6 Benefits of Implementing a Video Knowledge Base for Your Business

It’s no generalization to state that everything’s getting more complicated. Okay, that is a generalization but we don't want to over-complicate things.

Instead, let's say that life is full of elements that once tended to be quite simple to understand and operate, that are now more sophisticated and require more learning to use properly. Consumer products are a great example, but they’re not the only thing that adheres to this increasing complexity rule.

Depending on your sphere of activity, there are also corporate processes and statutory frameworks to understand. Some of it is easier than others. When employees or customers struggle to comprehend a written guide, a video knowledge base can be the answer.

We’ll examine exactly what we mean by the term video knowledge base before exploring some of the many benefits that will make you want to start one.

What is a video knowledge base?

Let’s consider a customer. They’ve just bought a smart washing machine. The trouble is, they feel outsmarted. They’ve looked through the instruction manual for guidance on how to link the machine to their hub and, thereby to their mobile devices, but no joy.

What can they do? Well, they could call your business’s contact center. However, this might incur long wait times and might lead to even more frustrations down the line. Your business can issue guidance on the problem in the online knowledge base.

This way, customers can glean what they need to know just by reading the advice on your site.

However, there’s an even more customer-friendly technique you can use. Yes, you guessed it—put together a video knowledge base. This is a short instructional film that actually shows the customer how to link up that smart washing machine.

The video is easy to follow and can, of course, be paused and re-run where necessary. Videos tend to be more readily assimilated than pages and pages of text—this is why YouTube video tutorials are so popular.

Knowledge base vs. internal wiki

As mentioned, your video knowledge base doesn’t have to be just for customers. It could be for staff too. Take new employees; there’s nothing worse than feeling like you haven’t a clue about how an organization works or who to contact in HR to get something actioned.

You might have a great HR structure with a top-quality Paylocity HRIS, but this won’t necessarily be helpful to a new starter just trying to get an ID badge. This is where a video can be the perfect way to get information across to the beleaguered colleague.

They package the information in an easy-to-follow manner so that anybody can follow them, as well as providing a whole range of other benefits. Talking of which, we’ll now move on to what’s so good about a video knowledge base.

Benefits of a video knowledge base

1. Popular medium

As we’ve discussed, people tend to like videos. This graph from Statista gives an indication of just how popular video is worldwide.

OK, most of these videos will be more Minecraft-related than How to Use Your New Food Processor, but the point is clear: video’s an enormously popular mode of communication that’s not disappearing any time soon. So, it makes sense to use it to engage with your customers and colleagues.

2. Easy to understand

Most of us are busy individuals. We may have no objection to text as a medium, but we may not have the time to ferret out what we want from reams of the stuff. And once we’ve found what we’re looking for, it may not actually be very well written. At this point, frustration results. Not a good outcome.

A video has the advantage of being nice and easy to follow, with step-by-step instructions and example footage to help. Most of us know how to handle a conversation. With a video knowledge base, all we have to do is utilize the listening part of that skill.

You can optimize for ease of use with a couple of video best practices below:

• Tone. The presenter must have clear diction. A neutral accent is best, as a strong regional lilt can impede clarity, as well as be a distraction for the listener. Also, look for someone with a friendly, sympathetic tone — we want to emphasize the human element.

• Searchability. To help the user find what they need quickly, use demarcators on the progress bar to show where topics begin and end, and have each section clearly displayed. This helps viewers figure out how far along they are when watching a video.

3. Engagement data

A paper manual imparts information. But only one way. Using a video knowledge base delivers information to you on what your customers are spending most time watching, therefore providing valuable insights to improve customer experience.

You can also see where repeated viewings occur, perhaps indicating a need to make that video or portion of the video a little easier to understand. Slow it down, maybe, or insert examples so that it’s easier to follow.

You can use these snag spots to generate interaction with the customer. This doesn’t have to cost the earth. For instance, you can use free email services providers to reach out to those who seem to have issues with understanding.

You can also see where there may be drop-offs. For example, the informational video may do what it needs to do in the first half, and the second half is superfluous. In this case, you can consider trimming it a little to make it even more compact and efficient.

This engagement data is not just useful for improving user experience as it also offers valuable insights into customer behavior that can inform your sales funnel optimization efforts.

4. Saves time

This is a little counterintuitive. If you’ve spent hours getting a video just right, in the face of tech problems and interruptions, you might think that they couldn’t possibly be time-saving.

However, they can be extremely time-efficient. For example, you can now use AI to create instructional videos with synthetic but very realistic presenters. All you need to do is to type in the video script and all that filming fuss is no longer a bother.

This kind of tool is great because it produces a professional result in no time at all, leaving you to take time over getting the script just right, rather than worrying about focal lengths or your presenter’s insistence on scratching their ear at odd times.

You can also update them with new information using an edit facility rather than uploading a whole new video when a new feature of your product comes on stream.

5. Good for support teams

All the information generated about customer interactions with video can be of tremendous use to support teams in contact centers.

If it’s reported that customers are particularly interested in one specific product feature but repeated viewings of a particular how-to video indicate that they are finding it difficult to comprehend what’s on offer, then your contact center team can be advised of this.

This means the contact center will be better prepared to deal with a likely high number of incoming on-topic calls, emails, texts, and whatever other channels your virtual business phone system can handle. Moreover, the contact center team can use the video knowledge base to discover information for themselves in any area they need.

The other benefit for support teams is of course, that the more customers are getting what they need from a video knowledge base, the less traffic there will be on the contact center’s communication channels. This lets them spend more time dealing with individual cases, giving customers a better support experience.

6. Great service

Finally, it has to be noted that knowledge base videos are good for customer experience, whether they’re looking for a product demo or assistance with an advanced feature. Video content is available 24/7, wherever you are, which is a great benefit, particularly for international businesses.

Language issues can be sorted out with AI or subtitles so that a video retains its efficacy no matter where it’s viewed. Another big positive is that a video knowledge base is a self-service medium.

We’ve mentioned how this benefits the contact center, but it is also a major plus for customer satisfaction, as it puts the ability to gain satisfaction squarely in their hands. This self-service support feature is something that customers have grown to expect.

Moreover, a well-crafted video knowledge base can serve as more than just a support tool.

By leveraging webinars as part of your video content strategy, you can not only provide valuable assistance but also generate leads from webinars. For instance, incorporating educational marketing elements into your video content strategy can enhance customer engagement and brand loyalty.

By providing informative and insightful content through webinars or tutorial videos, you not only assist customers in solving their problems but also establish your business as a trusted authority in your industry. 

If you give customers the means to find solutions themselves, it saves them time and makes them feel more empowered. Give them a video that they can play, pause, and rewatch whenever they like, and you’ve given them control over a hugely powerful learning tool.

This represents a degree of concern for customer welfare that a printed booklet will struggle to match.

Video knowledge bases can be awesome

As you can see, video knowledge bases can make a difference in the lives of your customers and colleagues. Make no mistake, they’re hugely effective and popular tools for removing obstacles to learning. However, there’s no reason to use them alone.

You can combine a video knowledge base with other learning resources, such as text and audio. This way, your business can offer a means of learning that can suit everyone’s preferences and abilities. You'll likely find that video turns out to be your audience's preference.