7 Reasons to Use Video Marketing in Your Social Strategy

In 2018, online video marketing emerged as the top new trend for successful marketing campaigns.  Online video marketing has become the internet’s preferred method of delivering content, educating users, and engaging with subscribers.  Video offers a multitude of advantages that include, higher conversion rates, elevated brand awareness, and increased sales.  This article will outline, and expand on, the top 7 reasons you should be using video marketing in your social strategy.

Videos Boost Conversions and Sales

When it comes to helping consumers make decisions, videos are undoubtedly the best way to convert a customer.  As it currently stands in 2018, 76% of online traffic comes from video content, and by 2019 that number will grow to an estimated 80%.  The trend for online content is overwhelmingly in favor of video, and as the projections indicate, this trend is growing, not going away.

We know that video works as a conversion tool, and a sales tactic, but why is a video so effective?  According to Blue Corona, 80% of consumers believe having demonstration videos are helpful when making purchases.  This means that seeing a product in action rather than just reading about it affects the decision making processes.  There is a desire among consumers to see that a product is as advertised. Video eliminates consumer doubt and allows a decision to be made from a place of informed understanding rather than belief.  As the saying goes, the proof is in the pudding.

Google Loves Video & Video is Optimized for Search

Forrester Research found that videos were 53 times more likely than traditional web pages to receive an organic first-page ranking. This means that search engines, Google specifically, is responding to the consumer call for more video content.  Google ranks videos higher because there is a consumer demand for video content.

One of the main ways Google ranks sites is based on the average length of time spent on that site.  Users will spend 52%  more time on a site if they see a video that piques their interest.  As a result, Google uses this information to give the web page that has a video a higher organic ranking in search results.  A video means a greater potential length of time spent on the site, which ultimately leads to a better Google ranking.

It is not just web pages that benefit from Google placing a high priority on video content.  According to Nickel City Graphics, a blog post with a video is three times more likely to attract inbound links, yet another metric that Google uses, boosting your organic ranking even further.  The long and the short of it is that video increases user engagement, and as a result, it is optimized for searches, especially within the constructs of Google’s current ranking system.

Video Appeals to Mobile Users

In 2018 a paradigm shift took place. For Millennials, consumption of media on a mobile device is now greater than their consumption of live TV. According to a Facebook survey from this year, 94% of users keep a smartphone in hand while watching TV, and only focused on the TV screen 53% of the time.  This staggering statistic indicates that mobile devices are used to consume more content than ever before.

Video appeals to mobile users because most video optimized for mobile can be classified as “short form” video.  This short form video is 5 times more appealing than a standard piece of text or still image, according to a study from Facebook Business.  The appeal of video, specifically on a mobile device, can be attributed to a variety of factors which include attention, context, and novelty.  The attention span of a modern mobile video consumer is approximately 8 seconds meaning that video created for mobile devices has a distinct advantage as it can be viewed without a prior prescribed context. As a result, it can be viewed in large chunks commonly referred to as “binge watching.”  This, in turn, maintains the novelty of each new video whereas, with more traditional long-form television content, the novelty of the video eventually fades.

90% of consumers watch video on their mobile device, and Youtube reports that video consumption increases by 100% annually.  Mobile users want more video content, and the audience is growing by staggering amounts at a rapid pace.

Videos Build Trust

People learn better when they see a demonstration in a video.  How’s this for a stat – Viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to 10% when reading it in text – Forbes.  Video is undoubtedly the preferred method for absorbing and digesting information in the modern age.  According to Google, nearly 50% of internet users look for videos related to a product or service before visiting a store.  This indicates that videos don’t just establish trust between brands and consumers, but instead, consumers are looking to make the first move in developing trust with brands through video consumption.

Tutorials and testimonials are both key video types for building trust.  While a tutorial can demonstrate how to do something in depth, its greatest asset is showing how easy that something is to do in a conversational tone.  The optimal length for tutorials and testimonials is somewhere between 60 and 180 seconds because it is more about establishing and fostering a connection than it is about informing.  This is evidenced by the fact that consumers who view demo videos are 1.81 times more likely to make a purchase than non-viewers. Similarly, testimonials create trust in a product by calling on past consumers to share their experiences, employing the novelty of allowing multiple persons to speak about the product or company.

