What is Video Automation?

Video automation is the process of combining a data source and a template to create many versions of a video for marketing purposes.

It can be used to create customised video marketing campaigns or scale the production of video content that can be generated from data (like sport results, certain type of news, etc.)

Video automation eliminates the need for manual intervention in tasks like video editing, rendering, and publishing, enabling efficient and scalable video content creation.

Video automation opens doors to scalability

Whether you need to create ten videos or a hundred, automation tools make it a breeze. You can maintain a consistent quality and style across all your videos, ensuring a cohesive brand presence. This scalability also enables you to reach a wider audience, or even build new business models.

How Video Automation Works

So, how does video automation actually work? Well, it's like having a clever set of tools that take care of the heavy lifting for you.

One of the key ingredients in this video automation recipe is video editing APIs, like JSON2Video.

video automation workflow schema

Step 1: Data source

The great thing about video automation is that it can be used to create videos at scale by connecting to any data source.

You may have a database, an Excel sheet, an API or even a plain CSV or JSON file with tens, hundreds or thousands of records. Alternatively, you may want to create a new video when an event happens: when a user signs in, when a new product is added to your store, once a day pulling the latest value from an API, etc. There are tons of use cases for video automation, and you can really make it work for your business.

Step 2: Video template

Once you have your data source ready, then you need the video template you want to apply. You can choose from pre-designed video templates or creating your own video templates using a visual template editor.

Step 3: Video editing API

In the video editing API is where the magic happens. The video editing API combinies your data source and video template and creates a video for each record or event.

The API may create a video for each of the products in your e-commerce, or for each new property added to your real estate listings, or a short video teasing a new article on your website.

Step 4: Publishing

Finally, you need to publish the video. This step can be part of the video editing API, or it can be done manually or by another tool.

JSON2Video API has power integration and publication features, allowing you to publish videos to YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and more. It also allows to call a webhook or receive an email notification when the video is rendered or even published.

Use cases of Video Automation

Video automation has a wide range of practical applications across various industries. It's a versatile Swiss Army knife for video marketing.

Marketing and Advertising

Video automation enables marketers to create customized promotional videos or segmented advertisements, and social media content to engage with different audiences at scale. You can easily create tens of videos aimed to different segments, using different backdrops, text copies and other creative elements.

E-Learning and Education

Video automation can enhance e-learning experiences by creating interactive and visually appealing educational videos, training modules, and tutorials.

Real Estate

Video automation helps showcase properties through virtual tours, property highlight videos, and neighborhood guides, providing immersive experiences for potential buyers. Read our guide for real estate video automation.

Hospitality and Tourism

Video automation can create captivating destination videos, hotel and resort showcases, and travel guides to entice travelers and showcase unique experiences.

Customer Support and Service

Video automation enables businesses to create tutorial videos, troubleshooting guides, and product demonstrations, enhancing customer support and self-help resources.

Entertainment and Media

Video automation plays a role in generating trailers, teasers, and promotional videos for movies, TV shows, music, and other forms of entertainment. Read the use case of GuidaTV and video automation or How to create a news video summary for Instagram.

Retail and E-Commerce

Video automation helps create product videos, explainer videos, and testimonial videos to showcase products, improve conversions, and enhance the online shopping experience.

Event Management

Video automation can be used to capture and create highlight reels, event promotions, and behind-the-scenes videos to generate excitement and engagement.

Implementing Video Automation in Your Business

Implementing video automation in your business offers various approaches to suit your needs and technical expertise:

Code

If you're comfortable with coding, you can create scripts using APIs and SDKs provided by video automation APIs. This approach allows you to programmatically generate and customize videos, giving you complete control over the automation process.

If you want to go even deeper, you may want to directly integrate video automation with your existing systems using FFMPEG natively or via NodeJS, Python, or other libraries.

Low code

For those seeking a simpler approach, low-code platforms like Zapier or Make can be utilized. These platforms offer visual interfaces where you can create automated processes that integrate with video automation APIs. No extensive coding knowledge is required, making it accessible to a wider range of users.

No code

If you prefer a user-friendly and ready-to-use solution, consumer-friendly tools like Canva or Adobe Spark can be leveraged. These platforms provide pre-built templates and intuitive interfaces that allow you to create and customize videos without any coding or technical expertise, but their ability to automate and scale to produce tens or hundreds of videos is limited.

Professional services

With professional services, you can leverage the expertise of video automation specialists who understand the intricacies of the platform and can assist you in utilizing its full potential. They can help you with tasks such as setting up workflows, designing templates, integrating the platform with your existing systems, and providing training to your team.

JSON2Video offers free professional services for paid customers.

Video Automation in 2023

In 2023, the combination of video's prominence in marketing and the integration of AI-driven automation is reshaping the way businesses create and distribute video content. It allows for a more personalized and engaging customer experience while streamlining the video production process. Video automation is not just a trend; it has become a strategic imperative for businesses seeking to connect with their audiences in a compelling and efficient manner.

One exciting development in video automation is the integration of artificial intelligence (AI). AI technologies are being harnessed to create automated videos that are not only efficient but also more human-like. These advancements enable businesses to generate personalized, dynamic, and high-quality videos at scale.

Published on May 28th, 2022

Author
David Bosch
David Bosch David is an experienced engineer, now collaborating with JSON2Video.