Why video content versus photo content is better for engagement with your affiliate links.

“I never knew I needed a complete stranger to come pick me up at my house and take me somewhere in their car; that is, until Uber came along.” An interesting juxtaposition pointed out by author, Daniel Pink. And he’s absolutely correct—the best products out there solve problems you didn’t even know you had. Likewise, the best promotional content out there convinces you to act, often by allowing your rational decision-making center to play catch up to your emotions. 

(Nurses already know how true this phenomenon is—how often do our patients make health decisions based on emotion, requiring us to reeducate them with accurate health intel?) 

Photos of products, organizations, and/or the services we recommend as affiliates technically get the job done; but using video—the kind readily available on any social platform— is a much more efficient way   to snag someone’s emotional attention. Let’s discuss. 

Attention lives in the heart, not the brain

Take Pixar Shorts. With elegant storytelling, subtle yet powerful life lessons woven throughout, and likable, relatable characters, many movie-goers anticipate the thrill of seeing a Pixar short as much as the feature film they paid to go see. In fact, you’re probably picturing your favorite Pixar short right now. (2016’s “Piper?” Yeah, us too.) That’s because the storytelling concept of their videos stay with us, snuggled down deep in our emotional brains rather than passing from one eye to the other like fact-driven videos do. 

Nurses are great storytellers by nature. We build rapport with our patients, often getting close to them by empathizing and relating to them with personal stories. Sharing those same kinds of stories in the form of affiliate marketing videos springs from this same intention.

As human beings, we respond to feelings more than logic. Arguably, a compelling video—even a mediocre one—has less of an appeal threshold to overcome when compared to a static image. But when a  video is well done—intimate, punchy, clever, memorable—they will far outperform a photo of you holding a promotional product every time.

Yet some nurse affiliate marketers are sometimes reluctant to choose videos for their promotional content. It’s understandable. Video requires some degree of vulnerability and stepping outside of your comfort zone. Plus, you may be eager to showcase the design, technology, and innovation of the products you’re promoting, and feel that these attributes can’t be properly featured via video with sounding “salesy.” 

But this is a fallacious belief. By falling back on images/descriptive content, you are neglecting one of the key aspects of sales, which is this: converting a follower to a customer—with a primary goal of moving them along a sales funnel—occurs only after you’ve grabbed their attention. 

Video (does not) = (mindless) “press record”

Live video capture is arguably the most flexible of all promotional video production. With most platforms notifying your followers in real time that you are “going live,” half your promotion and marketing is done for you automatically. Having the ability to cast a wide net because of this announcement is one of its greatest strengths. What’s more, it’s likely that even more of your followers will then come across these saved live promotional videos in their news feed later on. Therefore, these types of videos have twice the reach that a photo would.  

80% of marketers report that video increases dwell time on their site overall. Featuring video on your website, grids, and/or personal feed allows potential followers to let their guard down, thus nudging them towards learning more about your nurse affiliate links. 

No one likes to be sold to right out of the gate, however. Videos you post—especially ones containing affiliate links—must be planned and crafted with careful forethought. Don’t forget that viewers are attracted to YOU first, and the things you like, second.  But, if they’re enjoying your content and getting value from the things you post, chances are they’ll be on their way to forming an (emotionally-driven) favorable opinion about the products or services you like, too.  Indeed, well-received videos increase purchasing intent by 97%. 

Debunking the myths of video 

No one likes misinformation. Maybe you have still have beliefs about the superiority of photo content compared to video. But, are they accurate? Seeing as we’ve just spent the majority of this post describing how biased we are to feel first and think second, it might be prudent to review the actual facts about this.

• Videos can make you laugh. In a good way. (And we all know how badly nurses need to laugh now!) Think about the last time it became clear that a photo or meme was desperately trying (and failing) to be funny. Not cute.  In comparison, videos backed by solid scripts and filmed in a genuine “I’m trying, but not too hard” manner can communicate humor in the round-about, intelligent way that pics cannot. What’s more, they allow YOU to shine—the person your viewers want to laugh with. 

• Videos engage your audience by involving them emotionally. They encourage sharing—especially on emerging platforms like TikTok. What’s more, potential customers will actually seek to learn about your fancy new thingamajig. And who doesn’t love a nice, tidy conversion. 

• Videos offer an infinite amount of stylistic filters, stickers, and effects. The more you can personalize your content, the less salesy it will feel, and the more your audience will buy into it. If you sincerely believe you have a standout product or service, then it makes sense to back it with a thoughtfully planned video.

Look around. What are the best nurse influencer and entrepreneurs doing? Video, video, and (more) live video! To stay current in today’s marketing climate, you need to be leading as much as keeping up. And that means staying open minded to using video as a means to promote your affiliate marketing links. Video embodies the very principal of innovative design, and nurses are born innovators! 

Now, if you can excuse me, the video ad in my Uber needs my attention…