When it comes to the internet, things that are only a year old seem ancient.
It wasn't too long ago when internet marketers started favoring landing pages that were reminiscent of long sales letters full of testimonials.
Recently, those types of pages have been abandoned for a seemingly simple alternative: a video with a single opt-in form.
They're only simple on the surface, though.
It takes a skilled and artistic marketer to craft a sales video landing page that converts.
But, there's also a science to the process, and that's what we'll focus on today.
Make it a Long Video Just like those long sales letters, studies show that long videos are more likely to convert.
If you have enough valuable content to actually stretch your video out to an hour or more you should go for it.
This works for a number of reasons:

1. Prospects who actually watch the whole video are truly interested in the topic and far more likely to opt in
2. You have more time to demonstrate your expertise and subtly persuade the customer to buy your product
3. You can mix in product demonstrations, customer testimonials, and actual marketing messages far more effectively (which should remind you of the ever-present late night infomercial).
   

The problem with longer videos, though, is that the folks browsing the internet tend to have short attention spans.
Catch Their Attention within Five Seconds Whether you're using a video landing page or a traditional, long-form sales letter, you need to study your target market extensively.
You can't possibly push their hot buttons and create a desire to buy your product without doing so.
When you're using a long sales video, though, it's even more important.
The goal of your research should be to identify the one thing that you can use to catch their attention within five seconds.
As long as you can do that, you'll be able to lock them in and they'll watch the rest of the video.
Tease the Value of Watching the Rest of the Video After you've gotten their attention with your five second intro it's time to tease the content that will be presented in the rest of the video.
You can speak to their wants and needs by identifying with them (stories work great for this) and then explaining how you have the solution.
Don't just tell them to "make sure you watch the whole video," though.
This actually snaps them out of the trance and has been shown to decrease conversions.
What you really need to do is identify the benefits of watching the rest of the video.
You can only do this, though, if you've actually studied your market enough to understand their wants and needs.
Deliver that Value Now that you have their attention you need to actually deliver on your promises.
Don't tell them that you'll provide a solution to their problems, lead them on with a thirty minute video and then tell them to buy your product.
They'll feel duped and won't do business with you.
Instead, actually deliver the value you've promised.
Provide a simple or partial solution to their problem.
Give them an idea of how your system works so they can try to duplicate it on their own if they want.
The level of trust this will create is worth far more than trying to trick them into buying your product by teasing the solution behind a paywall.
Explain How the Product will Provide the Ultimate Solution At the end of your video, you've had your prospects attention for thirty minutes, and maybe even longer.
You've identified with them and provided value that they didn't expect.
Now it's time to make the sale.
You do this by explaining how your paid solution provides a more in-depth approach to their problem, or by explaining how the paid version provides more options and customizations.
In essence, you're using the "freemium" model of business.
By providing a basic solution to their needs you'll prove that you're capable of providing a more advanced system, too.
They'll feel more inclined to buy from you since your video delivered what they were looking for and increased their level of trust.