Nicole Osborne has established herself as a go-to resource in the industry. Previously featured in our lineup of the most successful women agency owners, she has a track record of guiding growth-minded digital agencies across eight countries as their trusted marketing and LinkedIn coach.
She is known for helping clients transform from being the world’s best-kept secret to standing out in all the right ways.
From refining digital marketing efforts to enhancing time management and sales processes, Nicole empowers agency owners to break down barriers and achieve their growth goals.
Considering Nicole’s extensive 20+ years of experience, who better to discuss today’s interview topic: How can agencies harness the power of video marketing to boost client engagement and visibility?
Let’s get started.
1. Can you introduce yourself and your background in the agency landscape? How did you get into coaching for agencies?
Hi, I’m Nicole Osborne, a LinkedIn meister who’s all about helping digital agency owners knock through their inner Berlin Walls and build a WUNDERBAR presence that gets them the right clients in the door.
With my signature blend of German efficiency, a fun approach, and infectious enthusiasm, I make LinkedIn less of a chore and more of a kunden-magnet (client magnet) for digital agencies across the globe.
My clients are based in 7 countries. Drawing on my 20+ years of experience in marketing (client and agency side as a marketing director) and being a Chartered Marketer, I’m a popular speaker, too, captivating audiences from BrightonSEO to Chris Do’s ‘The Futur’ podcast.
If you’d like authentic, done-for-you content to build your authority on LinkedIn, agency growth coaching to help you make the most of the platform, or a LinkedIn expert to speak at your next event, connect with me to step out from the shadows and make your LinkedIn presence KNOWN!
Since 2019, I’ve specialized in working with agencies. Although most agencies are creative and deliver amazing campaigns for their clients, they often neglect their own marketing.
I’ve also been featured in Cloudways’ Webinar: How to Get Noticed by Your Dream Clients on Social Media
2. Can you share your insights on the current landscape of the digital marketing industry and how it has evolved over the past few years?
Agencies face a huge amount of competition. People want to work with suppliers who share their values. AI has made it easy for everyone to churn out lots of content.
Yet, to get on the best shortlists, agencies need to show up with personality and build connections at a human level. Companies see them as part of their teams, and they have huge expectations. Delivering results is seen as the norm. How you make your clients feel in the process can set you apart.
As agencies navigate the challenges of meeting client expectations, transferring learning, managing stakeholders, and ensuring team members feel supported during challenging project milestones become crucial. Video content can play a significant role in connecting with clients throughout their journey.
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3. Video marketing has gained significant momentum in recent times. From your perspective, how essential is incorporating video into an agency’s marketing strategy, and what benefits can it bring?
AI content can be amazing. Yet nothing builds trust, authority, influence, and connection like video. Agencies that are not using video are leaving money on the table to their competitors who embrace video. It’s like turning up to a Formula 1 race with your family car.
4. Which agencies have you mentored in the past, and who are the founders of these agencies?
5. What are some common challenges agencies face when implementing a successful video marketing strategy, and how can they overcome them?
- Lack of time and dedicated resources
- Pressure to focus on client delivery
- Resistance to recording videos – fear of being on video
- Huge pressure to turn up perfect
How to overcome:
- Reflect on the potential benefits that video content can offer to you.
- Check what competitors are doing; chances are, this will highlight an opportunity for you.
- Pick champions internally who gravitate towards content marketing and video.
- Hire support.
- Make marketing delivery a must-have KPI.
- Provide bespoke training and coaching to come up with a video strategy, ensuring accountability and efficient learning.
- Give the team permission to learn – no one starts perfect with video.
6. Regarding client engagement, how can agencies leverage the storytelling aspect of video content to create a more compelling connection with their audience?
Your audience wants relatable stories, not just data. So, with your video content efforts:
- Show how you empathize with your target audience by stepping into their shoes.
- Discuss their dreams, challenges, and aspirations for their businesses.
- Identify the stories and myths they tell themselves about the services you offer.
- Challenge these perceptions and provide alternative approaches.
- Pose engaging questions to drive interaction.
- Meet your audience where they are.
- Prioritize entertainment, starting with a catchy hook to capture their attention and make them more inclined to listen to your expert advice.
- Include a hook, evoke emotion, discuss the catalyst for change, describe the previous norm, and illustrate the new norm post-change.
- Feature real colleagues authentically; if your team wears T-shirts, don’t dress them differently for the video shoot.
Authenticity is key.
7. How can agencies tailor video content to different platforms and audience segments to maximize engagement and reach?
Figure out where your ideal clients hang out and where their watering holes are. If you please every platform and every audience type with your video, you will fail.
Invest your resources in targeting your most commercially attractive audience on their main platform. If you’re a creative agency, most likely, this is LinkedIn.
If you want to be found in search results, YouTube can be very beneficial. Test and refine your approach. Survey your audience to discover what they care about, what they see as helpful, and where they look for this content.
8. Metrics play a crucial role in evaluating the success of a marketing strategy. What key performance indicators (KPIs) do you recommend agencies focus on when measuring the effectiveness of their video marketing efforts?
