How to Warm Up and Nurture Cold Leads Using Videos

Is your CRM database full of cold leads that need to be warmed up?

Are your current strategies not enough to nurture your prospects?

It's time to hit them up with video content. 

Let's face it; building a deep connection with your prospects is no cakewalk. Even the friendliest salespeople on earth can fail when the prospective customers don't even open their emails. 

So, how can you improve the performance of your emails and warm up those chilly leads? What can you do to show your prospects that you're different from the other tons of messages they receive daily? This is where video comes into the picture. 

But Why Videos? 

Nowadays, with bucket loads of content available online, people are easily distracted. Thus, you need creative and interesting ways to show off your products and services to hook your target customers.

Video plays a significant role at every stage of your funnel. Using videos can not only spark genuine relationships with your leads than any email but also keep them engaged throughout the sales cycle.

Want proof? 

The following stats says it all:

With the increasing popularity of videos, 54% of people want to see more video content from brands than emails, blogs, etc. (Hubspot)

78% of the salespeople are reaching out to their leads via email. Further, eight in 10 prospects prefer to communicate with sales reps over email.(Hubspot)

Emails with videos increase ROI by 280% more than the ones without. (Email Monks)

67% of businesses create brand awareness using videos, 60% use videos to drive conversions, and 53% nurture leads with video content. (Aberdeen Group)

Hence, it's no wonder thousands of brands worldwide are leveraging the power of videos to stand out from the crowd. In fact, people are more likely to click and watch videos and remember what they've seen for a longer time.

Best Practices to Use Videos to Warm Up and Nurture Cold Leads

Now that you're totally convinced why videos are crucial for converting your leads into customers, you may be wondering, "How should I deploy videos to close more leads?". Well, we've got you covered.  

#1. Break the ice with personalized video emails

People are bombarded with tons and tons of emails every day. So,
while warming up your leads, your biggest challenge is to break through the noise and get the attention of your 'busy' prospects. How to do that? Simple, use personalized videos!

Personalized videos are customized according to each individual viewer, company, industry, or vertical. Adding details to your personalized videos, like your viewer's name, company name, logo, or photo, is the perfect way to engage and build a one-on-one connection with your target customers. 

According to Campaign Monitor, brands have recorded an eight times increase in click-through rates with a personalized video than a standard email campaign. 

You can send personalized videos to thousands of your prospects and make them wonder, "Is it made just for me?". This way, your viewers feel more positive about your product or service. 

In addition to boosting email marketing campaigns, you can use personalized videos on your landing page to increase website conversions or even on LinkedIn, if that's your strategy. Plus, you can also personalize your event invites, follow-up emails, holiday or birthday greetings, thank you messages, product announcements, and more. 

Take a look at this Barclay's personalized video, and you'll agree that's a cool way to entice your prospects. In this video, you can see how they've used specific customer information to explain how Barclay's loan can benefit them. 

#2. Follow-up with video voicemails 

Once you get the prospective customer's contact info, whether it's through your website, a phone call, or an in-person meeting, it's time to follow-up with video voicemails. 

Video voicemail is a short video that you share with your prospective customers via email to better connect with them. After the initial contact, a friendly follow-up can leave your prospects with positive vibes and move the sale process further.

This can include information about the product or service you're offering, quick facts about yourself, meeting reminders, or a short greeting saying how excited you are to work together. 

You can either film just one video to send to multiple leads or personalize each video according to customers' data. Further, it can be a simple video showing your face, recorded with a mobile or a laptop's camera. Or, a more high-fi one with multiple shots. It totally depends on your budget, resources, and urgency to send emails.

In a nutshell, sales calls or emails can be annoying, and reading long winded emails can seem like a chore for your leads. That's why follow-up video voicemails can be an excellent replacement for boring messages, voice calls, or even image-heavy emails. Further, if you put this level of effort into a follow-up email, your customers are more likely to trust you and reply. 

Here's an example of a video by Heidi Zebro in which she follows-up with a prospective client regarding a meeting reminder: 

#3. Clear up the confusion with demo videos 

As your prospective customers move through the funnel, it's time to offer them insights into the usage and functions of your product or service. This is where demo videos can help.

Okay, but show me the numbers!

Customers who view demonstration videos are 1.81 times more likely to purchase than non-viewers. (Adobe)

80% of people think that demo videos are useful while making a purchase. (SmallBizGenius) 

So, if you're not using demo videos to warm up your cold leads,
you need to think twice. 

Demo videos work best when your prospect is in the consideration stage but is procrastinating on making the buying decision. This can be because the lead does not know where to start from or they are trying to figure out if your product or service is as useful as advertised. 

With a demo video, you can provide a bird's eye view of your service in just a few minutes. It can also help answer a question or highlight product functionality. On the whole, with a single demo video, you can convince millions of your viewers that your product or service can make their lives easier. 

However, instead of a single video, you can also film a short, scripted, personalized demo video addressing different questions your customers might have regarding your product. Here, you can maintain a personal touch through face-to-face interaction while showcasing the features. It boosts engagement and makes your prospects feel extra special, thus leading to increased conversions.

In the following video, Beauty Bakerie's CEO and Co-Founder Cashmere Nicole Carillo showcases the brand's new concealer, foundation, and makeup mist. Cashmere begins the demo with no makeup look to show the viewers what the products will look like in real life, plus the instructions on how to use them.   

Tips to Make Amazing Videos 

Videos not only entice your prospects but also establish trust and credibility with the viewer. Hence, it is crucial to make them clickable and engaging. Here are some tips: 

Understand your prospects: Your videos must be tailored to the recipient. The sales reps who spend extra time researching the prospective customer tend to see remarkable results than the one who doesn't.

Attention-grabbing subject line: If you want your videos played, include a strong subject line - one that sparks curiosity and encourages people to click on your email.

Add a CTA at the end: Creating a high-quality an engaging video is not enough if you can't keep your viewers hooked after the video is over. So, include a clear call-to-action at the end of your video to divert your leads to the next step.

Keep it short: No one wants to watch a 5-minute long prospecting video. So, to increase viewership, keep your sales videos under 60 seconds and product-focused videos to two to three minutes at the most. Also, keep the actual email text as short and focused as possible.

Customize video thumbnail: Create an engaging thumbnail by adding GIFs. Or, add your lead's name, logo, or photo to make it click-worthy.

Wrapping up! 

Sometimes, all a cold lead needs is a little warmth and nurturing to convert into sales. Adding a video alone won't guarantee conversions. But, it can help you speed up the sales cycle and close more leads while giving a personal touch to every message.   

However, if you're just starting out, don't worry about getting the perfect shot. Making interesting and polished videos requires a lot of practice, and you'll only get better if you keep at it. 

So, what are you waiting for? Boost your sales conversions right away with video!