Video Marketing Statistics 2018

In 2018, video marketing became a nearly unstoppable force in the digital landscape. YouTube alone has over one billion users who access around five billion videos every day. But YouTube isn’t the only video platform available anymore, though it is the largest, Vimeo has a similar hosting function while SnapChat and Instagram have made updates to introduce long-form video onto their platforms as well.

As a marketer, you can no longer ignore the power and reach of video marketing because it is not going away anytime soon and, in fact, it presents an enormous opportunity for growth.

5 Ways Video Marketing Changed in 2018 

Video marketing was not a new concept this year, but something seemed to click among marketers and the medium exploded as a means of advertising. This content is changing the way consumers interact with brands in some major ways so let’s look at the changes that contributed to the rise of video marketing in 2018.

 1.The Growth of Mobile

Digital and more specifically mobile, ad campaigns have become increasingly important over the past few years but 2018 was the first year we saw more advertising dollars being spent online than commercial advertising for television programming. And a big chunk of that spend was directed straight to mobile advertising. In 2018 alone, mobile ad spending has increased by 20 percent and accounts for nearly 70 percent of all ad spending, that equals just over $70 billion. That is a lot of money spent on mobile advertising and video ads make up a larger portion of that spend. In fact, in-app video ads accounted for roughly 78 percent of mobile video so far this year and that is expected to increase to 84 percent by 2023. This means that while video advertising as a whole is experiencing growth, mobile videos can have an even greater impact on your bottom line.

2. Shorter & Taller Videos 

Thanks to the ever decreasing attention span of most Americans, many brands began cutting down the length of the video ads they published which some being as short as ten seconds in order to reach their target audiences.

The continued growth of Snapchat and Instagram’s introduction of IGTV also forced marketers to put more resources toward creating vertical, full-screen videos that would be shared on these platforms. In previous years, landscape videos were not only preferred but provided an optimal viewing experience on desktop computers – another sign that consumers are relying more heavily on their mobile devices. Research shows that consumers use their mobile phone vertically around 98 percent of the time so it is a good thing video publishing finally caught up to user behavior.

 3. Better Analytics & Personalized Experiences 

Thanks to advances in technology and increased analytical capabilities for video content, marketers had more data on their viewers to evaluate and use to provide more personalized content.

This level of customization makes video advertising an even more effective sales tool because you can directly target customers who are more likely to buy via a specific medium which is known to have increased conversion rates with a message that resonates more strongly. These customizations can include adding a user’s name or birthday to a video or even just sending them updates on products they have previously viewed.

4. Interactive Video Increased 

The presence of interactive video ads, or rather incentivized interaction, grew and in turn increased viewer engagement rates in 2018. This trend was particularly popular in the mobile gaming industry where we saw interaction with video ads rewarded with extra lives or increased game time. However, other industries began to incorporate this trend by providing viewers with free points or cash rewards which they could redeem on the brand’s e-commerce site.

By requiring this interaction, and providing a reward, the video ad experience is transformed from passively watching the video to actively engaging with it. As a result, the user is left with a more memorable experience and minimal feelings of being sold to. Although interactive video ads have been around for a number of years, 2018 was the first time we saw it adopted more widely across industries.

5. Cross-Platform Advertising Grew

Back in 2016, Facebook was one of the only social platforms pushing into video marketing, investing heavily in its own video advertising efforts and introducing live streaming. This was the push that began to accelerate the trends we are now seeing. Now, video marketing has permeated across channels and devices, meaning you can access customers with multiple touchpoints. Video marketing is available across all social platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, LinkedIn, and Twitter. In fact, 75% of millennials watch video on social media every day. Add in sites like YouTube, Hulu, and Pandora and the opportunities for brands to reach video viewers both on desktop and mobile soars.

These changes can largely be attributed to the changes in consumer browsing habits who are no longer lingering on a single site for extended periods of time. Instead, they are everywhere and brands have to vie for attention where they can get it and make sure their video ads are seen frequently in order to be remembered.

