Video marketing can be such a powerful way to generate more leads. It could be the most effective digital marketing effort for every business, including SaaS companies and startups.
To be more specific, over 83% of video marketers say video helps them with lead generation. Compelling visuals and well-suited voice over narration often help prospects to understand the messages better and convert them into qualified leads.
That said, when we talk about leveraging video marketing as a lead generation tool, we often think about creating and promoting helpful how-to videos, product demos, or customer testimonials.
But there’s another way to use video that can be just as effective in generating leads: the topic cluster model.
Now the burning question would be, “what is the topic cluster model, and how do you use it?”
Let’s dive in and find some answers!
What Is the Topic Cluster Model?
The topic cluster model is a content strategy that helps you to build a comprehensive, keyword-rich, and authority-boosting website by creating a group of interconnected pieces (or topics) around one main pillar article.
This main article, also known as the “cluster” or “centerpiece” article, is usually longer and more comprehensive than the other supporting articles (which we’ll call “clusters”).
The cluster article covers all the important subtopics related to your main keyword, while the supporting articles each focus on a more specific subtopic.
In video marketing campaigns – whether it’s for TikTok marketing or YouTube marketing, the topic cluster model can be used to create a series of videos that cover all the important facets of your main keyword.
For example, if your startup just launched a new product, you could create a cluster video on “How to Use [Product].” This would be your main pillar video.
Then, you could create several supporting videos, each covering a specific subtopic, such as “How to Use [Product] for [Specific Use Case].”
Not only will this help you rank for your main keyword, but it’s a great pivot for digital business ideas and startups, as it will help you rank for all the long-tail keywords related to your main keyword.
This, in turn, will help your startup generate more leads, as prospects will be able to find your videos no matter what keywords they’re searching for.
How to Use the Topic Cluster Model in Your Video Marketing Campaigns
Now that you know what the topic cluster model is, let’s take a look at how your startup can utilize it in video marketing campaigns.
1. Choose Keywords
First, you’ll need to choose the main keyword for your video campaign. This will be the keyword that you want to rank for in search engines.
Make sure to choose a keyword that is relevant to your industry and that has a good amount of search volume.
You can use any Google My Business software to help you find the right keyword for your pillar video.
2. Identify the Content Gap
Once you’ve chosen your main keyword, it’s time to start creating your content. But before you start shooting the video, you’ll need to do some research.
Specifically, you’ll need to identify the content gap. The content gap is the difference between what’s currently being offered by your competitors and what’s missing. This is important because you want to make sure that your video is offering something new and valuable that your competitors’ videos are not.
To find the content gap, simply search for your main keyword on YouTube and take a look at the results. As you’re watching the videos, take note of what they’re covering and what they’re not covering. This will give you a good idea of what you need to include in your own video.
It’s also a good idea to read the comments to see what people are saying about the videos. Are there any questions that people have that are not being answered?
If so, you can answer these questions in your own video.
3. Create Videos
Now that you know what to include in your video, it’s time to start creating it. You can choose to create live-action or animated videos. You need to create pillar videos and video clusters.
Pillar Video
As we mentioned before, the pillar video is the main video in your campaign. This is the video that you want to rank for in search engines.
It should be in-depth and comprehensive. Also, the video topic should be general, as it will be broken down into smaller chunks with different videos later on.
Make sure to cover all the important subtopics related to your main keyword so that you’ll be able to rank for various long-tail keywords related to your main keyword.
Video Clusters
Once you have your pillar videos, it’s time to start creating your video clusters.
Once again, your first video should be a cluster video on “How to Use [Product].” This video should be comprehensive and cover all the important facets of using your product.
After that, you can create supporting videos on each of the subtopics related to your main keyword. Just make sure that these videos also feature appealing visuals and great graphic design.
It doesn’t have to be all how-tos. You can go for microinteractions, testimonial videos, case studies, and more. The key here is to create videos that still cover a topic and convey a message that is similar or related to your pillar video.
4. Optimize Your Videos for SEO
Once your videos are created, it’s time to optimize them for SEO.
When optimizing your videos, make sure to include your main keyword in the title, description, and tags of each video. You can rely on various SEO tools to get the job done.
You’ll also need to create transcripts of each video and include them on your startup website. This will help search engines index your videos and make them more likely to show up in search results.
In addition, be sure to embed your videos on your website and share them on social media. This will help increase the reach of your video marketing campaign, boost traffic, and generate more leads.
Wrapping Up
The topic cluster model is a powerful content strategy that can help you generate more leads for your startup through marketing materials (specifically, video marketing).
By using the topic cluster model in your video marketing campaign, you can create a comprehensive pillar video that covers all the important facets of your main keyword.
You can then create smaller, more targeted videos on each of the subtopics related to your main keyword. Make sure you have a well-organized lead management system to track all the results.
This will help you rank not only for your main keyword but also for relevant long-tail keywords.
In addition, by optimizing your videos for SEO and sharing them on social media, you can increase the reach of your video marketing campaign and generate more leads.