If you’ve clicked this article, then you likely recognise that video marketing is now a core component of virtually any successful content marketing strategy. And knowing how to optimise your strategy is crucial to maximising the benefits and limiting the drawbacks.
For those who aren’t as aware of the power of video marketing in today’s landscape, here are a few stats that might encourage you to hit record:
10 remarkable video marketing statistics
- It’s estimated videos now make up 80% of all Internet traffic
- Websites with video content are 50x more likely to receive organic traffic
- Videos attract 300% more traffic to web pages
- Viewers retain 95% of messages shared in a video
- 78% of people watch videos online weekly, with 55% watching one daily
- 93% of brands get new customers as a result of videos shared on social media
- 79% of consumers believe a video is the best way to get to know a brand
- 83% of marketers claim to have received good ROI from video marketing
- 72% of businesses say video has improved their conversion rates
- YouTube is the world’s second most popular search engine behind Google
So, if you were still speculating on how effective video marketing is and why you should be taking it seriously, that’s plenty of evidence for you right there. And this is a trend that shows no sign of slowing anytime soon – video is here to stay.
As video marketing continues its onward march as the standard-bearer of content for the foreseeable future, the onus is on marketing teams to optimise their strategy to reap the benefits. Because, while it is now impossible to ignore the effectiveness of video marketing in attracting, engaging and converting consumers, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have shortcomings that need to be overcome.
The advantages and disadvantages of video marketing
Advantages
- Videos are typically more attention-grabbing than written content
- Video content is a powerful way to evoke emotions from your audience
- Videos generate greater engagement and conversion rates
- Video marketing strongly aligns with smartphones and other standout devices
Disadvantages
- Video overheads and production can be expensive
- Video content can be time-consuming to produce
- Videos are tricky to update once published, making them less evergreen
- Videos aren’t always easy to view due to technical issues or bandwidth problems
The balancing act involved in generating the biggest benefits of video marketing and reducing the impact of the negatives will largely come down to how effective your strategy is. This will provide answers to the most important questions surrounding your content, such as:
- What are your goals from your video output?
- Who is the target audience of your videos?
- What is your budget and time allocation for producing videos?
- Who is responsible for executing your video marketing plan?
- Where will you be posting your video content?
- How will you measure the performance of your content?
Introducing techniques to optimise your video content will be key to making this investment worthwhile and allowing your business to hop on the hottest trend in content marketing right now.
Optimising your video content marketing
1 – Choose the right video style for your audience
As part of cementing your video marketing strategy, you need to have a clear idea about what style of video the crux of your content is going to take. This will be based on the industry you work in, the information you can offer through your content, and the personality of the audience you’re targeting.
The wide variety of video marketing ideas you can use include:
- Vlogs: personality-driven content that is cost-effective to produce
- Explainers: videos created to explain a product, service or brand to your audience
- Tutorials: content that demonstrates to viewers how to use a product or service
- Promos: videos that publicise the effectiveness of your brand’s offering
- Webinars: discussions or interviews that explore a topic important to your audience
- Case studies/testimonials: stories from real customers that highlight how working with your company benefited them
- Culture: glimpses into the culture and atmosphere behind your organisation
- Animations: visual, straightforward cartoons to illustrate complex topics or ideas
Your video marketing could be a mix of these, or something completely different than those listed above. But, the most important thing is that it represents the content your audience is looking for and that the creation is sustainable.
Once this is established, you can spend time honing and perfecting your production of this type of content, rather than waste time trying to cover every corner of the video marketing spectrum.
2 – Assess what your competitors are doing
As well as spending time researching your audience and the type of content they prefer, it can pay dividends to have a look at what your competition is doing, or others who work in your industry.
While your content wouldn’t be a carbon copy of what they are presenting to their audience, it will give you a stronger understanding of what is effective (or not-so-effective) at translating your products and services to people online.
And, although it can be tempting to try and reinvent the wheel against your competition with a completely different style of video content, only do so if your market research indicates this. There is no shame in being second or third to a trend – you just have to produce content that is more effective at educating/entertaining the reader.
3 – Utilise multiple channels
The great thing about video marketing is that it has quickly become a core feature of virtually every marketing channel:
- If your first email in a campaign denotes a video, the CTR could grow by up to 96%
- Landing pages with video are 53% more likely to rank on search engines
- Video generates up to 1,200% more shares on social media than text and image posts combined
- Blogs with video can see organic search results increase 157%
So, when you create a video, make sure you spread it around on multiple platforms, rather than create a distinct piece for each of your channels, which can be time-consuming. This will help your videos attract the widest reach and get the most value out of each production.
However, it is important to note that different channels have different formulas for successful videos. While longer-form, detailed videos might hold attention on YouTube, that is not necessarily the case on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
Therefore, finding ways to adapt and edit the same video for the various platforms will help you get the most bang for your buck.
4 – Master the essentials
To get the greatest benefit from your video marketing, it is important that every piece of content has the following checked-off:
- A clear storyboard – no matter how simple or short you’re planning to make your video, having a plan drawn out can make the process that much faster
- An attention-grabbing title – preferably no longer than 60 characters, but able to describe what a viewer will pick up by watching your video
- A quality thumbnail – this will be one of the first things your audience will see from your video, so ensure that also catches the eye
- A keyword-rich description – while few people will read the description of a video, this is what Google will use to help rank your video for particular keywords and phrases your audience is searching for
- Relevant tags – on YouTube and other video platforms, tags are another SEO-based component of video content that search engines use to index your content
- A strong hook – 20% of users click away from a video with 10 seconds of starting it, so a powerful hook at the beginning is crucial to keeping their attention
- An effective CTA – whether it’s a link to another video, or direction to your website for further information, don’t leave your viewers hanging after a video – lead them to the next part of their journey
5 – Brand your videos consistently
Video content is an effective way to boost brand awareness – but only if you make your branding stand out across your content. Being consistent and clear with your digital branding will make it easy for people to associate your content with your organisation, instilling a sense of trust and connection between them and you through the quality of your videos.
This aspect is a key feature of BAM by Papirfly™. Our software and smart templates make crafting beautifully branded video content straightforward and stress-free, allowing organisations to dedicate more time to the actual storytelling and information within their videos.
The more hacks you can introduce to minimise the time and cost of producing videos, the better it is to keep your video marketing plan consistent and frequent, without compromising on the strength of your messaging.
6 – Make sure your videos are mobile-friendly
Did you know that 70% of watch time on YouTube takes place on a mobile device? Or that mobile shoppers are 3x more likely to watch a video than on their laptop or desktop?
Simply put, taking a mobile-first approach to your video content marketing is more important than ever. So, when you’re producing content across multiple channels, do make sure that:
- Your selected video platform/player is responsive on all devices
- Your video splash screen is adaptable to fit all devices
- Your CTA is geared to ease of interaction for mobile users
Reaping the benefits of video marketing
Now you understand the importance of video in marketing, and know techniques of how you can optimise this valuable content as part of your overall content strategy, you are in a strong position to attract and engage your audience online like never before.
And BAM by Papirfly™ is there to ensure your videos are always on-brand and on-point. From pre-defined transitions for a smooth editing process, to professionally branded intros and outros to cap your quality content, we can help your brand resonate with every viewer moving forward.
Want to know more? Get in touch with us today.