We’re not entirely surprised by it, but the rise of videos is definitely faster and bigger than expected. When once there was a time when setting up a place to shoot a one minute video seems a tedious job, now we have the technology to shoot 6-second videos and make thousands, even millions out of it. When once YouTube was the biggest video platform to be used, now we have Vine, Facebook, and Instagram to choose from. There are now many ways to shoot a video, at any length, at any genre; and true enough, slowly, marketers have been using it to tell their brand story. And why not? Videos are everywhere and a lot of people are watching them. Cisco has predicted that by the year 2019, internet video traffic will have risen to 80% from 2014’s 60%.
Indeed video is the perfect medium to get a point across, to show people that what you are offering works. And so a company, whether a business that is big and small, will miss out on a wide market if they do not make use of video as a marketing tool. Here we talk about what video marketing is today, its successes, and its future.
The Current State of Video Marketing
Pressing play has become a very effective call-to-action button according to Switch Merge founder, Andrew Angus. It seems he is right, with companies like Twitter and Facebook making video ads available for advertisers and streaming sites like Periscope, people just cannot get enough of that play button.
In 2014, research showed that 52% of marketers saw that they have the best ROI from video content. They were able to deduce this because of video analytics. By looking at their data, they were able to see that their content was indeed viewed, the location of the people who viewed them, and how many have converted.
Even the mention of the word “video” in the email subject boosts open rates by 19% and click-through rates by 65%. It makes sense, actually. There are now countless ways people want to get lost on the Internet, and video just seems an easier way for both marketer and viewer to convey and digest the message.
If those numbers are not enough, in 2015, 65% of viewers watch more than ¾ of video. That retention is more than text-based content. More than a time-saving form of communications, it seems people prefer videos more. Not that there is anything wrong with articles, but videos can tell a message succinctly, but still be able to influence the emotions of viewers.
You can also achieve success in video marketing. All you need to do is to be creative with it. It is not just a simple product demonstration or customer testimonial; you have to show a problem that only you can answer. Your videos need to be relevant, entertaining, poignant, and most of all, informative. Let’s look into successful video marketing ads some companies have done.
Success in Video Marketing
Quoting Professor Raymond A. Bauer in the book Marketing Imagination by Theodore Levitt, he says that when buyers choose known brands, it is more meaningful to think of it as risk reduction rather than thinking of it as brand preference. And this was supported by Leo McGinneva. He was asked, why do people buy quarter-inch drill bits? He says, “They don’t want quarter-inch drill bits. They want quarter-inch holes”.
This completely shows us that people are not much into who you are and only a little less on what your brand is selling; people want solutions. In simple terms, what is in it for them? This is the reason why digital marketing has been the popular choice than traditional marketing in the recent years. People want more personalized content because they have specific needs that you might meet. What better way to personalize and humanize content than video? Here we show you successful video marketing campaigns, companies who were able to harness the potential of videos and garnered significant response.
American Greetings’ #WorldsToughestJob
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HB3xM93rXbY
One of the best examples of an emotion-driven video marketing is this ad from Mullen and Cardstore by American Greetings. Watching it, you will realize they did not blatantly tell you to buy their product, in fact it was reduced to just a small quip at the end of the video. This one of those video ads some people call refreshing. They know it is selling them something, but because it was not an in-your-face advertising, a lot of people seem to appreciate it.
Progressive’s Small Business Tips
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=26&v=nirg52e9Pww
Made by brand storytellers at Arnold Boston, this is part of a series of videos called Small Business Big Dreams. This is what an informative video marketing looks like. There are no frills, no complicated gimmicks, just real business advice for people who own small businesses or those who would like to set one up.
Intel’s Look Inside
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcgoDTkovzQ
Here is an example of a video that shows how a product can change people’s lives. In Intel’s Look Inside series, they showed an interesting and inspiring look at how technology is changing the way we experience life.
So you see that your video can come in so many forms, and people would still consume it. All you need to make sure of is its relevancy, is it what your market really needs? Should you create an emotionally driven video to nudge them a bit? Inform them about how your product can change their life? These are questions you can consider.
Future and/or Predictions for Video Marketing
We are seeing a shift from traditional marketing to digital marketing, and more so on the use of video as an effective content marketing tool. In a recent study done by the Interactive Advertising Bureau, of the 300 brands surveyed, about ⅔ are investing more on online video than television advertisements. Year after year the number of brands who are looking into video content are growing, wanting to establish themselves in platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and even Vine.
Indeed we will see an exponential growth in video content soon. And this is not just good news for video makers, but also for storytellers, people whose expertise it is to craft narratives behind products. If you have noticed, Vine users are now being tapped by brands to create fantastic 6-second ads for their products. This is because Vine users, especially those who have a significant following, are experts of flash stories.
Because video making is not as time and cost consuming as it is before, even SME’s will be given a chance to compete with top players of their industry. With the right content and the right execution, they may even be at par with the big companies they are gunning for.
This is what we can expect in future. Videos that are humanized, personalized, and are relevant. It does not matter what length or in which platform; once a video touches human emotion, curiosity, and our natural disposition to want more information, then you know you have succeeded.
Final thought
With a little elbow grease, you can achieve the virality some of the famous companies, like Dove and Coke, has achieved this. But more than being viral, you have to make sure that your content makes sense. Video is the future of content, and if your aim is only to become viral, without any concern for content, then you might be eaten by the internet alive.