As Loom’s VP of Marketing, I rely on video messages to inspire a growing Marketing team and drive the execution of goals –– all while working from the other side of the world. Loom provides the extra agility and clarity required to successfully execute campaigns, deliver creative feedback, manage a blog, and keep the entire company informed on important initiatives.
Just like any leader, I’m always looking for ways to work smarter. This is even more critical since I’m based in Sydney, Australia, while the rest of my team is based in North America. Video communication with Loom has enabled us to scale and move as quickly, if not more so, than co-located teams since we’re not dependent on de facto synchronous communication methods to make progress and get work done. Our team knows when synchronous vs asynchronous communication is appropriate.
Instead of falling into the inevitable trap of being over-reliant on email, chat, and meetings, we find we’re more efficient and effective when we communicate asynchronously, primarily with video messages. There’s no need to coordinate schedules. There’s no need for anyone to work when they normally wouldn’t. Everyone can work in their own time and at their own pace because we use Loom to conduct async weekly standups. For example, I can quickly answer the question, “Do you like Option A or Option B?” while maintaining the level of nuance I would bring to a meeting.
I send anywhere between five to 10 looms on a normal day and consume twice as many. I can’t imagine working without Loom now. Here are some specific ways you can use Loom to give your Marketing team (or any team, really) an edge.
Marketing projects and campaigns
Video kick-offs or strategic briefs
When you share creative or strategic briefs over Loom, you often eliminate the need for a meeting. Team members get the information they need without having to spend the time trying to schedule a call. There’s nothing wrong with having a meeting, but finding a time that works for everyone typically slows things down. Why do that when you can replace a meeting with a video message instead? Exactly.
When you send over a kickoff loom and people still need clarification, they can send a video message back with questions. Even projects that require a real-time brainstorming session benefit from prepping with a Loom video message that shares background information. That way, everyone’s informed walking into the meeting and can make the best use of shared time. Record the meeting so people can reference it, process information, and take notes as needed.
Collaboration across teams
Most of our projects require some level of cross-functional collaboration. We’re often working with product managers, designers, and engineers to bring a campaign to fruition. Using Loom can help ensure alignment with everyone, especially when we’re not in the same time zone. Instead of letting the everyday details fall through the cracks — or hold everyone up — we can touch base daily and keep things moving toward our deadlines.
Feedback
Providing feedback via a video message enables you to inject your tone of voice, body language, and sense of personal connection while delivering constructive criticism in context. It’s much easier to offer a nuanced, helpful response with a video message, and it doesn’t require taking extra time to find the exact right words.
You’re also more likely to get your message across the first time in a loom. With text-based communication, there’s more room for misalignment and the instinct to go back and forth more than necessary, which drags out any project.
With Loom, iterations go more quickly because you can literally point to the changes you would like to have made while you talk — just like you’d do in-person.
Content strategy
Distribution and promotion
Our team creates looms to announce and introduce new content that we’ve created to our followers on social. Video marketing often benefits from higher engagement than text-based promotion on LinkedIn and Twitter. Putting a face to the people behind the curtain and briefly talking through the thought process behind the content offers a more personal connection and stands out when compared to your standard post.
Editorial feedback
We also use looms to give editorial feedback on content that contributors submit to our blog. Rather than tease out edits over email, we can talk about structural changes and more nuanced feedback in a quick loom. In three minutes, you can say what it may have taken 20 minutes to write out — and with better results.
Video communication keeps a growing company informed
As a member of the Leadership team who’s focused on building and growing a high-performing Marketing team, it’s imperative that I take the time to communicate our goals, progress, and priorities, not just to my team, but to the entire company.
Sharing quarterly reviews
Completing and communicating progress against our quarterly goals isn’t specific to the Marketing team — every team at Loom records videos like these to give everyone else a high-level overview of what we’ve been working on and what our goals are moving forward.
Introducing new teammates
Loom’s team is growing but is still relatively small, so it makes sense to introduce the whole company to new team members who they can expect to work with.
Keeping everyone up to date
We share internal announcements in a Slack channel called “nomo-fomo,” so everyone at Loom can keep a pulse on the company. I’ll often record a video message to share major updates there.
To build internal momentum and excitement, it’s critical that we keep not just our customers but also our fellow Loommates informed about the latest updates and improvements to our product. Sharing product announcements in a video message ensures our internal communications are as robust as our external marketing and that the people involved are getting the recognition they deserve.
Communicate better with video messaging every day
At the end of the day, it’s easier and more efficient for me to share my thoughts in a quick video — and it’s more expressive, too. Sending a video message affords me the time to develop my thoughts and deliver feedback in a more constructive manner. And for the person receiving the feedback, they can watch and digest that feedback in their own time. Everyone benefits from watching someone demonstrate or illustrate what they’re speaking to at the same time they say it, and, unlike text-based communication methods, there’s less room for your message to be misinterpreted or misunderstood. It’s a win-win.
Communication is the mother of all skills for everyone, especially for marketers. Loom makes our team better communicators. Whenever I need to share anything — to kick off a project, deliver a message, share feedback, or say thanks — I default to Loom. Plus, video messaging helps me connect face-to-face with all of my colleagues, which is powerful when you’re over 7,000 miles away.