Differentiating Insurance Agency Video, Skype Interviews, Vlogging and Recorded Webinars for Agents

Are we now upon the dawn of a new insurance agency web marketing era? Will video products supplant the written word? If the pen is indeed mightier than the sword, is video mightier than the pen? Though written content will not disappear any time soon, video is rapidly increasing in popularity. After all, when one reviews recent YouTube statistics, there is some compelling evidence supporting the rapid acceptance of video as a preferred communication medium.

The average website visit is just over 5 seconds, but the average YouTube visit is close to 20 minutes. Video is gaining in popularity, professionalism and SEO preeminence. It will soon become a staple of business websites. Let’s review some basic insurance agency video terms:

Agency Vlogs – A Vlog is a Video Blog. This is any type of video posted to a blog or to a vlog (or both). Instead of sharing textual information such as a blog, agents can share the same information in a video blogging format.

Insurance Agency Video – Insurance agency marketing videos used to extend marketing reach and branding. These can be tailored for clients, prospects or for general value proposition purposes. These can include talking head video, Skype Recorded Interviews, recorded Webinars, recorded PowerPoint Video, etc.

Professionally Produced Videos – This category encompasses any video which is recorded and produced by a professional videographer, edited and professionally rendered with music, sound and video effects. These are the highest quality agency videos, however, they are by far the most costly and time consuming.

Recorded PowerPoint with Audio – These are often referred to as a type of vlog, though this they are technically another type of insurance agency video. These need to be scripted and professionally rendered, meaning it takes some time to create a high quality 2 minute video PPT, but the results can be highly targeted.

Skype Video Interviews – Recorded interviews which can be used for agency website video, YouTube, etc.

Talking head video – Any video displaying a head and shoulders view of the speaker. Think of this as a close-up of a TV news anchor.

Recorded Webinars – Recorded webinars can offer powerful insurance agency video content for insurance agency websites.

YouTube Video – Any type video posted to YouTube. These can be public or private. Limitations to size and length may apply.

Chatterbots – I’ve placed these at the bottom of the video list since they are not traditional video. These are a representation of a talking person to help “guide a website visitor” on a given website. They are a type of web robot also known as a chatterbot. These may appear gimmicky and can be difficult to control (some turn on every time a user changes a web page or revisits a page). They might be more appropriate for a b2c website than a b2b website.

Insurance Agency Video is now a powerful component impacting insurance agency SEO and insurance search engine marketing. It accomplishes several very important insurance marketing items including:

  • Current technology and an updated look & feel
  • Dynamic content
  • Agency Web Site Stickiness
  • Insurance SEO
  • Rapid transfer of agency value proposition
  • Social networking content for LinkedIn, Facebook, etc.
  • Targeted messaging
  • YouTube presence and content

Video is a powerful medium, rapidly gaining in importance. Today, insurance agency video is already a key component of insurance web marketing. Tomorrow it will be a virtual necessity, ensuring that an insurance website will look and feel current and professional. As progressively younger buyers become the primary decision makers, they will research and validate their decisions differently. It is reasonable to assume these younger buyers will seek out information from social networks, the internet and an agency website to research and validate their insurance procurement decisions. Video will become a key component in determine the ultimate outcome of their online experience.