How to Create Knockout Unboxing Videos for Your Influencer Marketing Strategy

What’s the best thing about Christmas?
Some might say spending time with loved ones, sharing meals with their family or getting some rest. They’d be lying😜.
The correct answer is, of course, opening presents!

Unboxing videos can be very effective for your influencer marketing strategy (and overall video marketing strategy) because of this. They create – and share – the excitement that we all have when we open a present. Viewers are excited to see what’s inside. No matter how old we are, we still get a tiny shiver of excitement when we open a gift.

 

Close Up Woman Shooting Unboxing Video On Smartphone Unpacking

What exactly is an unboxing video?

Unboxing videos are quite straightforward. They literally do what it says on the tin (or, rather, box). An influencer will receive a parcel and open it on camera, showing all the different products, and sharing his or her thoughts. Viewers will see the products, how they’re packaged, and hear how good they are. This creates a sense of excitement among the influencer’s audience.

 

Unboxing videos might seem strange, but they’re addictive. Once you’ve seen that someone is doing an unboxing video, you need to watch it till the end.

 

The viewer becomes hooked and wants to know exactly what’s inside. Stopping the video halfway through is like being told you have to wait till after breakfast to open your Christmas presents.

Wondering how to attract online shoppers with an unboxing video? Here are some tips:

 

1. Attractive packaging

Customers expect a great experience. Today, that invariably entails an unboxing experience. You should already by aiming to create the experience consumers expect with better item data. It’s no longer enough to just pop it in a bubble envelope and be done with it.

 

When done well, an unboxing video can do great things for your business. Done badly, it can have the opposite effect, like any other marketing content. No one wants to watch a video of someone unwrapping a boring or scruffy looking box. Plain cardboard with no color, pattern or message? No thanks.

 

Make your packaging attractive. Make it match your brand. If your target market is children, think bold colors, fun patterns and maybe even sequins or (biodegradable!) glitter. If your target market is millennials, you’ll need something more sleek and sophisticated – yet still eye catching.

Take CGD London, for example. They create stationary for the career focused, modern woman. But it isn’t ordinary stationary. They focus hugely on image, using Instagram as their main promotional platform. While a notebook could easily be sent in plain packaging, they opt for a more stylish experience. Deliveries come in sleek packaging with motivational messages and a pink, purple and rose gold color palette which matches their brand.

 

stationary

 

It’s not only the box that matters. Think about the package filler, too. Can you add tissue paper in to layer the products? What will cushion your products while still looking attractive? Anyone can chuck some scrunched up newspaper into a box – you need to be better than that.

To really push brand awareness, It’s important that your packaging matches your brand and displays it carefully. You want viewers to see the brand on the box in the video. This is how they’ll search for your product to be able to get their own box in the post.

 

2. Product presentation

You may be using a product inventory system to track your products. But how do you ensure your products look great too?

 

Having cool packaging isn’t enough. Even amazing influencer videos can’t compensate for boring or badly labeled products. The unboxing video will be anticlimactic and awkward. Make sure that your products look great. Utilize your design team and create something that people want to take pictures of.

 

It’s important to think about how your products are placed in the box, too. They should be the centerpiece; the main attraction. Put them boldly in the middle of the box, so they are the first thing that the person sees after removing the filler.

 

lighting

3. Professional lighting

Now that the inside (and outside) of your box looks great, it’s time to think about video quality. There’s no point having great packaging and products if the video doesn’t capture them well.

 

The first thing to think about here is lighting. Make it look professional. Dark, dimly lit unboxing videos won’t look good. Viewers need to be able to see the products and brand clearly on the video, so they know how to find your products. You want your logos and brand messaging to be clearly on display.

 

If you can, invest in some professional lights. The lighting used by influencers to create Instagram and YouTube videos include:

  • Softbox lights: These replicate natural light coming in from windows, making them perfect for frontal lighting. They’re ideal for fashion or beauty videos.
  • Umbrella lights: These create a softer light for a natural look. They make videos look more polished and distribute light evenly throughout a room.
  • LED lights: These are square and round and can be set up either directly onto a camera or using a stand. They are designed for professional shoots.