KPIs for videos aren’t just about generic metrics like views and engagement. What truly matters is ensuring that your videos are seen by your ideal audience.
- Has a prospect mentioned them during a pitch meeting?
- Have you attended a networking event where someone brought up seeing your LinkedIn Live?
What’s crucial is the type of leads that have been generated. Relying solely on engagement can be misleading; for instance, on LinkedIn, many people are lurkers who don’t actively comment or react to posts.
9. With the rise of short-form video content on platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels, how can agencies adapt their strategies to capture audiences’ attention with shorter attention spans?
Offer bite-sized talking points, use humor when appropriate to capture attention, and develop a standout house style. Feature team members and share behind-the-scenes content.
10. Collaboration is often key to success. How can agencies collaborate with influencers or other businesses through video content to enhance their reach and engagement?
Going live together and organizing a virtual event will make the hosting agency be seen as an expert. Be visible where your audience hangs out, and work with ‘influencers’ who can connect you with your audience.
Again, human relationships matter. Find people who offer a great fit for your agency brand. If you’re creating assets to be shared by connectors, make this really easy for them, from swipe files to easily shared assets to templates for them to add their photo and logo.
Make it easy for your influencers or collaborators to shine (brief them on your audience and their likely questions and challenges). When you do this, you’ll, in turn, make the content more valuable and engaging.
11. Live video has become increasingly popular across various platforms. How can agencies leverage live video to engage with their audience in real time and build a sense of community?
The key here is to build up an audience to watch the live. Introduce a regular slot. Promote it across all your channels. Be patient. Going live is a powerful tool for building trust, as the audience knows you can’t fake it.
Build a sense of community by calling out the audience and interacting with them – do this consistently. Moderating is important. Always offer a valuable take-away. Plan your call to action. Invite viewers to join you live. Post beforehand to build anticipation and ask for questions in advance.
12. How important is it for agencies to maintain a consistent brand image across their video content, and what strategies can they employ to ensure brand coherence in diverse video materials?
Your brand guidelines need to evolve to work across video. What opportunities do you have to offer brand touchpoints in a video? What colors and language do you use? What does your setting look like? What is your editing style? No one wants to see a corporate intro. When you work with an editor or designer, listen to their tips.
13. What role does SEO play in video marketing, and how can agencies optimize their video content to improve search engine rankings and visibility?
SEO is hugely important. For example, on YouTube, you need to optimize the title, description, thumbnail, and more to be found. Keyword research is crucial for this. Check your best-performing blogs and see if you could add a video to them. Could you create a LinkedIn article linking back to them?
14. As attention spans continue to decrease, how can agencies create thumb-stopping content in the first few seconds of a video to capture their audience’s interest?
Forget about corporate intros. No one wants to hear who you are and why you talk about a subject. Cut right to the value and why people should listen to this. Write a script to help you with this. Watch successful YouTubers adopt similar strategies to grab attention. Let the audience know straight away what’s in it for them—or surprise them. Use open loops to keep them watching for longer.
15. Considering the competitiveness of the digital landscape, how can agencies differentiate themselves through video marketing to stand out in their respective industries?
Show their people and culture—decision-makers will consider this when adding an agency to their shortlist. Decide what makes you unique and how you can show this in a video. Show your personality.
- What objections do your prospects have about working with an agency?
- Can you address them in your videos?
- Can you reassure them that you understand them?
Allow yourself to learn and develop your unique style as you become more experienced.
16. How can agencies utilize user-generated content and customer testimonials through video to enhance credibility and trust?
If you’re sharing a tip about measuring the right KPIs for your website, add a customer talking about how this transformed their website performance. Interview your customers on video, add clips to your videos, or show written testimonials as part of the video that highlights the results of the agency’s work.
17. Should agencies explore leveraging agency partnership programs, such as the one Cloudways offers, to enhance visibility for their video marketing efforts? Why or why not?
Learning is key as a progressive agency owner. Tapping into a supportive community can energize you. Everyone struggles to get started with video (in fact, I myself accepted that my first 100 videos will be poorly executed). Facing your video nerves is easier as part of a community. Speaking up on community calls can gradually increase your video confidence.
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18. Besides yourself, are there any other agency coaches you recommend we reach out to for an interview?
Absolutely! Besides myself, I highly recommend reaching out to Laura West.
Laura has also been featured in:
Agency coach interview: How can agencies balance client satisfaction goals with industry recognition?
19. In conclusion, what advice would you give agencies looking to integrate video marketing seamlessly into their overall strategy, and how can they ensure a positive return on investment regarding client engagement and visibility?
Make this a strategic priority, with doable KPIs and a dedicated team. Pick one channel. Create a series of videos. Promote this everywhere. Watch the metrics closely. You’ll never look back! One often overlooked area is the use of video during the proposal and onboarding stages. Add Loom videos to make your communication more powerful.
Abdul Rehman
Abdul is a tech-savvy, coffee-fueled, and creatively driven marketer who loves keeping up with the latest software updates and tech gadgets. He's also a skilled technical writer who can explain complex concepts simply for a broad audience. Abdul enjoys sharing his knowledge of the Cloud industry through user manuals, documentation, and blog posts.
