Why video marketing works

As engaged business owners, we’re always looking to stay on top of our marketing efforts, which means expanding our marketing practices to encompass additional methods that could give our businesses a boost. 

But before we dive into a brand new endeavor, we always have that nagging voice in our heads wondering if this new strategy will actually work or if it’s just another waste of time and energy.

Well, let’s talk about video marketing and whether it’s the real deal. 

Maybe you’ve considered making videos to market your business or service but ultimately shy away from the process. We’re going to help you gain a better understanding of why video marketing is so useful and important, as well as demonstrate how it can have a direct positive impact on your business. 

What is video marketing?

A type of content marketing, video marketing is any effort you make to use videos in an attempt to promote your business, product, or service. 

Traditional marketing tactics like word-of-mouth marketing, direct mail, or print marketing like fliers and brochures have seen a major decline as video traffic is seriously on the rise. These practices are steadily being replaced by video marketing for a number of reasons we’ll explore further below. 

Why is video marketing important?

The importance of video marketing can be attributed to the many facets of successful marketing and sales that videos help achieve. To further prove that video marketing is hugely significant, video will account for 82% of all internet traffic by 2022.

 In addition to an increased ROI when compared to other methods, video marketing is actually liked and enjoyed by consumers. You know when you see a viral video and you can’t wait to share it? This excitement and engagement is what marketers capitalize on. An audience who is willing and ready to watch, talk and share, and take action in response to your videos is an audience who is loyal. 

What are the benefits of video marketing?

Like we mentioned above, video marketing has a lot of benefits both for you as the business owner, and for the consumer. 

As your audience is already actively looking for video content, using video advertising as your medium to communicate leaves a far stronger impression on the viewer than image ads do.

Here are just some of the many ways you can captivate your audience with the power of video: 

Tap into emotion

A viewer or prospective customer will become more interested in your product if they are emotionally invested in the story you are weaving around it. You can tap into emotion by creating something funny or outrageous (think of that cat banging away at a keyboard), or by painting a sad picture.  Strong emotions such as sentimentality or laughter have the power to build strong connections.  

The best tactic is to intertwine your product with the emotion you’re trying to evoke within your video. Illustrating something bold or empowering that is made possible by your company is a great way to present a solution to a problem while tapping into emotion. It will leave your audience with something useful as well as memorable. 

Nike’s ‘Like a Girl’ campaign is a great example of this. It takes the viewer on an emotional journey where they experience a bit of confusion, anger, hope, and pride. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whpJ19RJ4JY&vq=hd720&rel=0

Capture attention 

We’re all busy and dare I even say, somewhat jaded. We’re easily bored and always looking to be wowed by the content we often mindlessly consume. Good videos have the potential to stand up to these expectations we may not even realize we have. As something so naturally attention-grabbing and visually stimulating, video ads will make your business or product stand out, and work to expand your audience at the same time. 

When  a viewer is scrolling, their attention will be captured by something that moves and is eye-catching – video content makes people stop for a second look. Not only that, videos compel users to spend five times longer viewing them compared to image ads, so while they’re getting that second look in, they’re sticking around long enough to absorb your message. 

This process of backtracking to check out what you might have just missed makes a true impact on an unsuspecting viewer who wasn’t even looking for your ad to begin with. Viewers whose attention gets captured are on their way to becoming part of your audience, or better yet, consumer base. 

Leave an impression

We know that video ads simply perform better than image ads and other marketing methods. Part of the reason for this performance boost is that good videos leave an impression on the viewer. People tend to remember approximately 70% of the videos they watch, and when those videos are good, they get recalled, talked about, and shared. 

This Dollar Shave Club ad for example, gets talked about a lot. Sure, it also taps into emotion by being funny, but it goes even further to leave the viewer eager to talk about and share it. 

A memorable video is easy to think of when it comes time to research a product you need, or when you finally get around to making an online purchase you’ve been mulling. So make sure your brand name is in the back of viewers’ minds and on the tips of their tongues by leaving an impression with great video content. 

