be 30 seconds or 60 seconds long. Shorter, conventional wisdom says, is better.

But there is a place in your music product marketing mix for long-form videos. A five to ten-minute piece to introduce a new instrument, a new pedal or other audio technology can help build and strengthen your brand’s following.

How do you do that when attention spans seem to be always shrinking?

Entertain and educate. Tell a compelling story. Forge an emotional connection to your product. A long-form video gives you the space to do those things. After all, your audience loves music and is hungry for details. You will be feeding an existing passion.

Go beyond the usual litany of features and benefits that product engineers give marketing people. Talk about the unusual choice of tonewood for your new guitar. Explain why you went with a different type of wiring for your new amp. Tell a story about who came up with the idea for your new pedal. Taking a deep informational dive on your new product that relates a backstory and explores some of the more interesting design aspects that wouldn’t fit in a 30-second piece will only increase your brand’s value.

Long-form video will help enthusiasts experience a deeper connection to your music brand and build loyalty. For casual users, the right balance of education and entertainment will go a long way into converting them into enthusiasts.

Creating a long-form video needn’t have the price tag of a major Hollywood production. Depending on the market you’re in, you can probably pull off a good quality seven-minute piece for around $25,000.

Start your video production with a script. When developing your script, tell stories. Give your audience a peek behind the curtain, and let them experience the twists and turns in developing your new product or service. Let them in on the moment of inspiration. Give your key employees a voice to tell their stories.

After you have a script, develop a storyboard to capture the key visuals. Hire a talented videographer and editor. Good lighting, a compelling narrator and eye-catching backgrounds all serve to keep viewers engaged. The most important thing is to not have your video look like it was shot on the cheap; that will only damage your brand image.

Everyone in the music industry makes quick hit short videos for product introductions. Try something new and go longer. You’ll find you can build brand loyalty with existing customers and snag some new ones. Who knows? You may even end up with better sales than you ever expected.