How video can actually harm your company

Many businesses and marketers assume video is always going to be beneficial, and there is good reason behind that thinking. The internet, especially social media, is increasingly a video first environment. Publishing regular, high quality video content is one of the best ways to reach your audience and connect with potential new customers and clients.

But there are a few scenarios where video content can have a detrimental impact on your businesses reputation, your SEO rankings, or even your legal standing.

In this article we’ll explore the potential pitfalls and how you can avoid them

Using AI content in your video (and not disclosing it)

Many companies are looking at AI as a fast and of cost effectively way of enabling them to publish high quantities of video. Whilst there are ways you can leverage AI, it is not without risk. Using AI content irresponsibly can have serious negative consequences for your public perception as well as potentially getting your social media accounts flagged with content violations. Serious misuse of AI can even result in legal actions.

Most social media platforms have rules around what you can and can’t post with AI and what you need to disclose. YouTube for example has some very clear guidelines about what they deem unacceptable use of AI. You can read the full details in their blog post here

Here are some red flags when using AI content on YouTube. This is content Google and YouTube consider either harmful or unethical. Posting this kind of AI content will see your videos flagged, potentially removed, and with serious repercussions for your channel.

Using AI content to cover sensitive topics

This covers issues such as:

• Elections
• Ongoing conflicts
• Public health crises
• Public officials.

Google says “Creators who consistently choose not to disclose this information may be subject to content removal, suspension from the YouTube Partner Program, or other penalties.”

If you do want to use AI to cover these topics it should be clearly marked as created using AI, either within the video itself, in the description or with YouTubes new AI label feature. Ideally you will use all three.

Using AI video content to impersonate real life people

AI tools are increasingly able to mimic real life people, either their physical appearance or their voice. This could be a celebrity, a well known person in your field, or a historical figure. If you think this is a quick way of getting Brad Pitt to appear to endorse your product then think again. Deliberately misleading viewers, or using someones likeness without their approval, is likely to result in a take down notice at the very least. You may even be sued for impersonation.

Whilst impersonating celebrities or influencer might be at the extreme end of the spectrum, these rules apply to anyone. Don’t think you can mimic a specific voice over artists voice, or copy someones likeness from a piece of stock footage. Misleading AI content is unethical at the very least, and potentially illegal.

Using AI content to shock viewers

This might not be especially relevant to marketing videos, but just be aware that creating AI content that depicts violence, or other content that might otherwise shock or disgust viewers, will result in that content being removed from YouTube.

How you can avoid this

If you are considering using AI content in your video then be prepared to publicly disclose this to your audience. The video should clearly say it has used AI in it’s creation, both in the description and also in the video itself. You should also use YouTube’s labelling system which will display a visible marker over the top of your video.

It is worth noting that AI content is still fairly contentious. Some people are wary about consuming content that they know is not real and has been created using a prompt. There is a perception that it is less authentic, has been creted with little or no effort, and is therefore not as worthy of their time. You might find that the use of AI, whilst budget friendly, will have counter productive results and actually deter customers or clients from using your business.

How labelling your content as AI will look

Using copyrighted material

Most people will have an understanding that they can’t use clips from a Marvel film or use Mickey Mouse to promote their products, but copyright goes much deeper than that. You should assume that most content you find online contains some sort of copyright or ownership you need to consider, so don’t pull images, videos or audio from random places to use in your videos without first considering the copyright implications.

Here are the most common risks with copyright and how you can avoid them

Music

Most music contains copyright. Whilst you might intrinsically know that tracks from famous artists or bands are going to be heavily protected, the same goes for lesser know tracks, or even tracks you might consider to be ‘royalty free’. You will still need to purchase licenses for any music you use, and hold on to that license for the duration that your content is live.

Royalty free music is very popular for online video. It allows you to purchase a track and use it in your video without having to pay any further fees associated with it’s usage (the royalty). Bear in mind though that a lot of royalty free websites are now subscription based, and your license is only valid whilst you have an active subscription. If you cancel that subscription and leave your video content up online, you may be liable for either a take down notice or even get hit with a bill. Similarly, not al royalty free music covers your content for every distribution method. Most will only cover online video If you decide to play that video elsewhere, such as part of a TV commercial campaign, you might get hit with a sizeable bill for the additional usage rights.

Some music will be 100% free to use, and these will be labelled as ‘Creative Commons’. If you want to be fully secure on the knowledge that your videos music will not ru foul of copyright issues look for creative commons labeled tracks.

Voice Overs

Some voice over artists will place restrictions on where their voice can be used. This might be for online only, or time locked to a specific period. Leaving your content up longer than this could result in take down notices, or additional costs. Similarly, most voice over artists will charge more money if their voice is going to be used on radio, TV or other broadcast methods. These charges will likely depend on the amount of people you are expecting to reach.

Avoid these issues by being clear at the start of a video proejct what you anticipate the usage of the video is going to be, and then check with them if that changes down the line.

Images

You should assume every image you find online has some sort of copyright. Don’t download images from Google to use in your video without checking ownership. If you get caught using copyrighted images then the fines could run into the thousands. Most video hosting sites have scanning capabilities that can check videos for the use of images used within them, so don’t think that just because the image is within a video that you can disguise the fact you’ve used it.

Purchase images from reputable websites, or better still create your own.

Using outdated or incorrect information

Fact-checking is crucial before publishing a video. Using old statistics or incorrect data can damage your credibility with your audience. If viewers discover that your video contains incorrect stats or figures, misleading claims, or outdated trends, they may question your expertise within your industry.

In some industries like finance, healthcare, or technology, misinformation can be particularly damaging and may even lead to legal repercussions.

Audiences rely on businesses to provide accurate, reliable content. If your company frequently shares outdated data, potential customers may wonder about other claims made by your company.

Some content may be time sensitive, such as promotional videos containing offers that have expired, or making a prediction that has since proven to be wrong.

Make a note to to periodic checks over your old video content. Do audits every few months and remove content that either no longer serves it’s purpose, or is now obsolete.

Conclusion

Video marketing is a powerful tool, but only when done right. While a well-executed video can build trust, engage audiences, and drive sales, a poorly planned or mismanaged video can do the exact opposite – harming a company’s reputation, alienating customers, and even leading to legal trouble.

The key to successful video marketing is thoughtfulness, accuracy, and alignment with brand values. Companies should fact-check their content, respect copyright laws, and fully disclose and use of AI technology. By doing so, they can avoid common pitfalls and make video a truly effective tool for growth.

If you want some expert advice on your next video feel free to drop us a message below.