How Video Helped Marketers in 2018

All this to say, video content in 2018 provided marketers with a lot of opportunities to reach and connect with their target audiences in a new way. Video content alone can drive as much as 157 percent more organic traffic from search engines and viewers retain 95 percent of a message seen in a video compared to only 10 percent retention when reading it. This means video not only helped marketers increase the traffic coming to their sites, it made their message more memorable and even increased conversions! But it’s not enough – 43 percent of people say they want to see more video content from marketers.

The Numbers 

We’ve already talked about a lot of trends and facts, but there are so many numbers it can make your head spin. Check out some of the highlights from HubSpot’s 2018 Marketing Statistics Report that show just how important video marketing is:

• Users spend 88% more time on a website that contains video content
• 55% of users thoroughly consume video content
• On average YouTube reaches more 18+ year-olds on mobile during prime-time TV hours than any cable TV network each week
• 65% of senior executives navigate to a site after viewing a related YouTube video
• 32% of consumers engage with branded video on YouTube

Video Increases Conversions 

The biggest contribution video content made to marketers in 2018 is an increase in conversions. According to Neil Patel, simply adding product videos to your site can increase purchases up to 144%. Plus, 64% of consumers say watching a marketing video on Facebook has influenced their purchase decisions. This type of influence makes video content worth the investment for marketers.

What to Expect in 2019 

With 2019 quickly approaching, most marketers are beginning to plan out their strategy for the coming year. Clearly, video marketing should not be overlooked as an element of that plan and while we expect most of the trends we saw in 2018 to carry forward, some new trends are expected to emerge in 2019. Here are some of the ways video marketing could continue to evolve next year.

1. 360 Degree Video 

Providing viewers with a more 3-dimensional video experience further immerses them in your content. They may be sitting on the couch in pajamas but will feel like they are in the middle of the action thanks to increasingly available virtual reality experiences. With 360-degree videos, you will be able to provide customers with a full and complete picture of their surroundings while enabling viewers to control their perspective for a more interactive experience. Though many industries will be able to benefit from these videos, they will be particularly useful tools for marketers in travel and tourism, sports, and other live events will want to keep a particularly close eye on the rise of this technology.

2. Geo-Location Discovery & Sharing 

Social platform Snapchat has been at the forefront of geo-location trends introducing geo-filters and the Snap Map some time ago. But in 2019, we will begin to see even more brands take advantage of geo-location technology whether it be through platforms like Snapchat or other initiatives like delivering localized video campaigns. This could include targeting an audience at a certain event or location, during specific weather patterns, or even while in one of your stores.

3. Micro-Moment Marketing 

It is no longer enough for you to create good content because so there is so much available for your audience to choose from. You have to be able to stand out from the millions of other brands and their stories in order to connect with your viewers. While we saw video content produced in shorter increments in 2018, we anticipate that content will be cut down even further in 2019 resulting in micro-moment storytelling.

Consumers’ time is so fragmented online as they jump from site to site, the hours they spend surfing the web are built up of short bursts of digital engagement. Think about how you interact with a mobile device throughout your own day. Maybe you quickly check emails for 2 minutes when you first wake up, put your phone down to stretch, and then pick it back up to check Instagram for a minute or so before you get up and get your day started. When that cycle of short interaction with your digital world is repeated during an entire day, you end up spending many more hours “surfing the web” then you realize. This is a different way of engaging with content and is what is becoming known as micro-moments.  Marketers need to learn to take advantage of these moments – when consumers quickly access information to decide what restaurants are nearby – to connect with their audience.

4. Authentic Storytelling 

People tend to connect with brands that what to connect with them and make them feel like they are part of the family so to speak. Brands can achieve this by producing video content that puts a human face on your brand and connects with your audience in real-time. Your customers are increasingly aware of when you are being fake or trying to trick them into something so 2019 will see a rise in more authentic content from brands in all industries.

Video marketing has definitely made its mark on the digital landscape in 2018 and that doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon.

The marketers that stay ahead of these trends and implement them into their strategies quickly and effectively will be the brands to come out on top. Those that are slow to incorporate video content into their marketing will fall behind. The choice is yours.