Demystifying The Selling 7: 80% Videos vs. Product and Service Videos

In 2017, we discovered a groundbreaking strategy for video sales and marketing called The Selling 7.

Up to that point, “video strategy” would have been defined by most people as promoting commercials and brand videos on social media, and publishing a nice “About Us” video on your website.

But, as we worked with more and more companies in unique industries, we learned that wasn’t completely congruent with becoming a “trusted voice in your industry.”

Thus, The Selling 7 emerged.

As a brief description, The Selling 7 is the seven types of videos that are proven to have the biggest impact on sales conversations, conversions, and building trust with buyers.

The first two elements of The Selling 7 are what we dubbed the “80% Video” and “Product/Service Videos.”

Both solve different needs for buyers and consequently solve problems for sales teams as well.

The problem? They are commonly confused with each other.

This not only causes issues when you’re actually creating them but when you’re trying to use them appropriately in your sales process and on your website.

So what’s the big difference?

Let’s go a little deeper, shall we?

What is an 80% video and why is it important?

Imagine how many questions come up in a typical sales call.

10? 20? Maybe even 50?

What if you could answer a number of those questions, but never spend time in a sales call doing so?

That’s the goal of the 80% video.

Its name was developed because oddly enough, after speaking with dozens with sales teams, we concluded that 80% of the questions that typically come up on those first sales calls are the same questions every time.

(Note: It’s not 80% of the questions prospects ask, but the ones they always ask.)

It just so happens that, on average, 80% of the questions you hear, you hear every time

So why spend time on every sales appointment addressing those same old questions?

Instead, make a list of those most common 7-10 questions, address them all individually, but then compile them into one video that’s assigned to a prospect to watch before you get on the phone or in the room with them.

If you’re not spending valuable time answering these questions, then you can spend more time learning about the client, determining their needs, and helping them discover what you have to offer that’s a good fit for them.

Here’s an example of a concise, effective 80% video from yours truly at IMPACT that explains a service we offer:

The cool thing is, this isn’t just something you can use on the first sales appointment.

You can use an 80% video to cut down on almost every meeting you have, including sales follow-ups, customer service calls, and internal meetings.

Let’s take your average customer service call as an example. How many of the same questions or situations are commonly addressed again and again, time after time? What if it were possible to mitigate a number of complications or questions beforehand by allowing a customer to watch a brief video about their concern beforehand?

Could you cut down the call time by 25%? 50%? Could you eliminate the need for a call entirely?

That’s the goal of the 80% video; to cut down on meeting duration and save everyone more time.

Now, what about product/service videos?

What is a product/service video and why is it important?

While an 80% video is designed to help save time on sales calls, product/service videos are more customer-focused.

The goal of any product/service page or video is simple: to help a buyer determine if something is a good fit for them.

Consider an Amazon product listing for example.

On this one page, you can see nearly everything you need to know about a product to make an educated decision without having to perform extensive research elsewhere.

You have pictures, videos, reviews, frequently asked questions, comparable products or add-ons, pricing options, and much more.

These things help a potential buyer answer important internal questions. In fact, these are the most important questions buyers have before we purchase just about anything:

1. What is the product/service?
2. Who is it a good fit/not a good fit for?
3. When should I buy it?
4. Why do I need it or why should I buy it?
5. How much does it cost?
6. How do I buy it?

Answering these simple, straight-forward questions creates the architecture of both a world-class product/service page and video.

Here’s an example of a product/service video about our Video Sales/Marketing Consulting here at IMPACT:

By addressing these questions, and helping your buyer make a sound purchasing decision, you inadvertently shorten the sales cycle similar to the 80% video, but it’s purpose first and foremost is to help them make decisions on their own, possibly before they ever talk to a salesperson.

Now, is it possible that the questions addressed in these videos have some overlap? Yes, absolutely. But here is why they are commonly very different.

Let’s say I were in the market for a new dishwasher. I would comb through product pages and videos either narrowing down my choices or picking the exact dishwasher I intend to purchase.

Once I have my option, now I have a whole other set of questions for a salesperson perhaps based on warranties, delivery options, payment terms, etc. Those are the questions that, since I will probably wait to ask a salesperson, should go into an 80% video.

To give you some perspective, I have not seen over the past 3 years, an 80% video replace a product/service video or vice versa. Since they serve separate purposes, they are usually very different.

When do you use one over the other?

So, how will you know when you use one video over the other.

Here’s the simple version:

With the 80% video, you want to make sure that they view it before your sales appointment or conversation.

It could live somewhere on your website — perhaps on a Thank you page that follows a “schedule a meeting” form submission — but, typically, this isn’t the case.

Instead, you should send the 80% video as a follow up via email once you’re confirmed your sales appointment or meeting.

Ideally speaking, you want to do this to confirm that they’ve committed to watching the video. Otherwise, it’s not serving its purpose.

Typically that sounds something like, “Looking forward to our meeting on Tuesday. Before we meet though, please watch this quick six-minute video that’s going to help us make a lot of progress during our time together.

We know you don’t want to make mistakes during your purchase and so this will cover some of the most important things you need to know. Can you confirm you’ll watch it before we meet on Tuesday?”

Conversely, with a product/service video, this will absolutely live on the appropriate product/service page on your website.

It can also be a good idea to send to prospects before or after your sales appointments once you’ve determined exactly what they are interested in.

Two game changing video strategies

In conclusion, it’s important to understand the difference between these two types of videos so that you can execute both properly, and know exactly when and where to use them.

I’d also encourage you to learn more, if you haven’t already, about the rest of The Selling 7 and how to use them to generate sales, build trust, and affect more revenue with video.