How Video Marketing is Reshaping Modern Marketing Strategies?

It may sound a bit dramatic, but there are basically 3 types of marketing strategy –

1. One that gets drowned in the Red Sea
2. One that gets lost in the desert
3. And, one that does make it to the promised land!

Which type is your marketing plan? Before you answer that question, answer this – are you making use of the power of video marketing? It is a known fact that video is rapidly reshaping the marketing landscape. Even then, many businesses seem to be wandering in the desert, while their competitors are enjoying handsome ROI plus extra.

Do you think you are better off without adding video to your marketing mix? Do you think video marketing is just a fad? Well, it may not really seem like a big deal to you, but reports suggest that brands making use of video content are growing their yearly revenue 49% faster than brands that do not. Did that make you sit up and take note? It should!

At a time when competition is so cut-throat and fierce in the online space, you really cannot allow your competitors to have a head start. Fortunately for you, we have scaled the mountains and had a tete-a-tete with the marketing Gods so that you know how powerful video marketing is in today’s modern age and also get some ideas about how to make use of this trend (or shall we call it a movement?).

Why is video content driving marketing strategies?

• Video Has an Exceptional Ability to Engage.
  Thanks to the uncanny ability of video to connect with a wide range of audience, video content is anticipated to account for 74% of all Internet traffic. Industry insiders reveal that businesses utilizing video to market products and services enhanced revenue by 49%. While business that did not use video as a part of their marketing mix, lagged behind.

• People Prefer Watching over Reading.
  Today’s millennials find reading offensive. This is what gives impetus to visual media. A short video, if made fun and interesting, will capture the attention of the audience. 4 times as many consumers prefer to watch about a product rather than read about it. Even if they are travelling or surfing the internet, they will happily spend time watching a video. Therefore, the likelihood of sale is increased manifold when video content is integrated with the overall marketing strategy of a business.

The mind is able to retain 95% of a message when they watch it in the form of a video, but only 10% when they read it in text.

• Videos can Connect with a Wider Audience.
  If the story-telling is great, video content can reach and engage varied demographics. It can even make it easier for businesses to connect with their target audience and beyond. If the story is conveyed properly with relevant visual images and background score, barriers like, language and geographic location, will no longer matter.

• Videos Instill Trust & Brand Loyalty.
  A video offering interesting, useful and stimulating content can go a long way in instilling trust and brand loyalty. It encourages viewers to share across various social media platforms. Hence a video that is appealing and is able to pique the interest of customers serves to promote a favorable brand image.

• Helping to Magnify SEO Efforts.
  Owing to updates and cutting-edge technologies, SEO is a volatile field of marketing. It continues to show ample room for improvements. At present, SEO results combine the efforts of social media marketing, content marketing, mobile optimization, better UX experience and video content, among others. It has been noticed that video goes a long way in improving search engine optimization efforts. Since video showcases moving visual images, it has the power to engage visitors for a relatively longer time on websites. Thus, a website’s session duration and bounce rate is improved – two factors that majorly impact search engine listings. As a matter of fact, a recent survey revealed that the chances of a website getting the page ranking on SERP are increased by 50% with the presence of video content.

• Video is Encouraging Self-service Sales Processes.
  Only a few years ago, the website served as the platform for prospects to build their interest in a brand and their product. But, if the customers wanted to go any further, they had to either connect with the company over phone, email or meet the sales representative. Today, consumers believe in their impulses and are less patient. They are trained to expect on-demand, self-serve experience. Consumers crave for information, but on their own terms. They want to decide how and when they get the information. As a matter of fact, 40% of prospective customers prefer to purchase a product or service without having to talk to a salesperson. By integrating video into sales process, businesses make sure that customers get what they want, when they want. Customers too look forward for a self-serve, frictionless experience.

• Consumers Expect Content to be in Video Format.
  It is interesting to watch and gives them all the information they want about a brand and its products. Video positively enhances the buying experience. Also, it is a great way to stand out from competition, unless you are running a monopoly.

Marketers are reshaping their modern marketing strategies by focusing more on video marketing. With more and more video content being incorporated, video marketing strategies are going down well with the cool generation of shoppers.

What’s Trending in Video Marketing Strategies?

Brands are securing 50% of their content mix for video. This is because video is increasingly playing an important role in engaging potential consumers. Without video, businesses are losing prospects. More businesses are focusing on creating a video marketing strategy.

Videos with a call-to-action are earning lucrative ROI. Those videos that venture to initiate a conversation rules the day. The winning videos are coming with clear instructions, such as share this video with a friend, leave a comment or subscribe by clicking on the link. Video are being liked, shared and circulated at a rapid pace as compared to other forms of digital marketing.

Longer videos are turning out to be a good trend. Previously, marketers were of the opinion that long videos are boring. But, in a hungry-world that we live in, long-format video content is actually a boon in disguise. The only trick is to create one that is interesting, engaging and worth sharing. Find out how to make a great video that they will be glued to.

Personalized videos are used more by marketing & sales reps. They are recording a short video of their own with sending them to target people to introduce themselves or follow up with the prospects. They are using videos to build personal connections.

Online ad spending is tending to surpass TV ad spending. More than 70% marketers are increasing their video ad budget as they feel more people will watch ads online than on TV.

Customized videos being used for different social media platforms like YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat etc. Users on each platform have different taste and preference than users on other platforms. So the videos are customized accordingly to match the specific preference of users of each platform.

Silent videos are being widely used, mainly because of increasing viewing of videos on mobile phones. 85% of videos on Facebook are played without sound. So the videos are using more captions and easy-to-understand visuals so that the message is finally conveyed without any difficulty, even without using sound.

Usage and popularity of Live videos are growing fast. Live streaming videos are featuring more in the video marketing strategies of modern marketers. Almost all major social media platforms including Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter are offering Live videos. Facebook has even launched 360-degree live video, enabling marketers to surround the viewers by an immersive experience about the product.

Even after knowing the power of video in modern marketing strategies, many businesses have miserably failed to incorporate it. They are still filling the online domain with boring homepages, text-only emails, lackluster content offers and dry landing pages. If you want increased traffic, better conversion rates and handsome ROI, reshape your marketing strategies by featuring video content in it. To make it to the promised land, let your videos do the WOW job!