Video is a big player in today’s online world, but you don’t have to be a big player to use video marketing effectively. If you need some proof on how important video marketing is — and how critical it is that your brand is part of the movement — read on!
How to Maximize Your ROI with Video Marketing
Let’s kick off with some stats from TJ McCue’s Forbes article “Video Marketing In 2018 Continues To Explode As Way To Reach Customers” quoted here:
- More than 500 million hours of videos are watched on YouTube daily
- More video content is uploaded in 30 days than the major US television networks have created in 30 years
- By 2021, a million minutes (17,000 hours) of video content will cross-global IP networks every, single second
- Did you know that the average user spends 88% more time on a website with video?
- Viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to 10% when reading it in text.
- Expanding on this further, Allen Martinez dives deeper into this powerful marketing tool in his Marketing Land blog “Everything a CMO needs to know about video marketing in 2018,” summarized below.
Video is now an actionable way to get more ROI. In working toward this, the author explores some video content strategies to use in 2018:
Live video: Livestreaming videos are all the rage across social media platforms, and statistics show that “consumers spend three times longer watching live videos than pre-recorded videos.”
Virtual reality video: While this hasn’t fully hit the scene yet, it’s a new video marketing trend that may go big this year, and digital marketers predict it will change this space.
360 videos: These types of videos allow users to explore the “immersive space,” and Google says people engage more with these videos than the traditional format. While omnidirectional cameras became available in 2014, marketers just now are maximizing this potential, and this trend is expected to grow.
Video funnels: These are used “to drive audiences over time from awareness to consideration phases using several videos.” Some social media platforms (like Facebook) allow brands to create behavior-based customized audiences for future re-targeting.
Video Marketing Is Not Just for the Big Players
Video opens the doors to smaller companies, and size is no longer everything. Successful video campaigns can change visibility and reach overnight even for the smallest shops.
This article includes some recent statistics gathered by Wyzowl in a December 2017, netting down the survey results of 570 marketing professionals and consumers into quick snippets, quoted directly below:
- 81 percent of businesses use video as a marketing tool (up from 63 percent in 2017).
- 85 percent of businesses regard video as an important part of their marketing strategy (up from 82 percent in 2017).
- 95 percent of people have watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service.
- 81 percent of people have been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a brand’s video.
- Where both video and text are available on the same page, 72 percent of people would rather use video to learn about a product or service.
Clearly, video is a trend that most brands want to jump on. It’s a powerful and visual way to tell a story that can capture emotion and feeling in a way that text can’t come close to.
Video Marketing Tips
In developing your marketing strategy, consider these tips:
Know your user: Just like with any content creation, it cannot be made until you know your audience. Take the time to get the messaging, look and feel, emotion, and tone exactly right. It’s also important to remember that edits are harder on video than on copy, so ensure it’s 100% before it is set free.
Establish goal posts: In order to have an effective video marketing strategy, you need to know if it’s effective. The only way to do this is to create a measurable KPI for your campaign, and do some A/B testing to gauge how it’s doing and if you need to change course.
Align your video type with your goals: Know what platforms will resonate best with your audience (i.e. YouTube, Facebook, Snapchat, traditional television) and tailor your message accordingly, also factoring in lifespan. If you are looking to post an informal video that has a 24-hour shelf life, social media is your thing. If you need your video to have lasting power, you’ll likely need to use YouTube or other traditional media channels.
Think effectiveness: Not only should your videos be a home run for your brand (people know who you are and want to learn more), they should also aim to be cost-effective in line with your mission. If you are looking to have control over your content, aiming for personal touches like on-camera employee chats, go for in-house production. If you are looking for something more professional and want to make the investment, find a spot that can deliver on your desired vision.
Making Videos with a Clear Purpose
Video is highly effective if you have intent. Your video must have a clear purpose with a defined audience in mind, or it’s going to fall flat. Along those same lines, know your call to action and make it visible. You need to make video work for you to be worthwhile. What brand messages do you have right now that would soar with video instead of text? How are you going to do it? And, is 2018 also your year for video? Let’s get a discussion going!
This article is made possible by Checksforless.com. For more than 35 years, Checksforless.com has provided over 500,000 businesses with high quality business checks, deposit slips, and other banking supplies with easy ordering and fast production times; all at the guaranteed lowest price in the nation. Our discount business checks are easily customizable and compatible with over 4,500 software programs including QuickBooks® and Peachtree/Sage®. Email or call us toll-free at 800-245-5775.
References:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tjmccue/2018/06/22/video-marketing-2018-trends-continues-to-explode-as-the-way-to-reach-customers/#11883c5c598d
https://marketingland.com/everything-cmo-needs-know-video-marketing-2018-233070