With these natural benefits of video marketing it’s easy to see why you should get started weaving them into your own video marketing strategy.

Why use video marketing in your own business efforts?

By simply making the switch over to using more videos in your content strategy, you’ll be able to very quickly see some impressive stats in your marketing results. 

Reach a larger audience

Businesses who use video marketing see their videos get shared on social networks 12x more than image ads or traditional non-video posts. Social sharing among your loyal audience can grow your reach in a flash, and lead to new, ready-to-buy customers. Good word-of-mouth marketing is a truly valuable resource that shouldn’t be overlooked. Those who have it are fortunate. But it can only take your business so far. Push beyond this communal ring of fans and supporters to reach a larger audience than you thought possible. 

Generate leads 

Lead generation marketing is the practice of getting a prospective customer (a lead) interested in your brand or product in an attempt to target and guide them through your sales funnel. A great way to do this is by creating a video landing page. With one, you can encourage your viewers to take the action displayed on the page, most likely filling out a form with their contact information.

With this valuable information, you’ll be able to target them in the future, but they’ll also be more inclined to think of you when it comes time for them to make a purchase at the end of their consumer journey. Your video is encouraging people to take action – you’re leading them to your site or your product page and you want them to make a purchase. But if they’re not quite ready, having a lead generation form in place is an excellent way to build a future customer base.

Increase brand awareness

With the possibility of getting way more sets of eyes on your brand, video ads and just plain great video content can get you seen at a higher and faster rate. The fact that viewers stick around longer when consuming video ads, combined with more and more brand videos being consumed online in general, means viewers have a better chance of seeing your videos and knowing who you are. 

Marketers enjoy increased brand awareness with videos when compared to static image ads, and this can translate into sales later on. In fact, video marketing leads to approximately 50% increased brand awareness among consumers. 

Encourage engagement

You want to get people talking! Good videos get people interested and encourage social media interaction. Think about it. You’ve just seen a great video on Facebook. Seriously, you’re really impressed. You’re probably going to reach for that ‘Like’ button, or better yet, comment and share. 

Online videos encourage 50% more engagement when compared to images or text. That’s the hard stat. But consider the attention your likes, shares, and comments will get from other users. That in itself can contribute to increased brand awareness. It’s a win-win.  

Convert visits into sales 

You’re getting eyes on your brand and your company, leading to more visits to your site or even a physical location if you have one. But what about bringing it all full circle? Making a sale is the final step in seeing your video marketing efforts pay off, and video marketers make more of them than their counterparts. 

Check out these impressive video marketing statistics: 

First of all, videos lead to increased ROI. 

Videos have higher CTR (clickthrough rates) when compared to other mediums, leading the customer to your site’s homepage, product page, or product in the app store. Those clicks lead to an increased conversion rate of more than 85%, which in the end leads to a higher ROI. That’s huge.

Of course, other types of online marketing are important and make an impact on your business as well. Email marketing, social media marketing, PPC (pay-per-click), and affiliate marketing can all include videos to enhance their value. 

Video is particularly important for SEO. Google loves strong, relevant video content and rewards marketers with high search rankings. YouTube videos can appear in Google search results if labeled strategically. Check out this article to learn more about video SEO.  

Using these methods in combination with video marketing can take your business to new heights.  

So what makes a good marketing video?

You already know what a good marketing video can do, but how do you ensure yours is good? It helps to start with professional footage and high-quality video clips. That’s where Promo.com makes it easy for you. You can also choose to go the one-and-done route by selecting a ready-made video template that only requires you to add your text and logo. Simple! 

There are lots of different types of marketing videos you can create and each one can be useful at different times throughout your sales cycle. They include:

• Promotional videos
• Explainer videos
• Event videos
• Sales videos
• Product videos
• Demo videos 

And more…

Promo.com’s video maker is easy to use, and allows you to make all the videos you need to quickly and effectively boost your marketing efforts.