Author: Samuel Edwards / Source: Entrepreneur Image credit: Shutterstock | Enhanced by Entrepreneur Over the past few years, marketers h
Over the past few years, marketers have become so inundated with the need to blog that we’re ignoring an exponentially more powerful medium: video. When you study the efficacy of video and the marketplace’s demand for visual content, it’s clear that video is the future of the industry. Making room for this new model in your existing content-marketing strategy makes good sense for a number of reasons.
Video is here to stay.
Content marketers familiar with blogging, SEO and similar tactics have watched the rise of video with considerable trepidation. It’s not that video itself scares them, but people are creatures of habit. Most are uncomfortable when they’re forced to adapt and shift away from what’s worked in the past. Here’s a news flash: The time has come. If you haven’t pivoted in the direction of video content, you’re falling more behind by the day.
Not convinced that video is a sustainable form of online content? Consider these findings from Insivia’s “50 Must-Know Stats About Video Marketing 2016” and then revisit those doubts:
- Including video on a landing page can elevate conversions by 80 percent.
- YouTube reports that mobile-video consumption increases by roughly 100 percent each year.
- Nine out of 10 customers say seeing a video about a product helps them make more informed purchase decisions.
- A picture is worth far more than 1,000 words — 60 seconds of video is the equivalent of approximately 1.8 million words.
- More than 90 percent of mobile-video consumers share videos with their social-media followers on a regular basis.
- More video content is uploaded in one month than all three of the major U.S. television networks — combined — have created in the past 30 years.
Video is no fleeting trend. “There’s no question that the next disruptive bursting point in digital advertising lies in video,” says Laurence Critchell, whose Craftsman Plus production company focuses on mobile delivery. “With social platforms, brands and apps are breaking down the barriers of entry across the digital landscape. Advertisers must evolve toward engaging ad units that can explain their business while connecting with a consumer’s lifestyle. In a short amount of time the top creatives catch attention, clearly explain benefits and show ease of use — all while keeping a performance mindset to bring costs down and creative engagement up.”
Video tells stories, even in small increments.
Content-marketing expert and author Ann Handley can tell you any brand or company that isn’t using video in some way is missing out on a tremendous opportunity to bring its brand to life. “Video adds a pulse to your content,” she said in a recent interview with Wistia. “It makes your story tangible and real. So why wouldn’t we all embrace it?”
Many marketers shy away from video because it’s too different from their typical processes. Writing blog posts or other verbal content requires a certain skill set, but it’s a fairly straightforward assignment for anyone…
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