Relatability and emotional connection are key when it comes to harnessing effective video marketing.
The global pandemic and effects of social distancing have forever changed franchise development as prospects crave real, authentic, human content that resonates at the emotional level. With that said, it’s imperative franchisors understand how to utilize emotion within their marketing tactics to connect with potential franchise candidates. Because 95 per cent of human behavior happens at a subconscious level, the emotional connection could be the most significant factor in converting your ideal prospect into your ideal franchisee.
Many franchise brands are looking for creative solutions to connect with potential franchise candidates and make an impact with their video marketing. If you want to drive lead generation as a franchisor, you must understand what drives your audience’s decisions and form an emotional connection with them. By doing so, you can make your brand more memorable and attractive to potential franchisees. The fundamental way to cultivate emotion is through innovative visual storytelling.
Establishing an emotional connection
When it comes to securing franchise leads, emotion could be the sole differentiator in whether an agreement is signed. With our brains continually being flooded with messages, it is crucial businesses create content worth remembering. Our brain has no problem recalling emotional experiences, yet we often forget the average, unemotional moments. Because of this, franchisors need to get creative with their video marketing efforts to cut through the noise and leave viewers with a lasting impression.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth even more. A simple way to capture emotion with videography is by confronting emotional moments on camera. Rather than showcase a talking head and asking standard corporate questions, go outside of the box by evoking emotion with your video subjects. Try ditching the scripts while filming and ask open-ended questions to add authenticity to your videos.
“Every touchpoint with your prospects must be treated like a face-to-face conversation”
By honing in on the little moments or pauses caught on video, you have a unique opportunity to dig deeper and pull on heartstrings creating real, human connection. When you capture that emotion on camera, don’t let it pass you by. Use the pauses to ask questions like: “Why are you reacting this way?” and: “How does this make you feel?”
Capturing explanations like: “I never thought I’d love what I do,” and: “I never thought I’d be able to own my own business” on camera adds raw and genuine emotion to the video.
The effect of emotion
The impact of emotional connection in visual storytelling goes beyond just creating a unique feeling; it can be the single factor that prompts someone to take the leap and invest. Being able to connect with a prospect on an emotional level makes your brand human and relatable.
A common mistake within franchise business strategies is hitting prospects with stats right off the bat rather than telling a story. While stats and metrics are still vital to a franchisee, they also seek a clear understanding of what it means to be part of your franchise system.
The goal should be to create emotional and inspirational brand videos that show success; you want people to envision themselves as a franchisee.
The key differentiator
Incorporating emotion into your brand’s storytelling will shorten the sales cycle and remove the annoyance of redundant sales and marketing messages.
With thousands of franchises to choose from, it’s essential to ask what makes yours stick out from the rest. Experience sells. Consider what makes your franchise different and what life is like as one of your franchise owners.
If there are thousands of franchises just like yours, why would someone want to choose yours?
If you want people to get excited about your franchise, there needs to be an established emotional connection. Every touchpoint with your prospects must be treated like a face-to-face conversation. Consider how you can uncover the story about how extraordinary your franchisees’ lives will be when they invest in your opportunity.
After overcoming a trying year, there’s never been a better time to foster that emotional, authentic connection with franchise candidates than now. Happy filming!
THREE WAYS FRANCHISORS CAN CREATE CONNECTIONS THROUGH VIDEO STORYTELLING
1. LEAN INTO EMOTIONAL MOMENTS
When capturing your franchisees’ emotional moments on video, you add personality and vulnerability to your videos. It’s a common misconception that the better curated, and “professional” or scripted your videos look, the better they are. The truth today is real and raw sells. The days of overproduced and perfected videos are out. People appreciate human connection now more than ever. Lean into emotional moments on video and capture the “why”.
2. DON’T FOLLOW THE BEATEN PATH
Consider different, out-of-the-box ways you can capture emotion in your video marketing. Avoid the overused trends, music and styles that your competitors and other brands are doing. Make your videos unique. Search for video inspiration in non-traditional areas or even brands and industries different from yours. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but you shouldn’t look like everyone else. Utilize video marketing to stand out from the crowd.
3.CONSIDER THE FRANCHISE
While it may seem like common sense, it’s easy to forget who we’re marketing to when filming. While something might make sense to us as the franchisor or business owner, consider how your audience will perceive it. More importantly, consider the franchisee. Consider the impression you want to leave with franchise candidates and how you want them to feel. By reverse-engineering your marketing efforts with the franchisee at the top of your mind, you’re sure to stay on track.
THE AUTHOR
Trevor Rappleye is the CEO of FranchiseFilming, a video marketing company that helps businesses and franchises win more clients and tell their story with monthly marketing videos.
