Mortgage marketers can learn a lesson from the most watched online video.
Videos are powerful stuff. Look at Susan Boyle, whose appearance on Britain's "Got Talent" has ended up as an online video with 100 million hits (and counting).
While Susan's video has set the YouTube record for the most views, there's a reason for it. It's personal. It evokes an emotion. It's engaging. It's a story about an ordinary person making good. It's powerful because it engages all of the senses - visual, auditory and kinesthetic.
So how can you as a loan originator use video to enhance your brand (yes, you are the brand) and get the most out of your video marketing efforts?
Three Truths
1. You must keep the viewer engaged. You have about 20 seconds to get the viewers attention. Your options include:
Begin by asking a provocative question: "Do you know that those talking heads are dead wrong when it comes to credit scoring advice?"
Begin with a story.
Begin with quoting a famous person or news article.
2. You must keep it short; three minutes or less is about the right length for your video. Cover only one topic at a time and include pictures charts or graphs.
3. You must keep learning styles in mind. People have different learning styles. Include all of them in your video.
Auditory: Prefers being "told" how to do things and then summarize with bullet points to help them remember.
Visual: Prefers to "see" pictures, charts and graphs.
Kinesthetic: Prefers "demonstrations" and being told how to do something.
Seven Tips
Tip No. 1 - Say it in 300 words. Scriptwriters say that a three-minute video is only 300 words. It does not mean three minutes of talking. Pauses and how fast (or slow) you talk are factors to consider. 300 words forces you to be more concise - so edit, edit and then edit again.
Tip No. 2 - Write at the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 8. Ad gurus will tell you that most people read and comprehend at the eighth- or ninth-grade level. For example, after you have written your script, Microsoft Word will give you the reading level when you click on the "tools" function.
Tip No. 3 - Don't use mortgage industry technical terms. Mentioning a 5% downpayment or LTV could be better explained by mentioning actual dollars or a short explanation of what LTV means.
Tip No. 4 - Grab the viewer's attention in the first sentence. Reveal "secret" information, mistakes people make, start with a story and use special effects like music or sound effects.
Tip No. 5 - Adding words, pictures and charts to the video will insure you are covering all three learning styles mentioned above.
Tip No. 6 - Provide information first; sell later. What do you want them to learn? Provide information with the first 250 words and then mention why the viewer should do business with you vs. the competition.
Tip No. 7 - What do you want them to do? Visit your website? Call you? Get pre-approved? Check credit scores? While you can't put links in your video, you can include a link when you post the video in your e-mail, website or video-sharing sites like YouTube.
Not everyone is a scriptwriter. You can "hire" talent by posting your project on free-lance websites like Guru.com.
Not everyone should be on camera either. If you are shy or just don't think you can get the message across, hire a pro to do the video for you. You can include your picture at the beginning and at the end of the video.
Karen Deis is president of
