We know that the end of the year is a busy time for tying loose ends, but we also know that you are already thinking about the types of ideas and initiatives you’re thinking about taking on in the new year. And integrating more video is something that you should add with more urgency. Why? While we’ve talked about some key video statistics, some updated numbers from a recent infographic from Accenture Interactive can help pique your interest even more.
- 50% of B2B marketers are prioritizing visual marketing this year
- 84% of all marketing communications is expected to be visual by 2018
- By 2020, video will make up 80% of all web traffic
Out of these stats, #2 is certainly relevant to this post, and 2018 is now one year and two weeks away. So let’s get cracking, shall we? Integrating video isn’t as daunting as you think it might be. We’ve already showed you how video can seamlessly fit into your lead-generation funnel and can become material for social media in the form of video assets. Now, as you take the time to audit your overall content strategy, here’s a breakdown of some of the video marketing trends that are going to be disseminating across every type of applicable channel in the New Year.
Go Live Streaming
Live video streaming is popping up everywhere. Ever since Facebook Live came on the scene once it was gradually launched in 2015 and then open to all US Facebook users in February of this year, it’s becoming a big deal. In fact, according to an article detailing best practices for Facebook Live, they cited numbers from Facebook saying that videos will be viewed for 3 times longer when live and then number of comments on live videos increases ten-fold. Needless to say that in the case of Facebook live, lots of brands like Kate Spade, Benefit Cosmetics, Dunkin’ Donuts, Matches Fashion, Chevrolet have jumped on the bandwagon. If you want to take a look at an example of a Facebook Live video, check out this example from Benefit Cosmetics:
https://www.facebook.com/benefitcosmetics/videos/vb.48879913147/10153509745623148/?type=2&theater
And that’s not all: even The White House has gotten in on the action. President Obama’s first press conference after the recent presidential election was streamed on Facebook Live, where people still reeling from a contentious result reacted and commented instantly as they listened to him. And it wasn’t an exception; he very recently did a Facebook Live session straight from the White House. There is a sense of urgency with live video because it is different to engage with content live as opposed to watching it days or weeks later.
While Facebook Live is the live video platform that seems to get the most buzz (and they did pay $50 million for media companies to produce videos in this medium), Twitter’s Periscope feature and Snapchat will also be big channels in the live video game. In fact, 82% of Twitter users reporting that they watch videos on a regular basis The options for this medium have many possibilities. You can implement a daily or weekly tech by using live video to give a helpful tip related to the use of a product or service, a behind-the-scenes look at life in the company (a tour around the office meeting some key employees perhaps?) or think even bigger by broadcasting company-sponsored events or conferences so you can reach more people and increase engagement.
Take Your Storytelling Up A Notch With Video Storytelling
The benefit of storytelling is producing content that will directly connect to your target, since consumers are more easily influenced if the content is more relevant to them and triggers an emotion. Not only can you use storytelling to attract consumers, it also can help along in your lead-nurturing funnel telling stories through testimonial videos and cultivate a community using user-generated content to have a constant stream of stories to tell throughout the year. And since Accenture Interactive found that 67% of users will decide to watch a video for entertainment. A compelling story, as long as it’s entertaining and accomplishes you overall goals, can make your case studies from customers ever better (as well as testimonials).
Video Viewing Platforms: Don’t Put Your Eggs in One Basket
As video is becoming more and more prominent, people are watching video on multiple devices. A study from Think With Google found that 85% of 18-49 year-olds watch multiple screens at the same time. They also said that two-thirds of YouTube users will tune in while watching TV at the same time. And in the case of the author of this post, who fits very smoothly into this demographic, will often watch videos both on her iPad (whether it’s YouTube, Netflix, or perusing her social media news feeds) and then another video of interest will show up on her Facebook newsfeed. So since users don’t have a monogamous relationship with one video platform in particular, this means you’re going to want to use video on more platforms than just YouTube. If not, you risk not effectively reaching your audience. So remember that the consumer leads, and you follow!
Snapchat, Where Everything Is Temporary
While we generally think of video assets as something that get uploaded and permanently stored throughout the inter webs, one of the big parts of Snapchat’s added value is the fact that content automatically gets erased after a certain period of time. While it seems contradictory to what marketers find most comfortable, there’s a lot of potential, especially if you’re looking for Millennials and Generation Z. It’s expected that Snapchat will make $1 billion in ad revenue in 2017 and it’s projected that there will be 217 million active users this time next year. It’s also a platform that also gives off the air of authenticity considering that there’s no way to touch up your finished products. Since many people use Snapchat for warts-and-all communications, it’s a way to come closer to Millennials and Generation Z. And with 10 billion video views each day on Snapchat, it’s time to embrace the consequence of getting your content permanently deleted after time goes on.
Facebook: Video Is Becoming Even More Prominent
Video posts are gaining steam on Facebook. The number of daily views for videos has increased from 1 billion views to 8. In turn, text posts that have been around on Facebook since the social network’s primitive stages are declining. And since Facebook is still a fundamental part of most, if not all, social media presence, this is a channel that you can easily exploit to get people engaged longer with your content.
360-Degree Videos
The 360-degree format can be advantageous in terms of engagement. A Magnifyre study found that for a 360-degree video, the average percentage that viewed the video was 28.81% higher for the 260-degree format than a non 360-degree video. And those who watched the full video doubled when it was a 360-degree video. Since 90% of users think that videos are useful in the purchasing process, this video format will let people get the full value of a product, especially those that don’t get their justice in standard video formats.
Add YouTube To Your Social Media Strategy
Stat. That’s right, you should really think about creating a strategy for YouTube. The same Think With Google Report found that half of the 18 to 34-year olds surveyed would drop everything and watch a new YouTube video by one of their creators. For teens and millennials, they listed YouTube as the video source they most couldn’t live without. And since they are making a greater shift to online video viewing, this platform is seeing an increased engagement.
Videos + Email Marketing = Jackpot
Look to increase your click-through-rate and open rate on your email blasts in the new year? We’ve got a solution for you: integrated videos into your email marketing. Concision is key when it comes to emails, and since Dr. James McQuivey claims that one minute of video has the same value as 1.8 million words, including a link to a video helps you overcome the challenges of transmitting what you want to say in an email while still getting people to engage. If you include a link to video content, the audience’s likelihood of reading the newsletter goes up by 50%. And remember that we mean links when it comes to integrating video into email marketing. Even as video and email marketing come together over the next year, one of the biggest caveats of including video is that embedding can make the script too heavy and cause the email provider to make the emails bounce. So remember: linking videos leads to increased CTR but embedding the video triggers a red flag, leading to bounced messages.
Ready to adopt any of these video marketing trends in 2017? We at Stark Crew can help you out in the ideation and execution of your video strategy and in your execution. To get started, request your free quote and get all the questions you’d like answered by the Stark Crew team.