Using YouTube to Generate Leads

Need more qualified leads from your video content? Wondering how to create YouTube videos that people want to watch and that help sell your business?

In this article, you’ll discover how to use YouTube videos to generate organic leads.

How YouTube Supports Businesses Differently From Other Social Networks

Marketers work across so many different social networks: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, even smaller networks like Discord and Mastodon. They all have their own features, demographics, and opportunities.

But YouTube has something truly unique. It’s the only social network that will promote you and pay you at the same time. 

YouTube Promotes Your Business

YouTube isn’t just a place to post and watch videos. It’s also one of the biggest search engines on the internet.

That means that any content you post to YouTube is evergreen. It can always come up again in search results—unlike on other social networks, where posts soon become outdated. And you can create longer content that shares more information and builds a deeper relationship with your viewers.

What’s more, YouTube wants to serve up useful results and keep people on the platform. So when you create valuable, entertaining content, YouTube will actively promote it to your target audience… for free!

YouTube Pays Your Business

YouTube has several different ways for creators to monetize their work on the platform. As well as earning money through sales from your videos, you can also get paid by YouTube for views.

However, to access all of these benefits, you need quality video content.

In the next few sections, we’ll look at how to stand out on YouTube, create amazing videos that generate leads, and sell on the platform. 

How to Stand Out by Using YouTube to Generate Leads

Five hundred hours of video content are uploaded to YouTube every minute. That’s a lot of competition!

Before we dive into the specifics of creating videos for YouTube lead generation, here are some general points to keep in mind. These things help you stand out on YouTube and rise above the competition.

• Optimize for search. Use the video title, video description, and tags to help surface your content to viewers. Remember, YouTube is effectively a search engine so your videos should be searchable.
• Optimize for watchability. Your videos should be valuable, entertaining, and relatable from a human point of view. Technical aspects like SEO are important but you should never lose sight of your ultimate goal: engaging with viewers. The ideal is to create watchable content with searchable metadata.

• Don’t drivel. Every video you post should have a structured format that keeps viewers engaged. If you just riff or rant for several minutes, people will lose interest. Even if you’re naturally a chatty person or like to share lots of detail, there should still be a clear framework to your content. 
• Be original. If you watch a lot of YouTube video, you’ll probably notice the same title formats, ideas, and phrases coming up over and over again. Catchphrases like “Hey guys, just popping in real quick” and “Don’t forget to like and subscribe!” can become annoying clichés. Instead, really think about what you’re saying and speak to viewers in your own voice.
• Show up powerfully. Whenever you film a video, get straight to the hook. Tell people why your content is valuable to them. If you don’t grab viewers in the first 5 seconds, you’ll lose them. Don’t forget that you can always edit your videos to take out any waffling and get to the good stuff.
• Be specific. In this guide, we’ll aim at creating highly specific videos for a highly specific audience. Might that reduce your audience size? Sure. But that smaller audience will be made up of your exact target audience. You can still make money and sales from a small, committed YouTube viewership. Chasing big numbers isn’t always the most effective YouTube lead generation and sales strategy. 

Now with those points in mind, let’s look at how to plan, script, and sell with videos that people actually want to watch.

Using YouTube to Generate Leads: How Create Videos That People Want to Watch

We’ve already seen that you have to balance search optimization with watchability optimization in your videos. When you create video content, you also have to balance what YouTube wants with what your audience wants.

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Your audience wants entertaining videos. YouTube wants people to spend as much time on the platform as possible. 

So your goal is to create binge-worthy content that will keep people hooked and generate leads at the same time. Then everybody’s happy. 

To achieve that, you’re going to think about your videos in three steps:

• The intro
• The main story
• The outro

#1: How to Create YouTube Lead Generation Video: The Intro

Every video should open with a hook that makes people feel like they need to watch the whole video. It should create a sense of urgency and excitement.

Here are some ways you can hook viewers:

• Show a clip of a peak dramatic moment in the video, just for a couple of seconds. Then explain to viewers how the video is going to get to that point. What will they see? What will they learn? 

This video focuses on the stress of preparing for Christmas, while reassuring viewers that they’ll find solutions if they keep watching.

• Give viewers a sneak peek of the video’s most valuable point. This could be a lifehack, a before-and-after image, or the link or code to access another lead magnet. Don’t give everything away yet. Tell them just enough to make them keep watching.
• Tell viewers what they should watch out for in the video. For example, if you’re sharing a video with five tips to grow a business, you could warn viewers that point 5 is the most important. They have to watch the whole thing, or they’ll miss out!

This video title lets viewers know that they need to keep watching if they want to hear all three reasons.

You only have a few seconds to persuade people to keep watching. Once they’re hooked, you can get onto the main topic—your story.

#2: How to Create YouTube Lead Generation Video: Story Selling

Now you’re into the heart of your video content. Remember, you still need to have a clear structure and a story that’s relatable, valuable, and entertaining.

Sounds like a tall order. So how do you fill it? 

