Whenever you create visual content, that’s a question you need to ask yourself: “What the heck does this have to do with my brand?” And while there might be a way to incorporate a puppy into that, it has to be relevant to your audience. When people think of “video marketing,” often, the first thing that comes to mind is YouTube. On top of that, Facebook is the most popular social media channel, with 79% of all U.S. online adults using it. Let’s say you create original content video on Facebook. And even if it doesn’t immediately get you removed from social media channels or lower your SERP ranking, it’ll tarnish your brand -- once the user sees that you’re applying misleading titles to your videos, she’ll likely associate you with unauthentic content. Description This should be limited to 1,000 characters -- and remember that your viewer came here to watch a video, not to read a lot of text. And remember what we said before about people being short on both time and attention? There’s nothing that will keep viewers from coming back more than leaving them feeling like they didn’t gain anything from watching your video content. And remember: Emotions are what make people want to share something. So doing what you can to make sure your viewer feels something in response to your video doesn’t just provide her with value -- it makes her more likely to share it.
You did it. You finally produced and posted your first series of marketing videos. You wrote the scripts, filmed them, edited them, and uploaded them to an online platform. All that’s left to do is sit back, relax, and watch the views roll in.
Ha ha. Funny story, right?
Before I worked at HubSpot, when I created my very first series of marketing videos, I was stumped. Befuddled. Frustrated. Here I had a collection of what I thought were great examples of visual content, and yet, no one was watching them.
Where did I go wrong?
If only I knew then what I knew now. My absence-of-views problem was one that many marketers seem to face — which is why we decided to make a list of the most common factors that keep viewers away. Read on, and bookmark them for reference when you’re formulating your next video content strategy.
Why No One is Watching Your Videos
1) They’re too long.
It seems like we’re past the point of requiring evidence that supports the dwindling human attention span, but just in case — studies say it’s about eight seconds. On top of that, roughly two-thirds of consumers prefer video under one minute, so in sum: Keep it short.
I’ll never forget what HubSpot’s CEO, Brian Halligan, said to me during a chat about content creation: “You’re asking to borrow someone’s brain.” When you ask someone to borrow anything, the considerate thing to do is to be respectful of that person’s time, and when they might need it back. Generally, we need our brains — so when you create something like video content, remember that you have your viewer’s brain on loan.
That’s not to say that your video needs to be limited to eight seconds — after all, how much could you possibly say in that amount of time? But when you create it, make sure those first few seconds are highly engaging, as that’s when you’ll need to grab the viewer’s attention to maintain it.
2) You’re going after the wrong audience.
I love puppy videos. You love puppy videos. Everyone loves puppy videos. But what the heck do they have to do with your brand?
Whenever you create visual content, that’s a question you need to ask yourself: “What the heck does this have to do with my brand?” And while there might be a way to incorporate a puppy into that, it has to be relevant to your audience.
When you set out to create a video marketing strategy, one of the most crucial things to consider is what your target audience wants to watch — current and prospective customers alike. Entertainment aside, what’s going to be helpful to them? What’s going to get their attention, make them glad that they let you borrow their brains, and answer the questions that brought them to your content in the first place?
3) You’re using the wrong channel.
When people think of “video marketing,” often, the first thing that comes to mind is YouTube. And that’s not a wrong assumption to make. After all, about a third of all Internet users — all of them — use YouTube.
But YouTube isn’t the only place where videos are consumed — and it’s not the only place where you’ll find your target audience. Consider that 45% of people, for instance, watch more than an hour of videos on either YouTube or Facebook. On top of that, Facebook is the most popular social media channel, with 79% of all U.S. online adults using it. So if you’re focusing on YouTube alone, and not creating original video content on Facebook — well, you might be missing out on a key portion of viewers.
But where you post videos also depends on who you’re trying to reach. Generation Z, for example — one of the youngest online demographics — “can’t live without YouTube,” according to AdWeek, and is over 1.4X more likely to consume content on that channel than on Facebook.
That’s why it’s helpful to figure out where the different segments of your target audience spend their time online, which can help dictate what kind of video you’re going to create and where it will be shared. The Pew Research Center’s annual Social Media Update is especially helpful for that, which breaks down who’s using what. Have a look, and figure out if, based on who you want watching your videos, you need to broaden…
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