How To Create Video Ads That Increase Conversions & ROAS (With Examples)

You wanted a creative video campaign. So you spent thousands and got the most remarkable video creative you've ever seen in return. It was visually appealing and shot beautifully.

...Only, when you plugged it into your Facebook Ad campaigns, it flopped. Hard.

You expected to see 5x return on your ad spend, but the video barely broke even.

While the video was cool and creative, it wasn't made with conversions in mind and resulted in an expensive mistake.

It's a story we've heard all too often.

To produce a video campaign that sells, you need more than great visuals. It would be best if you had a strategy. We'll show you how to create a video ad that will boost your conversions and return on ad spend without sacrificing creativity.

The method we use has achieved exceptional results for multiple clients. It not only works on Facebook Ads either but for Snapchat and other paid social platforms too.

So whether you're producing videos in-house or working with a video production company, you must get it right so you don't waste time on money on amends or even creating a brand new video from scratch (and praying it works better than before).

Having a creative idea for your video ad isn't enough. Sure, people might watch and enjoy it, but it needs structure to drive sales. And there's one that advertising copywriters have relied on for decades to turn prospects into paying customers consistently.

Using this "formula", you can produce video scripts that automatically get you more clicks and conversions without spending hours banging your head against the wall trying to get it right.

It's called AIDA. It stands for attention, interest, desire and action. Using it, you grab a prospect's attention, maintain their interest, create a passion for the product and then push them to act.

You want to take your audience through these four steps, one-by-one in any video ad you create. This will ensure they remain captivating, relevant and conversion-focused.

Getting AIDA right happens well before you pick up the video camera. As Mario explains below, it all happens in the planning and storyboarding stages.

We used the AIDA structure with our client, BeeBombs. The video below was part of a campaign that got over 8 million views, netting Beebombs a 5.2x return on their ad spend.

Watch to see how we direct the viewer from “attention” to “action” in just 33 seconds.

Now, we’ll give you a breakdown of each section of AIDA, how we applied it in the BeeBombs video, and why it works.

Attention

To get your ideal target to stop scrolling and watch your video, you must grab their attention.

A simple way to do this is to promise a benefit and pique their curiosity.

This promise can take the form of a problem, specific details, or a unique selling point.

In action - "Bee numbers are falling at a rapid rate. So that's why we need to bring the bees back".

Why it works - BeeBombs was created because of this statement. It directly calls out people who care about bees while also informing people who may be unaware of the problem at hand. The promise is that by watching this video, you'll learn how to help stop this.

We also integrated their tagline 'bring the bees back'. Which has been used as a hashtag over 5,000 times on Instagram due to our video marketing.

Interest

Interest keeps the momentum from your attention-grabbing open going and delivers on the promise you made. If it doesn't deliver, they'll feel tricked and leave.

You maintain their interest by engaging them with counter-intuitive or new information.

In action - "BeeBombs are native wildflower seed balls that are perfect for pollinators. They're easy to garden with and have no plastic in the packaging."

Why it works - It follows through with the promise by showing how the product solves the problem outlined in the attention section. While at the same time, it shows the viewer how easy the product is to use, making it feel like they can solve the problem.

It builds interest by explaining how the product solves the problem we outlined in the attention section. While at the same time, showing the benefits of how the product is easy to use and is environmentally friendly.

Desire

Here, you engage them to turn their interest into a desire for your product. You can do this with a story, emotional connection or showcasing the product in action. All in all, it must engage their heart and excite them.

Here, you engage with your audience's heart and turn their interest into a desire for your product. To build excitement and emotional connection, you can tell a story, showcase the product in action or show proof of real people using and enjoying the product.

All in all, this section should have your audience anticipating the offer and have them wanting to act on it.

In action - "Check out some of our customers' wildflower gardens."

Why it works - It inspires the audience as they can see how their garden could look if they bought and used BeeBombs. It also provides social proof that it works for a variety of different gardens for multiple happy customers.

Action

All the three previous steps were leading to this moment. This is where you take all the desire you've built in your audience and channel it into acting on your offer.

By the time they've got here, they should already WANT to buy the product. Your job is to clearly show them what to do and how simple it is.

In action - "So click shop now and get your BeeBombs!"

Why it works - it's simple yet effective. With simple instruction, they'll know how to buy their own Beebombs.

You'll notice we used the wording' Shop Now', precisely the same call-to-action we used on our Facebook Ads.

Not only do we use a spoken call-to-action, but we leave the final few seconds of the video showing their logo to ensure they remember the brand name while giving another reminder to click shop now.

An often overlooked element of social media advertising is social proof. With countless competitors advertising in the same space, you need to go above and beyond to convince your audience that you're a quality brand they can trust.

Building this trust is vital. Without it, they'll find it hard to believe what you're telling them, especially when it's a prospecting or top of the funnel campaign where you're trying to reach people who haven't seen your brand before.

It's why we infuse social proof into almost all of the video creatives we produce for our clients.

Let's look at how we packed social proof into this Love Leggings high performing ad.

Though it's only 15 seconds long, it's packed with social proof. Here are the methods you can use to achieve the same results:

Use Testimonials

Testimonials are taking the words out of your customer's mouth and sharing them with the world. They work so well because they're real and often show the main benefit the customer experienced and address any hesitations they had.

In Love Leggings, we chose the most relevant testimonials to suit the video's Autumn theme. Those who addressed how the leggings are warm, comfortable and good value for money. All the while, the testimonials address a common objection that the leggings could look see-through.

Together, these testimonials drive home the positive experience customers have had with the product.

Use User-Generated Content

Take those testimonials a step further by working with influencers and content creators to showcase your product in action. This works exponentially well for the middle of funnel campaigns and converts potential customers on the fence.

A great way to generate content this way is to encourage your customers to share pictures of themselves enjoying your products.

For Love Leggings, the influencers showcase how the leggings look in real life and work with fashionable outfits. This works much better than only showing the product on its own.

Include Review Site & Star Badges

On their own, the testimonials and user-generated content only show the opinions of three customers. The TrustPilot screenshot, however, shows over 6,000 positive reviews.

If you have great reviews and brag-worthy numbers from a trusted review site to share, share them! They provide a potent piece of proof that you're the real deal and worth buying from. It could be the final nudge a prospective customer needs to justify buying from you.

Want to see videos that show this? Find our video examples blog here.

With every new video ad, you need to keep in mind the dimensions, length of the video and special features of each social platform. See how we think about each platform here:

By following the guidelines above, you can start creating your video creatives and start seeing noticeable results. However, if you don't have the equipment, time or technical expertise, this can be a lengthy and costly process.

Using a video production company can be expensive, and while their videos will look great, they won't be optimised for social media or remain conversion-focused.

At The Social Shepherd, we combine our passion for video with social media expertise to create high performing video ads for our clients. Not only will you receive an aesthetically pleasing and eye-catching video, but we'll also implement a full paid media strategy behind it. Want to work with us? Click here.