I’ll go ahead and state the obvious. Today’s buyers have TONS of information at their disposal – not just from sales and marketing but all over the Internet with reviews, blogs, and social media. To deliver amazing experiences, you need to meet the customer where they are and get them the answers they need, when they need it.
At Drift, we call that a “customer-first mindset.”
That’s where video can change everything.
It’s a tactic we use here all the time at Drift to deliver a customer-centric experience and drive more engagement from our customers and prospects.
I interviewed a few of our top Drift Video users to learn the plays that work so you can save time and deliver better customer experiences.
Play #1: The Pre-Onboarding Kickoff
Erica Leonor works in Customer Success at Power Selling Pros. She onboards new clients and helps them succeed. Erica needed a way to ensure new customers become excited and prepared for their kickoff meetings. So, instead of spending 30+ minutes writing long emails with those details, she sends a quick pre-kickoff video.
Here’s how it works: Erica records a quick video where you welcome the customer, establishes a personal connection, and sets the agenda for a productive kickoff call. The one minute video should include just a screen recording of yourself, like this ?
Watch the Drift Video here.
This works because:
- It’s personal. Customers want to know who they’ll be working with and that this person cares about them. That’s why Erica shows her face in these videos – because it creates that authentic face-to-face connection. She also stays true to herself. I love her line, “You might be asking about the sword behind me…it’s from the Lord of the Rings.”
- It’s clear. She runs through the agenda for the kickoff and outlines the value they’ll leave with. This way, Erica can cover any actions she needs the customer to take before they meet for the first time (without diving too deep into the details.
- It’s transferable. How else does video help save time? Erica says, “Drift Video makes sharing updates with my coworkers super easy. We have a weekly newsletter that goes out where instead of typing everything, we record quick videos so we can stay connected while everyone is working from home.”
It’s also completely unexpected, so you’re more likely to delight your customer and build a relationship before even talking to them for the first time ?
Play #2: The [Virtual] Event Follow Up
Rachel Rowe works in Sales Development at Starburst Data. For her, leads from virtual and in-person events are gold. They’re great opportunities to start conversations with high-value prospects. But there’s always a long list of people for her to follow-up with, and she’s competing for their attention with other sponsors and vendors. So, what’s her secret?
Quick follow-up videos.
Here’s how it works: Once an event or webinar is over, Rachel records a relevant video that brings up something that was covered at the event, and then she closes out with a soft ask. Like this one ?
Watch the Drift Video here.
This works because:
- It’s personalized. Rachel shows her face in these videos and mentions each person by name. A personalized connection like this really stands out in a sea of generic follow-up emails, and gives Rachel a better shot of engaging every person on her list.
- It’s contextual. Rachel knows people leave events with information overload. She jogs each person’s memory by reminding them of what was covered and what they talked about. This shows Rachel was really listening, and it gives her a reference point to recommend solutions specific to their unique challenges and goals.
- It’s scalable. Here’s a trick video pros like Rachel use ➡️ You can add your follow-up videos straight into sequencing tools, like Outreach, to share them faster. When you do book a meeting, record it with a free Zoom integration, and share that conversation with multiple stakeholders at once. This enables you to continue that personalized buying experience while speeding up your sales cycle.
These videos are a game-changer for Rachel. In under 30 seconds, she’s able to deliver a personalized and thoughtful follow-up messaging – all while tracking who engages with her and when.
Play #3: The Quick Recommendation
Dan Salvetti is an Account Manager for Drift Chat. He spends his time helping and growing ~70 customers after they onboard his product. But Dan can’t meet with every customer every week. So he needs a way to help them between meetings. That’s why Dan sends async video messages.
Instead of waiting for the next meeting, he records quick video recommendations.
Here’s how it works: Dan records a video with a member of his legal or security team to introduce themselves to his buyer and offer to answer any questions. This doesn’t have to be more than 30 seconds – just enough to say hi ?
Watch the Drift Video here.
This works because:
- It’s clear and concise. Dan introduces the problem/opportunity right away.
- It shows how to take action. Dan shares his screen and walks through the steps.
- There’s no hard sell. Dan uses video to give – rather than ask.
Dan now knows who watched his video (and how much they watched), so he can follow-up and make sure the customer has everything they need. And this also means he can help save his customers’ time with fewer meetings and lengthy email threads. Win-win.
Play #4: The Product Educator
Blake Winkler is a Sales Engineer for Litify, a practice management software platform. He’s responsible for assisting his sales team throughout the sales process. That means doing everything from jumping on product demos to answering complex customer questions. He wanted to come up with an easier way to get answers for his prospects while also protecting the time on his calendar. So he’s turned to video and hasn’t looked back.
Here’s how it works: Instead of waiting until one of his sales reps booked a meeting with him to walk through their product with a prospect, Blake records a quick video overview that his team can now clone and use every time that situation comes up. Like this ?
Watch the Drift Video here.
This works because:
- It’s clear. Blake lets the viewer know what the video was going to be about.
- It sparks engagement. Blake offers the viewer a chance to engage to start the video.
- It tells a story. Blake walked through a new workflow and how it would apply to the prospect.
For Blake, this new approach means he can still support his sales team and get prospects answers to their questions – but with fewer meetings.
Play #5: The AE to CSM Handoff
John Murphy is an account executive at Drift. After closing a deal, it’s time for John to hand off the account to the customer success team. But he wants to be sure this process is as smooth as possible, because you know, poor onboarding could lead to a clawback. He wanted an easier way to make these types of introductions. So John turned to video.
Here’s how it works: John sits down (or these days gets on a Zoom) with his CSM. They record and send a quick one minute video introducing the customer to their new point of contact moving forward. Pair this with Play #1 for the perfect 1-2 punch ?
Watch the Drift Video here.
This works because:
- It’s personalized. Yes, John has built a personal relationship with his prospect. But by introducing the new CSM Lauren, this helps ensure the customer that they will be in good hands and won’t be overlooked.
- It’s contextual. John has all of this knowledge he picked up throughout the sales cycle so he can show how he’s transferring that to Lauren which will help her know exactly what the new customer is looking to accomplish.
- It’s timely. Because John introduced Lauren right after the contract was signed, he ensured his customer had immediate contact with their new point of contact and could easily book their onboarding call.
Onboarding should be a breeze. Recording videos makes it easy for John kick things off with the right introductions, for the CSM to meet the customer, and for the customer to feel like they’re in good hands.
A Final Note: One Play That Doesn’t Work
When I talked to sales reps, there was one play they didn’t use video for, and that’s for cold prospecting. Save your video for prospects you know are already interested, either by clicking around your site, downloading a whitepaper, or engaging with chat already.
Does this sound like something you’d like to try? Download Drift Video for free today to start saving time (and delivering better experiences) for your customers.
