Interview with Paul Kortman on YouTube Video Ads - #046

Paul Kortman is a self-proclaimed "odd duck" with a foot in two different worlds. His areas of focus include both SEO tactics and paid video advertisements. Odd duck? Or one well-rounded digital marketer? In this episode, Paul discusses the SEO tactics and video ad strategies he's found to be most effective and how to successfully apply them to your business.   Episode Discussions: Why Paul recommends recording different videos for Facebook and YouTube ads Testing different video ad lengths and which ones offer a great return 4 elements of a successful video ad Paul's preference: Video template vs. short script Using actual customers vs. paid actors to deliver your message Alternatives to traditional video ads: video sales letters and animated videos How Paul does and doesn't use retargeting The strategy behind split-testing videos Why diversity is important in your marketing How organic ranks and SEO aid paid traffic Why SEO is a long-term yet effective strategy Backlinks: What they are and how they affect your website's authority Paul's tips for gaining linkback credit Two factors to SEO mastery What type of content has the best chance of ranking for SEO How long-tail keywords will help boost your search engine rank How to get an unbiased 3rd party opinion of your content for the price for a coffee     1:27 Small to medium businesses will see lower costs per acquisition if they do an actual video ad. 1:44 One of Paul's clients is paying less than $2 per email address acquisition. He found success via video ads on Facebook which allows him to directly target his audience. 2:24 Paul recommends recording different videos for Facebook and YouTube ads. 3:02 "I try to stress to all of my clients to keep it down to 15 seconds. This is an elevator pitch minus the elevator doors even closing. The moment you step foot on that elevator, you have to spit it out."-PK 4:06 Paul encourages his clients to write up a short script and use their phones to record. Usually the 5th or 6th take that works well. 6:52 Things to include in your 15 second video: Scarcity Price and time urgency Mention customization 7:31 Make sure you're talking right to your target audience. Use anything that would work on a landing page or sales copy. Make sure there's value. Talk about your client, not yourself. Mention the benefits of your offer, not the features. One simple call to action (CTA) 11:31 Alternatives to directly delivering the message yourself in your video ad. 12:02 "You trust someone if you see their eyes."-PK 13:11 If Paul doesn't capture interest with the video enough to get click-throughs, a different video is created all together. 13:33 "We actually split-test the videos rather than try to retarget."-PK 16:43  "PPC is short-term, quick gains. SEO is a long-term, in it for the long haul." 17:07 To master SEO:   Have the high-quality content that people are searching for Have the backlinks and authority 18:22 Focus on creating high-quality content that people are talking about, commenting on or linking to. Most likely a blog article. Then market the content. 20:31 Depending on how competitive your industry and market is, your homepage, services page or pricing page won't affect your rank. Long-tail keywords are less competitive and more likely to rank in the search engines. 21:48 "All boats rise with the tide." As you get backlinks, it raises the value and authority of your entire website. 22:47 Paul's actionable tip for small businesses to generate leads and increase conversion rates: Business owners are so closely tied to their businesses. It's difficult to see things objectively sometimes… "The next time you're in Starbucks, pull up a webpage from your website and say 'Listen I'll buy your drink, I just wanna ask you a few questions about this webpage."   Ask them to review your content and they'll give you good, honest feedback.   Connect with Paul: ConnexDigitalMarketing.com   Contact Adam: [email protected]   Click here to subscribe via iTunes Modern Marketing on Stitcher Modern Marketing on Pocket Casts