We all know the power of video in marketing. We don’t need post the stats to make the point, but stats are always helpful. According to recent data:

• 78% of marketing professionals say videos have directly helped to increase sales, and 86% say that videos have increased traffic to their websites. (Wyzowl)
• People spend 2.6x more time on pages with video than without. (Brightcove)
• Videos on landing pages can increase conversion rates by up to 80%. (Unbounce)

But who has the time and money to invest in video production? The good news is, maybe you don’t have to. If AI can write your emails, finish your texts, and write your web copy, maybe it can create your videos, too. To some extent, it can. How well does it work?

Recently, we looked at seven different uses of artificial intelligence that printers can use in their businesses to increase their profitability. One of those uses was AI-generated video. We experimented with Visla, one of the AI platforms discussed in the webinar “5 AI Hacks to Crush Your Competition” (DirectMail2.0, 2023) covered back on August 31.

How Well Did Visla Do?

AI-generated video platforms do better with general content than they do highly technical content, so for the experiment, we chose the WhatTheyThink article, “Run the World: Gender Diversity Is Good for the Bottom Line” (WTT, August 9, 2023).

To create the video, we entered the hyperlink into the Visla dashboard and typed in a command for what type of video this should be. We used the following description: “This video explains to business owners and managers why gender diversity in their management teams helps them to be more profitable.”

We hit “generate,” and within a few minutes, the AI engine had pulled the text from the article it thought most relevant, paired it with what it determined to be appropriate stock images and video, and generated a 1:58-minute video, all based on the limit inputs provided.

In this video, you can see that Visla did, in fact, grab the main points from the article. However, absent the context and detail that a full article provides, those main points fall somewhat flat on their own.

(See final result here.)

The selection of videos initially selected by Visla was appropriate to the text. However, in order to export the video in the free version, Visla was required to swap out the selected videos with free stock. The result was some duplication of videos and some videos that were less than preferable. For example, the free version (viewable through the hyperlink above) includes an actor at :37 that is clearly not a woman in a corporate setting, as well as two actors at :29 that appear to be mother and daughter rather than businesswomen.

It was time to improve the script by adding detail to the text. In the Visla dashboard, each scene has its own box with the timer marker. We went into “edit,” chose the scene we wanted to edit, then replaced generic copy with specific examples and data points from the article. Once done, we hit the microphone, which updated the voiceover.

After editing, some of the scenes were now too text heavy, so we split them in two by using “add scene.” We cut the desired text from the existing scene, then pasted it into the new scene box. We hit “update voiceover,” then hit “update video.” Next, we hit “preview” to see the changes.

After a Little Tweaking…

If at first you don’t get it perfect, try, try again. After a few rounds of edits, for the purposes of the experiment, we called the script done.

As with the previous video, the video chosen by Visla to match the text was appropriate, but when it came time to export the video in the free version, Visla swapped out the selected video with free stock. The result, as before, contained questionable content, including the same video at :40 that, as before, is clearly not a woman in a corporate setting.

View the video here.

While we are unable to show you the non-free-stock versions of these videos without paying for the upgrade, the point is, AI is changing the game for marketing in ways we are only beginning to understand. Companies without technical or marketing expertise can now create professional-looking results without the technical expertise or financial investment that used to be required. Although the paid versions are clearly superior to the free versions, the costs for these platforms are quite reasonable. Visla, for example, is only $19 per month.

Here on What They Think, we’ve covered AI copywriting software (Jasper AI, ChatGPT, HoppyCopy), augmented reality creation (RealityBLU), and now AI video creation. Next up? AI-generated artwork. Stay tuned!