If you’ve been following MFG Tribe for a while, you should know that video is one of the most important tools that manufacturing and industrial businesses can harness in the modern marketing age. If you’re new here, we’ll break it down quickly: video marketing is the most effective, yet largely underutilized marketing tool that industrial businesses should be using to its full potential.

A video just for video’s sake isn’t enough. Like all other pieces of content marketing that you put together for your brand, each video you create should have a clear purpose that provides value to your audience. They should provide value to you as well, in the form of viewer engagement and building brand authority in your industry.

Today, we’ve come up with a list of a few different video ideas that every industrial company can create. With just a bit of brainstorming, your company can take these ideas and tailor them into winning strategies that spotlight your brand in ways that will have your viewers asking for more.

MFG Tribe produces more industrial videos per year than any other marketing agency out there.

Learn more about what we do by contacting us today.

Show What Sets Your Industrial Brand Apart

When we get started with a new video client, the first thing we have to ask them is if they already have a video that serves as a company overview. This is the most basic type of video that an industrial company can create, and also one of the most important- but most of the time, our client’s answer is ‘no’. For that reason, creating a company overview is usually the first project we tackle for a new client.

A company overview type video gives you the chance to tell your brand’s unique story. It’s not often that you will get to plainly state what sets your industrial business apart from the competition or share unique tidbits of history with potential customers. By sharing what makes your company unique, you can give viewers a glimpse into your company’s culture- something which will resonate with your ideal customers.

A good CTA you can include in this type of video is to ask your viewers what they would like to see next from your company. Now that they have the big picture in terms of what you do, they can engage with your content by asking questions about what you do or express interest in a more in-depth look at your offerings.

In an industrial video like this, you should:

• Share what you do
• Explain why you do it better than the rest
• Highlight how your company’s core values are put into practice

Showcase Your Industrial Solutions with Demonstration Videos

Once we’ve put together a company overview video for our clients, one of the next types of videos we like to tackle is a product or process demonstration video. This takes advantage of the visual element of video content to help customers understand the value that your product or service provides to them. In other words, the purpose of this kind of video is to show off what your product can do.

It’s important to demonstrate the value of your product in a way that is clear. Sometimes the easiest way to do this is to show your product or process being used as intended. If your product is flame resistant, you can take a torch to it to prove your claim. If you have quality testing equipment onsite you can film the process of testing a sample, whether that be compression testing, tensile testing, or some other visually stimulating method to show off your product’s unique qualities.

Sometimes, it helps to get creative with the demonstration you make and really put your claims to the ultimate test. If your product’s claim to fame is durability, how far can you take that? Can it withstand a drop from a bowling ball? A hit with a sledgehammer? Have some fun with it. As long as you can draw a connection between your product’s performance and the claim you’re making, don’t be afraid to really make it interesting with an out-of-the-box demonstration.

In a demonstration video, you should:

• Show a direct result from using your product or service
• Focus on a visually stimulating process or a visibly noticeable result
• Demonstrate the value of your industrial solution by showcasing results

Simplify Complex Concepts with an Explanatory Video

Remember how fun it was to watch an entire episode of How It’s Made? There’s no denying that everybody likes a good video explaining how something is made or how exactly it works, especially those in the industrial sector. There’s nothing wrong with nerding out over something cool- in fact, we think it’s even better to embrace it. For that reason, another type of industrial video that we recommend creating is an in-depth explanation video that’s relevant to your company’s offerings.

This can be a video that shows how you turn raw materials into your finished product, a video explaining the technology behind your product, or a video that walks the viewer through your service from beginning to end. Whichever route you decide to go, the point of this kind of video is to leave your viewers with a better understanding of not just what your product or service does, but how it works.

To boost engagement with on an explanatory video, consider a CTA that encourages your viewers to like, comment, or share if they learned something new, or something to that effect.

In an explanatory video, you should:

• Help the viewer understand something new to them, i.e. a process, a product, or a technology
• Focus on “How it Works”
• Build excitement around your business’ product or service

We have the video expertise to tell your brand’s story in a whole new way. Contact us today to get started!

Pose Your Company as a Thought Leader with Educational Videos

Similar to the explanatory video, educational videos should leave your audience with a better understanding of how things work. The key difference here is that in an educational video, you should be giving the audience knowledge that they can use for themselves to improve their professional standings. MFG Tribe produces tons of content like this: explaining the ins and outs of industrial sales, the importance of building relationships with your clients, how to build a content creation strategy, and so much more.

These videos are highly likely to be shared around, as people will want to share information that they find insightful or helpful in some way. Don’t forget to encourage your viewers to like, comment, and share as well.

In an educational video, you should:

• Give actionable advice to your viewer
• Focus on WHAT to do and WHY it works
• Share valuable insight that your viewers can’t get anywhere else

Walk Customers Through Your Facility with a Video Tour

Following the line of thought that everyone can appreciate a good deep dive video, a video tour is a great way to show off your facility. A video tour makes your facility as accessible as possible, so even those who can’t physically come visit your shop can still get a look at your daily operations and collection of machinery.

A tailored facility tour video also gives you an added level of control over what exactly the audience sees. If you have trade secrets that need to be protected or process signage that is meant to remain internal, simply keep those visuals out of frame and instead focus on the things that you want to show off.

You can typically increase engagement by framing this kind of video as an exclusive, behind the scenes look at what you do. People like to feel included in something special, so presenting your shop tour video as such will help you establish a sense of connection and trustworthiness with your audience.

In a facility tour, you should:

• Focus on visually interesting processes and machinery
• Be selective about what you show on camera

Share Mutual Success Stories with Customer Testimonials

In the industrial world and beyond, your happiest customers are always going to be your best salespeople. With that in mind, don’t be afraid to put some feelers out there and see if any of your customers would like to be featured in a testimonial video. If a customer had an experience with your company that was so outstanding that they would take time out of their busy schedule to vouch for what you do, that is a badge you should wear with honor. In the industrial community, some good word of mouth and a trusted brand name can take you farther than you might imagine.

A client testimonial video should cover the following:

• Your client’s credentials
• Their initial challenge
• How your company solved that challenge
• Why they chose your company
• Their overall satisfaction with your product/service

Now that you have all of these ideas for engaging video topics, go out there and start creating! Getting started is the most important step, so we encourage you to get that ball rolling. As you create more content and make sure to keep your video topics interesting, you should see your engagement increase.

If you need an extra hand with your content strategy or video production, the experts here at MFG Tribe would be happy to help. Just contact us today to get in touch.

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