Video content is the talk of the day, and understandably so. Mark Zuckerberg said back in 2018 that video is the future of Facebook and Instagram Reels, and he has been right.
The statistics on video marketing are certainly compelling:
- ⅓ of all time spent online is spent on watching videos (campaignmonitor)
- Estimates show that people will watch an average of 100 minutes of video a day in 2021, compared to 67 in 2018 (marketingcharts)
- User love video, spending 88% more time on a website that has video content (Oberlo)
- Users are 1200% more likely to share visual content such as video, which means it is more likely to go viral (Forbes)
It’s hard to argue with such statistics, but how do they relate to you as a brand and your marketing strategy?
1. Video Isn’t Just for Social Media – Types of Videos for Brands
Video content is not restricted to social media. The rise of corporate video means that it can be shared on almost any platform, including emails. Today, there are different types of videos you can create as a brand to help increase your engagement and awareness.
- Testimonials – these are videos created by customers to review your brand. They are more effective than simple reviews because they are personable and relatable, thereby increasing your brand’s social proof
- Explainer videos/product review videos posted on your website and social media can help customers learn more about your brand and your product. Showing the product in use helps increase trust and sales
- Company culture videos – Brand storytelling is all about being relatable. Some of the best types of videos you can create today are “behind the scenes” types of videos showing the people and processes behind your products and services. These videos help to create an immersive experience and help both customers and employees forge a real relationship with your brand.
- Spot videos – the spot video is a short 15-30 second video that can be created as an advert, brand video, testimonial, how-to video, or anything else you want it to be. Spot videos are perfect for viral marketing because they are easily shareable on social media, but you can also put them on your landing page and other prominent places
2. Increase Dwell Time and Engagement on Your Website
We have already seen that the average user spends 88% more time on a website with video content in it. That is because they prefer quick, digestible content that only a video can produce. While the average user attention span is 8 seconds, a well-crafted and engaging video can keep visitors glued for up to 1 minute or more.
This is part of the reason why video marketing can bring in 66% more qualified leads. Video remains the most popular format of online content, and brands are even opting to repurpose some of their website content into video to increase engagement rates.
3. Tell Your Brand Story
One superpower of video content is that it is much more relatable than other forms of content. You can use it to help humanize your brand and make it much more relatable with your customers.
Brand videos or behind-the-scenes employee videos are very good at this. They elicit an emotional reaction in users and help them relate and identify better with your brand. This association is invaluable when you want to set yourself apart from your competition.
4. Boost Your Rankings
Video and video snippets can boost your brand’s SEO rankings by over 80%. In addition, 65% of users say they visit a brand’s website after watching their video. These are amazing statistics that show the power of video to drive more traffic and conversions. Video can also help your site’s SEO by increasing dwell time and engagement.
Most importantly, Google favors video content. It ranks them higher on SERPs and rich snippets, making it one of the most powerful ranking tools marketers use today and a part of every effective digital marketing strategy.
5. Ensure Quality User Experience With Video
Innovative brands have been using videos to improve user experience by helping educate visitors and answer their questions. From Q&A videos to explainer “how-to” videos and FAQs, video content is an invaluable resource to field quality customer support. In fact, 47% of brands say that video content helped them reduce support queries.
Such videos can be geared towards answering frequent inquiries, providing helpful visual instructions, or showing customers how to solve common problems related to your product. All this helps to improve your brand’s customer experience and increase satisfaction.
6. The Role of Webinars
Holding web series and webinars is an increasingly popular way to leverage long-form video content, especially among B2B brands. Webinars are crucial in helping to position brands as authorities and thought leaders in their industry, besides creating a platform to engage the brand and the customers on a more personal level.
7. The Use of Virtual Reality to Create an Immersive Experience
Virtual reality is the future of video marketing, even though it has not truly gained ground in mainstream adverts. Industries such as real estate are already leveraging this powerfully immersive form of content to help drive property sales.
Currently, interactive video is gaining traction, as well as the use of VR in conventions and other in-person events where the brand can provide VR headsets to attendees.
Conclusion
Video content has been hailed as the future of content and digital marketing for good reason. It doesn’t mean that other forms of content such as blogs will go away, but it is such an important part of marketing content that brands can no longer afford to avoid video marketing.
Leading digital marketing agencies understand the importance of integrating video content with other forms of content to create a winning formula. It helps to create a synergy that ranks well, provides a fantastic user experience, and brings maximum returns to you. We invite you to talk to our team of experts about improving your rankings and growing your traffic today.