Don’t be deterred, however. If you don’t have the budget for professional lights, you can still create a great unboxing video. Find a room with bright lights and do a test run for the best angles. Organizing space to do this can be harder for companies that don’t have a dedicated office – especially when their remote workers are spread throughout the country. Technology like VoIP video conferencing makes it easier to stay in touch, so why not book a co-working space for the shoot and coordinate details online?

Watch out for shadows over important brand messages, and make sure it’s not so bright that details get washed out.

 

influencers

 

4. Find the right influencers

Unboxing videos are all about creating a buzz around your products. But they’re also about generating sales. You’ve probably implemented some steps towards this already. Tools like an order management software   can ensure that the right orders go to the right customers, while omnichannel communications make it easy to respond to customer enquiries. But how do your customers find your products to begin with?

If you check out the latest trends for ecommerce, you’ll see that online sales are rapidly growing. This means attracting customers online through different outlets – including social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter or YouTube. By using the right influencers for your unboxing video, you’ll attract the right customers. Influencer marketing campaigns are hugely profitable.

Take BirchBox, for example. This skincare and make-up brand sends surprise products to subscribers on a monthly basis. It’s all about exciting customers – it’s like Christmas every month for the make-up and skincare fanatic! BirchBox reaches out to beauty vloggers to do unboxing videos to create awareness for their brand. This means that beauty enthusiasts will watch the video and want their own BirchBox unboxing experience.

 

birchbox

 

If using influencers isn’t already a part of your outreach strategy, it should be. Not what type of influencer you should go with? Get online and check out your target market and who they follow. It won’t be difficult to devise a simple ‘influencer strategy’. Influencers are always looking for new brand partnerships.

 

5. Keep it snappy

Social media is quick. It assumes that the person watching has a short attention span. And, we do.
Since 2000, the average human attention span has shrunk by a third(!), going from 12 seconds to 8 seconds.  We quickly grow impatient with long-winded, tedious videos. Depending on the platform, we don’t really want to be watching anything for longer than five minutes. We might be a little more forgiving on YouTube, but on Facebook and Instagram, the shorter the better.

 

So, keep your video quick and to the point. Open the box and show the products. Sure, build up a little suspense so people are keen to see what’s inside. But don’t drag it on.

 

Otherwise, viewers will lose interest before they see the products. If you want to go into more depth, you can do separate videos for each product. This way, you don’t distract from the unboxing itself.

 

unboxing

6. Be environmentally friendly

People care about the environment – and rightly so. Consumerism doesn’t tend to be environmentally friendly. While unboxing is popular and people love to order online, they often hate the thought that it could be causing damage to the planet.

 

An unboxing video that looks wasteful could be harmful for your brand image. People don’t want to see a huge box with tiny products surrounded by mounds of plastic bubble wrap.

 

Amazon, for example, has come under heavy criticism for its wasteful packaging. Try to use environmentally friendly packaging that still looks attractive. Biodegradable glitter, vegetable ink dyes, and shredded paper are great options. Customers will see that you’re going the extra mile to be ethical. This will boost your image, alongside helping the environment. It’s a win win.

 

thankful shirts

6. Say thanks

Finally, you should always say thanks in your unboxing video. Put it in the packaging. A little note with a personalized thank you message for buying goes a long way. It makes a customer feel special and like they have helped you. It’s a personal touch that can keep customers coming back for more.

Viewers will love to see this on an unboxing video, because it shows that you’re a kind, caring brand that they will want to support. We all like to be thanked, after all.

 

Ready to unbox?

You can’t go wrong with an unboxing strategy. People love to watch addictive videos of people opening products. An unboxing video won’t harm your image – provided you stick to the guidelines. Professional lighting, eco-friendly and attractive packaging, as well as an on-point brand will make your brand shine. Partnering with influencers can go a long way in having your unboxing video click with your audience. It’s time to think outside – and inside – the box.

Originally published on September 28th, 2020, updated on October 15th, 2020
The Blog

How to Create Knockout Unboxing Videos for Your Influencer Marketing Strategy

by Nick Shaw time to read: 7 min
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