If you’re thinking about using video in your next marketing campaign, you’re ahead of the game. More than 500 million hours of video are watched on YouTube each day and video was predicted to make up 80 percent of all global traffic by 2019. At this point, you basically need video to stay competitive. But, with so much of the competition already using video, how can you ensure yours stands out?

You’ve got to not only use video marketing, but use it in new and surprising ways. The more added value you provide your user, the more likely they are to remember you and engage with your brand.

So how do you do that? Check out these nine unexpected ways to use video marketing that’ll not only delight your users, but help increase your return on investment. 

1. Use videos to train your staff or employees.

Video marketing is usually thought of as consumer-facing, but there are tons of videos you can make internally to lower your communications and education costs. If your company requires mass training, like they do in the restaurant or customer service industries, training videos can help walk your new employees through a specific task that would be too expensive or exhausting to teach over and over again.

Source: Lemonlight

2. Use video to simplify the customer service experience.

Whether you’re creating video answers to common FAQs or including videos in your customer support emails, videos can go a long way in helping your users get the answers they need. This is a great way to preface your user problems. Do a little research; find out from your sales and customer service teams what the most common obstacles or user questions are and create video content addressing those issues. This will not only help save your employees time, but will provide good user experience to anyone confused about your product or service.

Source: Lemonlight

3. Use video on unexpected web pages.

Sure, you should have video on your homepage and product pages, but what about your 404 error pages? What about your confirmation or thank you pages? These are neglected pages that don’t usually get the attention they deserve. Because they so typically end the user experience, bounce rates are high and engagement rates are low on these pages. Add a fun, quirky video on these pages and you can easily boost your website’s KPIs.

4. Use personalized video to talk directly to your viewers.

Personalized video seems complicated to create, but it’s actually not! There are tons of tricks you can use to send out seemingly personalized video. For instance, if you collect a user’s birthday, you can create a video wishing them a happy birthday and send it out via email on that exact day. Or, you can create individualized welcome videos for those who sign up for your services. If you have a high number of signups, pick a few of the more common names, like John, David, or Mary and send these out to new registrants with matching names. You can also create one video with someone’s name digitally inserted, then reuse it over and over again, simply replacing the name. The more personalized these videos actually are, the better they’ll perform, so keep that in mind!

Here’s an impressive video by Cadbury that creates a touching, personal tribute using not only an individual’s full name, but their photos, as well. The user gave Cadbury permission to create it by logging into their Facebook account, where they were able to gather personal information.

Source: Cadbury

5. Use man on the street interviews to create a fun, impromptu experience.

Think of a fun premise for your video — maybe you want to present the viewer with a problem they face or show the ubiquity of a particular issue. Use impromptu man on the street interviews to get your point across. Not only will the authenticity of the answers work in your favor, but you’ll be providing entertainment your viewers are sure to enjoy. For instance, if you own a hair salon, ask people what their worst haircut looked like, how much they paid for it, or if they have any photos. You’ll get laughs and, because it’s so unexpected, you’ll score higher engagement and create awesome content for your social media channels.

6. Create regularly-scheduled educational video content.

This works great for certain industries, like tech and SaaS, which have a seemingly endless source of useful information they can provide their users. Besides attracting new visitors, this helps garner weekly interest, meaning you’ll have a growing list of people who come back to you week after week. Consider a Reddit-style AMA (Ask Me Anything) or a series where you address new trends in your industry.

Moz does this expertly with their Whiteboard Friday series; check it out here.

7. Use video to create countless gifs.

Gifs are super short and super easy to create. If you’ve already got a few videos you’re proud of, use a site like Giphy to easily turn them into fun gifs. Or, you can use an app like Instagram’s Boomerang to shoot one of your own live. Gifs can be used all across social media, blogs, email, and more to add a touch of brand personality to your digital content.

8. Use video to re-engage unsubscribers.

Attracting customers is crucial, but don’t forget about re-engaging those who have forgotten about you or those actively seeking to unsubscribe. “We don’t want to see you go!” messages are great, but they’re so common now, they don’t actually do much to keep a user from unsubscribing. Imagine seeing a video instead! You’d immediately feel more connected to a brand, you’d engage more, and you’d likely be impressed by the effort. This is also a great place to use a personalized video.

9. Use screen capture videos to record how-to’s or show off your product or service.

Screen capture videos are so easy to create; most computers come with screen capture software and even tools like PowerPoint or QuickTime enable you to record your screen or window. Simple videos like these can help walk your users through any online process or explain how to do something online. They’re easy to make and easy to share, but not a lot of companies use them to their full potential. Take advantage of this simple video tool and see your engagement numbers rise.

How can your company use video in more creative ways? The options are endless, but hopefully with this list, you can start thinking outside the box and get your video marketing started in great, unexpected ways your audience will love.