‘Video marketing’ has been a content marketing buzzword for the past few years. Now that the medium has been around for a while, it’s a good time to look at what’s working, what’s not and where video can fit into your marketing strategy.
2020 Stats on Video Marketing
Video is a highly significant marketing tool for most businesses.
Wyzowl’s The State of Video Marketing is an annual survey that’s sent to marketing professionals and online consumers to get both sides of the video marketing story. This year it collected a total of 656 unique respondents.
Let’s get into the results.
First up, the survey found 85% of businesses use video as a marketing tool. This is a slight decrease from last year’s 87%, but still a big jump from when the question was first asked in 2016 and only 61% of businesses used video.
Although this shows a small dip for businesses, 92% of marketers who use video say that it’s an important part of their strategy. This is the highest percentage to date.
This isn’t surprising given that, on average, we watch an eye-watering 16 hours of online video per week (according to Wyzowl).
And most marketers reckon their efforts are paying off. A decisive 89% reported video as delivering a good return on investment, and 99% of people who use video marketing will continue to do so in 2020.
This is because 95% of marketers say video has helped increase user understanding of a product or service. It has also contributed to reducing support queries in 43% of cases. Plus 74% of consumers were convinced to buy a piece of software or application after watching a video.
Video has also had a positive impact on website stats, with 76% of marketers reporting video as generating more traffic to the site and 80% reporting it has directly helped increase sales.
Where Are Businesses Promoting Their Social Media Videos in 2020?
According to Wyzowl’s Video Marketing Statistics 2020 Survey, YouTube remains the most widely used platform with 85% of marketers publishing videos there, and 83% reporting it as an effective channel.
Unsurprisingly, Facebook remains the second most popular social media site for video. 76% of marketers say they will include Facebook in their 2020 video marketing strategy, compared to 65% on Instagram, 38% on Twitter and 28% on IGTV.
However, LinkedIn has emerged as the most successful channel for video marketers in 2019, with an overwhelming 87% of LinkedIn video marketers describing it as an effective channel. This has helped convince 66% of marketers to use Linkedin in their 2020 video strategy.
TikTok is also inching onto the scene, with 15% of marketers planning to include the untapped social platform in their 2020 strategy.
Snapchat was the least favourite medium. Only 11% of marketers say they’ve used the platform and only 9% plan to continue in 2020 due to low success rates.
Why Use Video for Marketing?
What makes video marketing so popular?
Easier to Watch than Read
It seems many consumers would prefer to watch rather than read. Wyzowl’s research showed 96% of respondents have watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service.
Content is King
Video has several advantages over text. With many businesses using two or more social media channels to spread the word, they need to content to keep them current. A video is suitable for multiple social media sites and sends traffic back to the company website, increasing time spent on the site and helping to improve rankings.
Sharability
Wyzowl’s respondents also revealed people are twice as likely to share videos with their friends than any other type of content. While the fun and frivolous video content will always be ripe for sharing, it seems video content that provides information will also be shared.
Easier to Deliver the Message
If a ‘picture is worth a thousand words’, then video must be worth hundreds of thousands. Many complex or new products or systems can be difficult to portray to a reader using text only. Video means there is no need for the viewer to try and imagine how something looks through the printed word. They’re popular with consumers with 84% saying they’ve been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a brand’s video.
Stuck for Video Marketing Ideas?
There is a downside to the video trend. According to OptinMonster’s research, 64% of marketers see video as the most challenging type of content to create. But it doesn’t need to be any more time consuming than a lengthy blog post – especially with the video quality of smart phones. Here are a few video marketing ideas to get you thinking:
- Corporate video
- Vlog (video blog)
- Video interview
- Virtual reality (which 12% of marketers plan to include in their 2020 strategy)
- Product demonstration
- Unboxing/review of a product
- Video testimonials
- Explainer videos related to your industry or product
- 360 videos (which 15% of marketers plan to include in their 2020 strategy)
- Tutorial video
- A presentation filmed earlier
- A live stream of a presentation
- Video ads
The types of videos you can create for your organisation are endless. Be a little creative and think of ways you can incorporate video into your marketing mix.
Where Will Video Fit Into Your Marketing Strategy?
Video is part of the marketing plan for more businesses each year. Cisco Visual Networking Index: Forecast and Methodology, 2016-2021 estimates that there will be almost a million minutes of footage per second crossing the internet this year and 82% of all consumer web traffic will be video.
Investing in a video is ideal if you want make the most of your content. Don’t leave your video to languish on a YouTube channel. Promote it through multiple social media channels and on more than one occasion. Post it on your website and incorporate videos into blog posts to increase the time visitors spend on your site. User metrics like time on page and lower bounce rates are good for your search engine rankings as well!
With some assistance, producing a video doesn’t need to take up too much of your time. If your organisation is ready to invest in video content, get in touch and we’ll make it happen.
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