Zero sales on the old page. Three on the new one. I did not see that coming. My AI video editor turned our conference footage into speaker videos and testimonial videos. Jon's first reaction: "Those look like they were professionally done." Then I tried something on our sales page. The moment you land on it, a video starts playing. We split-tested it against the old page. Jon brought the early data. Less than 150 people between the two pages. The old page: zero sales. The video page: three. "Shut the front door." Visits to the checkout page were up 251%. Jon admitted it's probably the lowest conversion rate we've ever called a test on. We're calling it anyway, and testing a different headline next. Jessica's take on why it works: the video at the top grabs your attention right away and sells the entire experience of the conference. Does video sell you on an event? Reply "Yes" or "No" and tell me why. 👇 Press Start: The Road to 3,000. #SocialMediaExaminer# #SMMW27# #SplitTesting# #VideoMarketing#

We put one video on our sales page. Then I looked at the data. While I'm trying to get to 3,000 people at Social Media Marketing World, every visit to that page matters. The video autoplays the second you land. First, the retention graph. I'll be honest, it's ridiculous. Average view duration is about 12 seconds, and those 12 seconds are the first impression. Then I went into Microsoft Clarity and zoomed in on the intent data. 57.7% medium intent. 12% high intent. Add that together and it's 70% medium or high intent. We have not seen that in a very long time. I've been watching recordings of people coming to the page. They're in deeper consideration. And this all started with a question to Jon: what does this make possible? His answer: put testimonials featuring multiple people in key places on the website. So the speaker page used to have a stock photo of people learning. Now it has attendees on autoplay, testifying about the content. The register page used to show two smiling faces. Now it shows people talking about the return they got. If you've got a page that isn't converting, maybe the fix isn't more words. Maybe it's other people's voices. Now I want to hear from you. Do autoplay videos annoy you, or do they pull you in? Tell me in the comments 👇 Press Start: The Road to 3,000. #SocialMediaExaminer# #SMMW27# #VideoMarketing# #ConversionOptimization#

I had a crazy idea. Jon could tell from my face that I'd already built it. Here's the backstory. While I'm trying to get 3,000 people to Social Media Marketing World, my AI video editor has been turning our on-site testimonials into ads. One person per ad. Then I wondered: what if we had a searchable index of every original testimonial video? And what if we took four or five different people and sewed them together around one theme? So AI built the index. It even came up with the themes. Feels like family. Nothing beats in person. Stay human in the age of AI. Search "energy." Boom. Every quote about energy. Then I showed Jon the first theme ad. Five people, one idea, each in their own words. His reaction: "I was there when we were recording all those testimonials. To hear it reshuffled like this… it's really cool." Then he told me what it makes possible. One video on the website with many voices, instead of nine testimonials on the screen. One video per email. Sending an email about ROI? Here are five or six people telling you what it was worth to them. My new problem isn't finding great content. It's choosing. Jon said it best: "I'll take a too much problem over a not enough problem any day of the week." Which theme would you want to watch? Tell me in the comments 👇 Press Start: The Road to 3,000. #SocialMediaExaminer# #SMMW27# #VideoTestimonials# #AIinMarketing# #VideoMarketing#

Our ticket sales have not been very strong. I woke up in a little bit of a dread state. So I asked myself a question. Could the AI video editor I built for this show edit testimonials from the conference? We didn't get many good testimonials by reaching out to customers. But we captured 40 or 50 of them on location. It turned them into short ads. Angus Nelson watched one and said, "These are great. They're high energy. They've got a rhythm." Then I hit a wall. I had AI go through about 2,500 clips and compare them with last year's sizzle reel. Its answer: last year had close-ups of people smiling. This year was mostly wide shots. Then the light bulb went off. What if I stripped the audio out of the testimonial footage from both years and had AI compose the whole thing into a high-action reel? Angus: "This is nuts." Now that reel autoplays the second you land on our sales page. So far, it has already created a sale in my split test. Pictures alone just don't convey the energy of an event. Video might. Would a video like this get you to buy a ticket? Tell me below. Start with "I'd..." 👇 Press Start: The Road to 3,000. #SocialMediaExaminer# #SMMW27# #AIinMarketing# #VideoMarketing#

AI helped me create 45 different ads from video clips filmed at my conference. My brain has exploded with excitement. We had 40 or 50 testimonials filmed at Social Media Marketing World. I spent hours going through them and picked the top 15. My AI editor turned them into vertical ads. One is Reynol, who runs a cleaning business. He went from $80 an hour to $120. I sent them to my marketing department to run as paid ads on Meta. Then I got a crazy idea. These could be podcast ads. So I had AI strip the audio out, I recorded a little call to action for the end, and now they're actual audio ads. Then another crazy idea. They're all vertical, so why not put them on the sales page? With Claude's help, people can click and watch them right there. Then one more. All the source footage was shot in 16 by 9. So I asked for 16 by 9 ads too. That opens us up to YouTube and other platforms. I started with an editor that edits this show. I wondered if it could make ads. Now I have vertical ads, horizontal ads, and audio ads that run across the podcast. Have you used AI to help edit your ads yet? Answer "Yes" or "Not yet" below and tell me what happened. 👇 Press Start: The Road to 3,000. #SocialMediaExaminer# #SMMW27# #AIinMarketing# #VideoMarketing#

I'm about to leave town for a week. And I don't know how we're going to keep publishing. While I'm trying to get to 3,000 people at Social Media Marketing World, I'm flying out to an event. You know how it is at an event. I won't be able to publish as many videos. So I took it to my team. Jon had an idea. What if he and Jessica met, recorded it, and sent it to me? I could grab clips. My reaction: wait. You guys can run the show, and I just add color commentary? Jessica pushed back. A call with me at the conference would be more authentic. It shows I'm still committed. I said we could do both. Then it clicked. Every video we produce just goes into a queue. Whatever we record next goes out next. I could just record an intro. Jon said they could knock it out pretty quickly. Jessica's already using Claude to refine the wording. My one piece of advice: think about the story arc. Say what you're here to talk about. Ask for the update. Then let that person talk. At the end of the call I said, "I don't know if we're going to use this one." We might. Who knows? If everything in your business runs through you, what would you hand off first? Tell me in the comments. Start with "I'd..." 👇 Press Start: The Road to 3,000. #SocialMediaExaminer# #SMMW27# #ContentCreation# #VideoMarketing# #FounderLife#

I didn’t think I could publish 30 videos in a row. I’ve now done 57 — and I’m committed to 90. Here’s what I’ve learned along the way. Practice makes perfect. Putting in the reps has made this so much more effortless. I still do practice runs — this video took three or four takes because I hadn’t found my stride yet. Editing matters more than I expected. I didn’t want to do any editing at all at first. Now I pull each video into the Instagram Edits app, chop the front and back, and add captions that pop up one word at a time. That’s it. Minimum viable — and it makes a difference. But the bigger lesson? Engagement is absolutely essential. I always ask people to share something valuable in the comments, and I try my best to respond to everyone. I’m publishing these across six platforms, and it’s a lot of work. I’m still learning the tricks of the trade. So if you’re making videos on a regular basis — what little tips and techniques have worked for you? Share them in the comments below 👇 This is Mike Thoughts from the Porch. My lesson to myself: keep practicing, keep doing it. You only get better with time. #AIinMarketing# #MarketingTips# #VideoMarketing# #SocialMediaExaminer#