As Mark Schaefer of Schaefer Marketing Solutions asserts: “The new era demands a focus on ignition, not just content, on trust, not just traffic, and on the elite people in your audience who are spreading and advocating your content.” The top two most effective types of video content are customer testimonials (51%) and tutorial videos (50%).  This statistic confirms that trust needs to be established to create a sale and videos, specifically tutorials and testimonials, build that trust between consumer and seller.

Video Engages Users and Is Very Shareable

According to a recent study, 92% of mobile video consumers share videos with others.  This statistic speaks to the desire of consumers to interact and engage online through the use of shareable content.  In the current market, video holds a distinct advantage over other media. In fact, according to Twitter, a video is 6 times more likely to be retweeted than a photo.

There is an ease in watching a video that not only encourages it to be shared but makes it easy to accept on the receiving end.  To this point, 43% of people want to see more video content from marketers.  This is especially intriguing when you look at how videos are shared amongst peers via social platforms like Twitter.  According to Bloomberg, 82% of Twitter users watch video content on Twitter, and according to Twitter, 93% of those videos are viewed on mobile! We already know that 92% of mobile video consumers share those videos so what the math is telling us is, if you make videos for social media they will be watched, and they will be shared.

Videos Show Great ROI

Including a video on a landing page can increase conversion rates by 80%; so it is no wonder why 81% of businesses use video as a marketing tool.  We know that there is a demand from consumers for video content, and we know that video helps establish trust with the consumer. But does that really mean an imminent sale or conversion? Yes, it does.  Companies who enlist the assistance of video show a 27% higher CTR and 34% higher web conversion rate than their competitors who don’t.  According to Hubspot – 76% of marketers assert that video increased sales and increased consumer understanding regarding their services and products.

Marketers have come to the realization that video marketing is the new hot trend for content-based marketing.  After all, these videos are easy to digest, easy to share, and most importantly they are being asked for by consumers! This trend is not being driven by businesses and marketing teams, this trend is being driven by the desire of the customer, and from the numbers, we have addressed earlier video marketing is exploding upwards with limitless potential.  With this understanding in place, 73% of B2B marketers say that video positively impacts marketing ROI.

With the desire for video content being what it is, and based on the way video is shared, the ROI for video is undeniable.  There is a desire for video content, there is proof that video converts customers and increases sales, and it is agreed upon as the next significant marketing trend.  With its current growth and demand, and it’s projected usage going forward over the next two years, online video has the potential upside for the greatest ROI in marketing history.

Video Explains Everything–often better than written content

90% of consumers say that a video can help them make buying decisions, and 4 out of 5  buyers prefer a video to reading. According to digital marketing expert James McQuivey, a one minute video is worth approximately 1,800,000 words.  Essentially a video, by its nature, can communicate more information than any other form of media.

Videos used to explain a product are often the primary choice for consumers for how to absorb and digest new information.  According to Social Media Today, 44% of consumers prefer to learn about a product from watching a video compared to 5% who prefer to talk on the phone and 4% who prefer to read a manual.  That means that video outperforms those other more conventional methods nine out of ten times at least!

Video content is easy to digest, and there is so much content to view.  Youtube has become the second largest social network in 2018 with over 1 billion users, accounting for two-thirds of the videos streamed on a daily basis. Google reports that of these billion subscribers, 60% take advice on what to buy from their favorite Youtube sensation, and 86% admit that they regularly turn to YouTube to learn something new. Youtube, king of video content, is where people go to learn.

A Few Ways to Implement Video

1. Tease a new product – short videos previewing new releases are an attractive way to boost engagement
2. Answer common questions asked on social media by your followers – remember people use vide0 to learn, and they would much rather hear someone explain something than read about it or hop on the phone
3. Explain something complicated with an animated or whiteboard video – tutorials build trust! Make something engaging to help your audience engage and grow.
4. Capture user testimonials – Show off how popular you are and use your customers to promote your brand!
5. Show off company culture (to personify your brand) – what does your company do behind the scenes? Everybody wants to feel like they are on the inside…so let them in!
6. Update consumers on trending topics or industry news – information into industry happenings is a bonus that can help your customers feel like they are up to date with the latest news and trends…set yourself up as an industry leader.

Video should be an integral part of your social strategy in 2019.  The emphasis that internet traffic places on the importance of video is congruent across multiple platforms, demographics, and brands.  There is a resounding desire for more video content from consumers, and social platforms from Youtube to Facebook are making adjustments accordingly. Video is the new driving force behind conversions and sales, and it is all due to how easily digestible video content is.  Video is the new king of content-based marketing, and all indications are that this is no longer a trend, but rather the new world order.