Developing a strong marketing plan, combining a mixture of the different strategies and taking advantage of everything that a digital, social media world has to offer, is often where some businesses fall short when enhancing their performance. Whilst traditional forms of marketing are the go-to when putting together campaigns, video has advantages beyond the reach of the traditional, and serious business owners should be looking at video marketing as a way of reaching a whole new audience and strengthening their approach.
The rise of digital video advertising
According to The Business Insider, growth within digital video advertising will rise above and beyond all other forms of digital marketing over the next five years, meaning that now is the right time to educate yourself on how you can use video marketing to improve your business and conversion rates.
Using video allows you to get to know your audience – and more importantly, allows your audience the opportunity to get to know you – on a different level. Commercial video allows you to visually introduce your business to its audience and gives you the scope to outline exactly what it is that you do, and how your business can aid or benefit the customer.
Such a video would be much more accessible to viewers of your website than a cramped paragraph outlining your mission statement. Hubspot argues that using video actually increases rate of conversion by around 80%, a substantial amount. At this point, the question remains: why are you not utilising this marketing strategy and using it as a successful way of growing your business?
The benefits of using video on social media
Social media, as far as marketing is concerned, is one of your best and more effective assets. Not only does social media allow you to form relationships with potential customers that you are interacting with, it also allows you to build yourself a strong reputation. Social media accounts are easy to set up and allow you to build strong relationships with the right people, attract potential new clients with strong copy and professionalism, and get your name out there.
Taking this one step further is where using video on social media comes into play. According to a survey carried out in 2018, 54% of consumers would argue that they prefer to see video as a form of commercial campaign as opposed to other types of content, when accessing business marketing.
Visually attract your audience
Branded content video advertisements are a relatively new form of marketing but is one that, when used correctly and executed well, is well-loved by marketing teams and consumers alike.
To visually attract your audience, ensure that you film your videos in the correct format, consider aspect ratios and sizes and understand exactly what it is you’re paying for. Options for video ads can range, although the most popular approach is short-form video, where the audience is able to quickly identify the point of the advertisement, and quickly make up their mind about whether they have an interest in what is being advertised to them. Short videos have a higher completion rate so if you want to ensure that your video is watched all the way through, record a video that tells your story in 15 seconds or less.
From a marketing perspective, branded video content can increase brand engagement, reach and lead to a much more consistent conversion rate. Branded video content essentially means that you are able to look at your brand editorially, driving reach, conversion and engagement rates much further.
Running a sponsored campaign
Using video can be successful, but even more so when used in the right way. Social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn allow users to sponsor their content, giving it the nudge in the right direction that it needs to reach the largest number of people possible.
When paid campaigns are concerned, it is this concept reach that really matters. If you’re paying for a service and your video advertisement isn’t actually being seen by the people who are likely to benefit from seeing it. Paid campaigns allow you not only to see how many people your campaign is reaching, but how many are actively engaging with the video itself and watching what you have produced. From here, you should consider how many people, out of those who have engaged with what you are posting, have taken the next step and clicked through to your website.
Where video marketing and sponsorship is concerned, the end goal is to turn clicks into actual business. So, if the content you are producing doesn’t convert into clicks to your website then you may be lacking an essential factor. Understanding your audience is key and that is where specialised paid advertising campaigns come into play. Targeting your promotion is especially important – there is no point in offering a product to a demographic that will have absolutely no interest in seeing it on their timelines.
In conclusion
Using video to create a strong social media campaign is definitely on the rise, but you need to make sure that you understand how to best use them to see maximum results. At the end of the day, video ads are there to draw in viewers by using stunning visuals that highlight the positive aspects of what you are offering them – something that can be done much more efficiently in visual, video form than in written representations.