Three marketing forces rule the world today: paid ads, organic search, and word-of-mouth. However, one force is the most dominant in terms of ROI and longevity: word-of-mouth. Sometimes abbreviated as “WOM” marketing, the strategy relies on giving such a great impression with a patron that they share it with their social circle, whether it be via social media, in conversation, or another form of communication. In fact, 88% of people trust the opinion of their friends and family more than advertisers, highlighting the strength of word-of-mouth marketing.  

In fact, the future of video reviews is already here. According to Think with Google, over 50,000 years of product review videos have been watched in the past two years. If you can tap into the power of video reviews, your brand can be positioned to take advantage of one of the fastest growing areas of word-of-mouth marketing.

The problem is, not all reviews are created equal. There is a science to the strategy. Keep reading to learn what customers look for in video reviews and why you should take notice as a brand owner.

What is a video review? 

Let’s take a moment to rewind and ensure we’re all on the same page. To understand what users are looking for in a video review, we need to make sure we truly and thoroughly understand what a video review is.

Video reviews come in all shapes and sizes. It can be a simple product review, a comparison of two products, or even an unboxing video.

One thing remains the same in every product review: a customer shares their opinion on a product they recently purchased. To some business owners, video reviews are simply a byproduct of running a business and something to be expected from those engaging with your brand. But the reality is that video reviews are incredible digital assets you can use to engage your audience and grow your brand.

Why are video reviews so powerful for brands?

So, why are video reviews beneficial for your marketing?

As previously stated, video is a fast-growing form of content in recent history. In fact, online video watch time has increased 249% in the last five years, according to Wistia’s 2022 State of Video Report. Customers are interested in video reviews because video is the most-desired medium. If you want to grow your business, you’re missing out if you aren’t actively working on generating or capitalizing on video reviews for your brand.

Video reviews have the power to inspire brand trust and offer helpful information to customers and potential customers alike.

When consumers can visually see a real product in the hands of a real customer, they’re going to pay attention to every word that comes out of their mouth. As a brand owner, you can take advantage of video reviews to attract new leads and keep your current customers engaged with your brand. 

In addition, unlike some other forms of marketing, using video reviews in marketing offers an opportunity of little cost to the business. When a well-done, positive video review is discovered, all that’s needed is the price to run the campaign to collect the video and the time to share it. When vetting videos is done efficiently, it creates a very powerful marketing campaign while also saving the business money. It’s a win-win.

But to pull the campaign off well, the video needs to be just right, and there are certain qualities your customers look for in a good video review.

6 key traits customers look for in video reviews (and what this tells you about your customer base!) 

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1) Authenticity

Video reviews work so well because they’re coming straight from your customers. Consumers connect with brands whose video reviews connect with them. The only path to connection is authenticity. So, what does this tell you about your customers? Consumers are getting better at sniffing out fake reviews, and it can lead to serious trouble when discovered.

Today’s consumer values brands that are real and honest. If a review sounds scripted, your audience likely won’t be convinced. To make a real impact on your audience, make sure to highlight your most genuine reviews across your marketing channels.

2) Storytelling

‍Storytelling: it’s one of the biggest buzzwords lately. And there’s a good reason for it. Stories sell. Stories keep people engaged. Look at the growth of Netflix, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. Why are these platforms so powerful? Because your customers want to be told a story. 

Video reviews with personal stories can create powerful emotional connections with your audience. A personal story of how your product positively impacted your customer’s life is one of the best ways to draw prospects closer to your brand. Stories also add another layer of authenticity, as mentioned above.

3) Specificity

Specificity is the foundation of believability. Consumers don’t just want to hear a story. They want specifics. For instance, say you own a skincare brand. What sounds better? “I didn’t like my skin, so I bought Company X’s product, and my skin improved.”

Or, “I was breaking out all over for months. It was embarrassing. I didn’t want to leave the house. One day, my friend recommended Company X’s premium skin cleanser. So, I ordered a sample, and one week later, it showed up at my door. I didn’t have much hope, but I didn’t have any other choice. When I applied it, it was smooth and wasn’t oily at all. It felt really good. Within seven days of applying it, I noticed my skin stopped breaking out. I finally felt confident leaving the house. My friend Melanie even complimented me on my new “glow.”

The more specific the video testimonials are across your marketing channels, the more your audience will believe them. This shows you that customers are looking for in-depth information to make the right decision on your brand. If you promote video reviews that are vague and flat, they won’t be effective or memorable. When a customer adds seemingly insignificant details to their review, it builds trust in your brand, which is vital to acquiring new customers.

4) Relatability‍

Your audience wants to relate to the customer behind the review. When your audience relates to your video reviews, you’ll generate more sales. Step back for a minute and forget about your brand. Instead, think about your target audience: demographics, interests, pains, desires, lifestyle, and so on. 

The closer you can match the uniqueness of the reviewer to your target audience, the better your prospective customers will relate. If your audience features 22-year-old females from the U.S. who struggle with bad skin, it’s probably best to avoid highlighting the 76-year-old male from Sweden who tried your product.

5) Product-In-Action

It’s one thing for someone to say a product is good. It’s another for them to show you what it’s actually like. For instance, a dress might look purple in photos, but it’s more burgundy in direct sunlight. Or consider the consumer concerned about a furniture company’s product durability. A video review with a customer knocking on their mahogany side table, showing you how sturdy it is, can be helpful to understand what the quality is truly like in real life. 

Despite living in an increasingly digital world, customers still want to see what the product is like offline. They don’t just want to see static images of a product in the studio. They want to see how it works in real life, in a real customer’s environment. A video insights platform can help you find powerful reviews you can promote to show off your product in action.

6) Shorter Is Sweeter

If you want to ensure more people are watching your video reviews, it’s best to keep them short and sweet. While some reviews (especially for tech-related products) may require long-form videos, most customers prefer short reviews. As a brand owner, you should aim to only highlight reviews under 3 minutes.

So what does this say about your customers? They have extremely short attention spans—and they’re only getting shorter. According to Wyzowl, the average human attention span is 8.25 seconds. This is down from 12 seconds in 2000. It may be tempting to highlight long-form reviews on your site, but if your customers notice a video is too long before they click on it, they’re likely to just skip over it entirely.

Ready to scale your brand with top-tier video reviews?

There you have it — 6 things your customers look for in video reviews!

If you can take away one thing about what successful video reviews tell you about your customers, it’s this: authenticity is the key. If you want to establish trust with your audience, you can’t give them a moment to doubt you or your brand. By building up a storehouse of authentic video reviews, you’ll be able to better connect with your audience so you can scale your brand.

Want even more insights into your video reviews? Vyrill’s in-video search technology helps brands unlock the potential of video at scale. With Vyrill’s platform, you can find video reviews, surface powerful insights and engagement data within brand and shopper videos, and reach out to and collaborate with content creators and influencers. Our new Shopify app also makes it easy for you to incorporate your video reviews within your Shopify store. 

To unlock the true value of video reviews, you can use Vryill to find the best and most profitable user-generated content. Start a free campaign today.

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About the Author

Katy boasts two decades in B2B technology & services, spearheading growth and brand evolution. A former Adobe marketing maven for 9 years, she’s since built growth teams for 5 tech startups that have all been acquired. With a stellar record in operational excellence and creating demand, she excels at leading successful cross-functional initiatives that enable companies to scale up.

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