With digital mediums occupying a prominent position across all forms of communication, videos are everywhere. Whether watching television at home, waiting at a bus stop, or simply scrolling through their social media feed, there is hardly any place where you do not encounter videos. This is why video marketing is the latest trend on every marketer’s mind.
With an audience that is passively receptive and actively engaging with videos; they become a great tool to grab attention and deliver the message. This is why content marketing strategies across brands now have video marketing as a critical component. Combining this with social media marketing appears to be a winning combination for multiple reasons
- There is already an engaged audience.
- The platform is independent of location and time constraints.
- There is instant feedback and an opportunity to tweak the strategy.
This is not just a theoretical probability. In fact, there is sufficient data to prove that opting for video marketing on social media has made a deep impact on the sales and ROI of brands. Some statistics confirming this theory are mentioned below.
- Nearly 76% of marketers have confirmed that using videos has helped them achieve higher sales
- Approximately 81% of users mentioned that brand videos helped them make a purchase decision
Video Marketing on Social Media
When there is so much buzz and evidence for the benefits of video marketing on social media, it is imperative for marketers to understand how it works. This will help you plan and leverage this opportunity for your brands. Let us start with the basics.
What is Video Marketing?
Video marketing, as the name suggests, is marketing your products and services using videos. Since digital platforms support the playing of videos much more than any traditional medium, this has come to be a core part of all digital marketing strategies. There are many types of videos that can be created, depending on the audience’s needs. Some of these include:
- How-to videos – These are the most common types of videos that help users solve real-life problems. These are also the biggest drivers of organic search since users are actively searching for this information.
- Entertainment videos – This is the most engaging form of videos that are happily consumed by the audience. Correct and subtle placement of the brand in these videos can increase brand recall manifold.
- Testimonials – This is the most obvious form of video marketing, where other users promote the product or services of your brand. This helps in building a connection with the audience, where they are able to relate to other users, like themselves.
With the popularity of mobile devices, the audience can now watch any video at any time. This is a great opportunity for marketers since they do not have to worry about buying TVC slots to showcase their video ads.
Why is Social Media-based Video Marketing Effective?
There are multiple advantages of marketing your videos over social media. Some of these have been already discussed, like no constraints of time or location. However, the biggest benefit of social media is trustworthiness and relatability. When somebody in your social network, who you know personally, shares a video; there is an element of trust. Also, the fact that people like you are sharing the content, makes it more relatable than a marketer trying to promote their services to you. A higher number of shares and direct engagement is important for all marketers, and social media provides a great avenue for this.
Choosing the right platform
Including social media in your marketing strategies is important. But what is more important is which platforms to focus on to get the most out of video marketing. You must identify what it is that you want to achieve from your video marketing efforts, and then choose the correct platform. Some common goals include:
- Driving more traffic to the website
- Having more engagement to increase brand recall
- Increasing brand awareness
With the goals being clearly defined, you can then craft marketing strategies targeting specific platforms. Here are some common social media platforms that are a good choice for marketers looking to expand their video marketing efforts.
YouTube
This is one platform synonymous with videos. Videos across genres and production values are available on this common platform. The fact that users can find videos on any subject on YouTube also makes it one of the largest search engines out there. People come to the platform not just for entertainment, but also with the intention to find information. This is why it is one of the best platforms for marketers looking to leverage video marketing.
Started initially as a photo-sharing platform, Instagram has evolved over the years to provide multiple video options to its users. Stories, IGTV videos and the latest feature of adding reels have made it a favorite of most marketers. The audience for this platform is relatively young and is thus very particular about the kind of content they consume. Understanding the demographics of the users can help marketers effectively leverage this platform for video marketing. The video length on Instagram can vary from a few seconds for Reels to up to 60 minutes for IGTV videos.
No discussion about social media platforms can be complete without mentioning Facebook. The primary user base of this network is 25 to 35 years old. They are the ones that can make purchasing decisions. Thus, leveraging this platform for video marketing can give marketers the best ROI. Facebook allows for slightly longer videos that have a longer life than other platforms.
Snapchat
Having higher preference amongst millennials, this platform allows for short videos that are available for a relatively shorter period of time. It is a great place for topical videos that can be used to relate with the audience, leading to higher brand recall.
Useful Tips for Video Marketing
As much as social media platforms are important to provide a wider reach, some thumb rules work for video marketing anywhere:
- Attention-grabbing beginning – A user will watch the video only if they are hooked within the first few seconds. If not, they always have an option to skip watching.
- Relatable content – This is the golden principle when making videos. The audience will watch and engage with a video only if they are able to relate to it.
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – An often-ignored aspect for video content is SEO. It boosts the desired outcome of the video and must be a part of all content marketing strategies, irrespective of the format.
- Include CTA – While this is obvious in textual content, marketers have an opportunity to include call-to-action in their video content as well. Creative use of CTAs can improve the outcome of online marketing drastically.
