Video enables brand marketers, businesses, publishers, thought leaders and fame seekers an opportunity to creatively showcase their unique value and talents, then share it with the world.
The reason videos are at the top of marketing’s priorities list can be factored by the billions.
YouTube: Each day users watch a billion hours of video, generating billions of views.
The overwhelming power of YouTube alone makes it keenly obvious for businesses that there are volumes of opportunity created with video content. The contrast is stark. Those not utilizing this medium to get out their message essentially means they don’t exist to a billions of video consumers.
According to Vidyard, 92% of survey respondents say video is becoming extremely important to their marketing efforts and more than two-thirds are increasing their budgets for video this year.
Video consumption and production are at all time highs.
Why is video content continuing to grow in popularity and demand? The proof is in the numbers. Every major social network, including Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, and Twitter are now video distribution channels. All of these platforms even have a “live” video format that is growing in use and features.
45% of people watch more than an hour of Facebook or YouTube videos a week.
Nearly a third of all people on the Internet are users of YouTube for one reason – video! Cisco’s Visual Networking Index reports, by 2019, global consumer Internet video traffic will account for 80 percent of all consumer Internet traffic.
Brands are moving quickly to harness the power of video and share their experiences in this expressive format. Video is now seen as the best long and short form content to share a message and engage your audience. Retention is significantly higher from video over text. Video increases emotional engagement and it dramatically increases the sharing of content, a vital key performance measurement in marketing ROI analytics.
Video is a smart business investment.
Marketers deem video content production as a top priority today, with a focus on leveraging the power of YouTube and Facebook as key content distribution channels. In fact, 51.9% of marketing professionals worldwide name video as the type of content with the best ROI.
Video appeals to a greater and more dispersed audience. Unlike other types of content, video is more accepted globally in the original source language. You can currently navigate YouTube in 76 different languages (covering 95% of the Internet population).
HubSpot State of Inbound 2017 Report noted video is one of the top-cited disruptors in their survey. “Many see video as a great channel to better connect with a prospect, while others fret that video will make their day jobs obsolete.” Source
If you aren’t using video, your competition probably is and having great success. The Vidyard ‘Video in Business Benchmark 2017 Report’ reveals that businesses have published 293 videos on average and are publishing 18 new videos every month. These businesses stated their video libraries will double within 16 months.
Once seen cost-prohibitive for small businesses, video is now produced by small, medium and large businesses in great volumes. Easy-to-use self-producing video tools have significantly eased the costs and skills requirements for quality video production. In fact, 85% of those surveyed have an in-house video production team to create and distribute content.
There are many uses and purposes for video content. Personalized videos perform better than generic. Short videos have far greater retention than long videos. Viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to 10% when reading it in text. Entertaining videos are shared more than strictly educational. Videos help convert shoppers to buyers. In other words, videos are just good for business!
The visual medium is seeded with golden opportunities to increase brand awareness and even drive sales. A successful video strategy ensures this content format represents a true experience that reflects the brand, company values and capabilities.
Videos are art. Expression, creativity and edginess reward the innovators. It might even create the video “holy grail” – a viral video with millions of views.
Jamie Glass, CMO + Founder of Artful Thinkers, a sales and marketing consulting company.
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