Older dental practices may have some experience with video marketing from a time when the internet wasn’t as large or commonly used as it is today, and as a result, it can be difficult to broach the topic of video marketing. Some of the same terms, and expectations, may still be on their minds as they give it consideration, but modern video marketing is a completely different animal.

These days, video marketing for dental practices combines some of the best features of search engine optimization and social media to create a more media-rich presentation of your dental practice, your own professional background, and the services that you have to offer. Here’s some things to know:

• Video marketing doesn’t always mean commercial marketing. Online video streaming networks like YouTube generate more views every day than any mainstream television channel. In fact, it gets 1 billion unique visitors every month, who watch 6 billion hours of video. That’s six hours per user, but it doesn’t break down into anything as neat and precise as 5 minutes here, or 1 hour there: Every user has their own time budget to spend within their six hours, and if you want to catch their attention, you need to make it worth their while. Commercials aren’t usually something that does the job. Actual information and quality content is.
• Video marketing doesn’t always mean making long videos. In fact, the average video audience member will spend roughly 10 seconds deciding whether or not they will continue watching a video. If they see that the mark runs longer than they would like, that is taken into consideration. Although we’ve already mentioned that commercials shouldn’t necessarily be your goal, commercial length is more than ideal for quick and easy video content. Consider 30 seconds or so for brief information or introductions, 2 minutes to 5 minutes for explanations on new techniques that you may offer, under 10 minutes for interviews or promotional pieces, and very little past those marks. You will notice that it’s often the shorter videos that will get the most attention; it’s also because they’re more likely to be linked and shared.
• You don’t need to make a large investment into video marketing. In the old days of television commercial marketing, actually filming a commercial was a very expensive endeavor in and of itself. Between the crew, the camera, repeated takes, and any effects that may need to be added, your average local television commercial could cost $3,000 to $3,500 just to produce. Online videos cost significantly less, thanks in no small part to improvements in smaller, yet more productive camera technology, and a wealth of affordable editing software.