We bet you’ve got that classic late ‘70s tune in your head now right? Keep it there because video marketing is one of the most important things you should be investing in. Did you know by the end of 2017 video will account for 74% of online traffic? So there is a clear and obvious trend for businesses using video and how powerful they can be. Yes everyone is using it but that’s because it’s versatile and profitable. Audiences have got shorter attention spans, we want things short, quick and immediately. By responding with interactive and visual content, it pays off. According to hubspot, 78% of people watch videos online every week, and 55% watch videos online every day.
And we don’t think they’re making it up. Thinking about the last significant or ‘big’ purchase you made, what was your buying process? Take our brand director Sian for example, after booking a snow holiday and watching review video after review video of snowboards (in her lunch break of course!) she may have been persuaded to get a new board, so video is quickly becoming a ‘go to’ for people in the buying process.
Video marketing is a market you definitely can’t afford to ignore it any longer. So at Sixth Story, we have done a round-up of six reasons you need a video strategy.
Build trust
Give a tour, introduce your staff and take your camera phones on the next staff outing. Being able to put a face to a brand helps to build relationships and for those watching, builds trust in a way that can’t be built unless people were in your office with you. Video gets us engaged and ignites our emotions. Just think about YouTube and vloggers (video bloggers in case you didn’t know!). In recent years they have become some of the most powerful social media figures to promote your brand. Just search Tanya Burr, Joe Sugg or Zoella if you have any doubts.
We can all be a little sceptical when we read reviews or read what a business is saying about a new product when it’s all so positive and we know they’re probably a little biased. We want to know that we’re getting the real deal and something that is worth us spending our time and money on. Get across some personality to give people confidence in your brand and ultimately build trust (and hopefully returning customers).
Video marketing boosts sales
Video can make you some serious money. Insivia found that by putting a product video on your landing page, conversions can increase by 80%. This means sales. When you watch a video that explains the product and how you should use it, it makes people more likely to buy it. But this really shouldn’t be surprising because most information that is transmitted to our brains is visual. If a picture is boosting engagement for you, just imagine what video marketing could do.
Great for mobile users
YouTube has reported that mobile video consumption rises 100% every year. People like to watch videos on the go and with more and more Smartphone users each year, your video audience is just getting bigger and bigger. According to Google, Smartphone video viewers are 1.4 times more likely than desktop and TV viewers to feel a personal connection to brands that show video content or ads on their devices. Being on our mobile phones is part of our daily lives, so many of us share our lives online so it’s handy to remember it’s a person who’s watching your video that you want to engage with your brand.
Google loves video marketing
If you have a video on your site, the amount of time people spend on it can be easily increased. The longer people spend on your site, the more exposure you get and this tells the likes of Google that your site has good content. Moovly found out that you’re 53 times more likely to show up first on Google if you have a video embedded on your website. Just don’t forget to optimise for SEO when you upload your video marketing to YouTube or any other video sharing site. Keep your titles and descriptions interesting. Add links back to your website, products and services. Help potential customers to take the next step with your business.
Encourages social shares
With continuous updates and new features being added, social media encourages video content sharing. Facebook has launched 360° video and live video, Instagram introduced 60-second videos and Instagram stories, Twitter has periscope and YouTube is the second most popular social network in the world. There are a couple of things worth remembering though. People share emotions, not facts. I’d be more likely to share a video with my friend if it was a little entertaining, and even more so if it’s funny.
Engages with even the laziest of us
Yes, videos are great tools for learning but they are also some of the easiest content to engage with. 21st century life is pretty busy so we don’t all have time to read long product descriptions or dig deep to find the information that we’re looking for. We want to see products in action which is one of the most important driving forces for video advertising.
Video can capture a wide audience. Adelie studios found that 68% of consumers would prefer watching an explainer video to solve any product related problem. Even from personal experience, if my problem can be solved and explained to me via video when it needs doing quickly, I’ll take it!
Bonus tip? For a really good click through rate if your video ad is less than 15 seconds 92% of people are more likely to watch it through until the end (this also applies to videos in emails by the way!). This percentage goes down the longer your video is unless you have some truly amazing content. So that’s it, get your video marketing plans in place and if you don’t know where to begin, get in touch because we know a thing or two about videos!