One method is to use the ELSA story-selling formula. This four-step formula helps you create a gripping story that fits perfectly with the goal of each piece of content.

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• Epiphany. What do you want your audience to realize or learn from the video? What’s the main takeaway?
• Lesson. How can you guide viewers toward that epiphany? What pain points or objections do they need to overcome? What information do they need to hear or what points do you need to make for your argument?
• Story. Take those steps and the final epiphany and reframe them as a story. Instead of explaining “how to” do something, tell the story of “how I did this” or “how one of my customers achieved that.” Use examples and case studies to show that the epiphany really is attainable.
• Application. Now you’ve told a story and brought your audience to an epiphany, tell them what they need to do next. How can they apply these lessons to their own lives? This final stage sets you up for a call to action in the video outro.

In this video, a content creator tells the story of how she became successful and reassures viewers that they can follow the same story, too.

When you’re writing a sales story, it has to be a better story than the one your audience is already telling themselves. 

For example, if someone thinks “I can’t start my own business, it’s too hard,” then you have to tell them a better story about how they can achieve their goals. Throw in some specific guidance, a relatable story, and next steps to take, and you’ve made a persuasive case.

#3: How to Create YouTube Lead Generation Video: The Outro

Finally, your video will need an outro. You’ve told your story but the video isn’t over. You still need to close the deal.

Your outro should include two elements:

• A direct call to action, telling viewers what they need to do right now.
• A link to the next video. By setting up the next video, you make your YouTube channel more binge-able. You want viewers to watch as many videos as possible—first, to sell them on your brand, and second, to send the right signals to the YouTube algorithm. 

Don’t waste any time between your story and your outro. Go straight into the call to action without saying goodbye to your viewers or reminding them to like and subscribe (unless that’s the action you want them to take!). Remember, no one is obliged to watch your content. As soon as it stops being entertaining or valuable for viewers, they’ll bounce.

YouTube also gives you an end card that you can use to reiterate the points in your outro. This is the final screen, which is shown for 20 seconds with previews of other related videos. You can use the end card to repeat your call to action and encourage more views. 

Using YouTube to Generate Leads: How to Create a YouTube Sales Strategy

You’ve learned how to create videos that stand out.

You’ve learned how to structure your videos with an intro, story, and outro. 

Now it’s time for the final ingredient: learning how to sell through YouTube video. 

Create a YouTube Sales Funnel

When someone discovers your brand on YouTube, your video content is the first thing they’ll see. So your YouTube videos are at the top of the sales funnel.

What comes next? How do you move people down the funnel?

One way to think about this is gradually encouraging people to invest more in your brand:

• First, they watch a video. It’s free and offers them value in the form of information and entertainment.
• Next, you invite them to make a small investment, such as registering their email address in return for more value.
• Finally, they’re ready to invest in your brand by paying for a product or service. 

For the middle stage, you can offer value in the form of a resource such as an eBook, downloadable PDF, exclusive video series, webinar, strategy call, or sales call.

This video is promoting a free eBook download for viewers.

It should be something that you can scale easily so you can nurture more leads at the same time. And it should follow on from the epiphany you gave viewers in your video, while making them realize that they need to buy your product or service to get the full benefits. 

Qualify Potential Leads With Push or Pull Language

Earlier, we talked about considering your audience’s pain points and telling them a specific, relatable story as part of the sales process.

But there will also be people who don’t find your stories relatable. They don’t have the same pain points. They don’t need the help you can offer.

That’s where “push-pull” language comes in. In your videos, you want to pull valuable leads toward you. At the same time, you want to push low-value or irrelevant leads away. Don’t be afraid to push some people away from your brand if they’re not a good fit.

This video about the differences between startups and small businesses is intended to speak to startup owners while pushing small business owners away from the brand.

For example, if you sell a software product for small businesses, then your content should actively push away major corporations. They’re not your target audience so your videos shouldn’t speak to them. Instead, you’ll use language, case studies, and stories that pull small businesses toward your brand.

Pace Your Sales Messages Throughout Videos

Earlier, we talked about structuring your videos with an intro, story, and outro with a call to action. 

But does that mean that you should only be selling to viewers in the outro? No!

You can sell throughout a video. You just need to find the right methods and tone.

• Early in the video, be subtle. Talk about the benefits that viewers can access if they keep watching.
• During the video, throw in a couple of engagement breaks. Pause while telling the story to remind people to subscribe, like, or leave a comment if they relate. Keep it short and sweet!
• At the end of the video, you can be blunt. Tell people what to do next, where to click, and how they can stay in touch with your brand. 

If you follow these steps, you’ll send out a consistent sales message, without disrupting the flow or structure of your video.

Have you found success using YouTube to generate leads? What stories do you tell your audience?

Other Notes From This Episode

• Connect with Michael Stelzner @Stelzner on Instagram and @Mike_Stelzner on Twitter.
• Watch this interview and other exclusive content from Social Media Examiner on YouTube.

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