In the past when you thought of video you thought of the family TV with antenna bunny ears and you had three channel choices. Then, along came cable and 1,000 more channels. Today, we have the internet which gives us countless streaming options, YouTube channels, plus just about anything you want to watch.
I once heard a song that said “video killed the radio star,” but I think online videos are giving traditional television a run for its money. With all these videos online today, there are a lot of options clamoring for your attention. We can stream everything it seems – radio, TV shows, product demonstrations, reviews, or just about anything else you can think of.
When I used to work on my 77 Chevy Nova I would use a Chilton owner’s manual. But now I can go to YouTube and watch a video of someone doing the same repair or upgrade. And as the father of a teenage girl, I’ve seen a lot of YouTube footage on makeup tutorials and other videos that I have no desire to watch.
What I’m trying to say is that there are a lot of videos out there. In fact, there are 300 hours of video uploaded every minute to YouTube, and there are almost 5 billion videos watched on YouTube every day. You read that right – almost 5 billion!
Today’s businesses who want to break into the video world have a lot of competition. Knowing your target audience and which type of video you want to create is more important than ever. Trying to interest me with your product by showing me makeup videos won’t get you very far. But show me how to supercharge my Nova in just one video and I’m all yours! A lot of customers think the same way.
Why all the Tribbles?
Watching, making, and using videos has exploded in terms of popularity. Why though? And if you’re thinking that the rise of video views is due to today’s kids doing nothing but stare at their phones all day and watch YouTube videos, you’d be wrong. In a recent trends study by Google, it’s estimated that in an average month 80% of people ages 18-49 years old have watched videos on YouTube.
Take into account the growth of Social Media videos. Is there even a social channel that doesn’t have video options? You have Facebook Live, Snapchat, Instagram Stories, and YouTube Live. With nearly 80% of Social Media activity now being done on mobile, marketers have an active audience that they can reach easier than ever.
So what does all this mean to you the advertiser?
With all the video options out there, the question needs to be asked, “What should a business or marketer do when it comes to video?” let’s look at some easy first steps that you can take to decide what type of video is best for you.
Start out by thinking of the message you want to get across before you begin shooting the video. My coworker Jess wrote a great blog on How To Master The Art Of Online Videos. Tailoring the video based on the message whether for promotional use or content is important.
Companies can also make the video experience more engaging by creating interactive videos that require a viewer to swipe or tap to see different features. You can think out of the box and create fun whimsical animated videos like Sam talked about in his blog “The Importance of Creating New Content”. Or an interesting use of video by a clothing boutique that had a video link of a person wearing the outfit you were just looking at.
Your next step when getting into video is to think about what you want your videos to do. What platform do you want to distribute the video to? What kind of budget are you allocating to the project? This can include having the videos professionally done or getting equipment so you can create them. In regards to creating the videos a lot of good aps are out there for the camera on your smart phone. Where do you want the video to exist? Your website or social media page.
How can I harness the power of the video atom?
There’s a lot of potential for you to reach customers with either Paid video or Organic video. Your paid videos are either Mid-roll, Pre-roll, Facebook video ads or commercials. Organic would be Video Blogs, Live stream broadcasts, Interviews, Organic Social Media videos, Product Reviews, and YouTube videos. Then there are those Earned video views. Earned video views are the ones where someone sees your video and loves it so much they share it with a friend who has similar interests. You can incorporate video content into your business web page in addition to your video advertising in an effort to capture those earned video views.
The statistics also support using video with 80% conversion rates for landing pages with video incorporated into it. Open rates of emails are boosted by 19% when video is listed in the subject line. Demo videos are found to be helpful by 4 out of 5 customers. Among Internet users nearly 50% look to video regarding products or services before actually going to a store.
Working the combination of paid video focused on a specific target and having good organic videos on your site should lead to the earned video views.
You have the Power
Video is becoming a powerful force on the Internet. We’ve talked about the different platforms that support video. We’ve talked about what video can do for you in regards to conversions and open rates and customer interaction. There is a lot you can do with video, so my question to you is what will be your first video?
There is power in video, let’s talk about how you can harness it.