I saw a stat during a webinar the other day that blew my mind. “100 million hours of video are watched on Facebook every day”. One hundred million! To give you a little perspective, if you were to sit down and watch that linearly, it would take you a fraction under 11,416 years to get through them all. I can’t even begin to get my head around that.
Saying that, it is just after 8am and I have already watched six videos on Facebook…all around 20 seconds long, each one dragging me deeper in to the black hole of 'pointless knowledge'. I need to know more! That’s right, I need to know how that lovely lady in Japan has solved her laundry woes by creating a hack that has revolutionised her life…it might make my life easier! Or I might just have another few minutes of my life sucked in to the Facebook vacuum! You can’t resist the draw, so imagine the power video can have when it actually provides something useful.
In the 2017 consumer trends survey released by Hubspot, over half of the consumers surveyed indicated that they would like to see video content over anything else from the brands that they support. This is a great opportunity for businesses to take the bull by the horns and start adding video to their content plan. In a recent report from Cisco, they predicted that by 2019, 80% of all internet traffic will be video based. So what is stopping businesses taking a bite of the video pie? Capacity, capability and budgetary constraints certainly play their part, but as demand for video grows, so does the supply of easily accessible (and often free) tools for its production. Let’s face it, not many of our CEO’s will be Rada graduates and I think Christopher Nolan is tied up doing other things, so your latest ABM promotion doesn’t need to be shot at Pinewood studios and have a Pirates of the Caribbean style budget ($397m if you’re interested!). There are numerous affordable (and many free) video marketing tools available, such as Vidyard, Filmora, Wideo and Biteable…you just have to get a little creative. And not all video has to be ‘produced’…most of the social platforms now have live streaming capability so you can post live video free of charge. In fact, the same brains at Cisco predicted that live video will account for 13 percent of Internet video traffic by 2021. People like to buy from people, so why not get your face out there and make your brand a little more human!
So, you’re sold…now how do you ensure your video gets the story across? Well this is the beauty of this form of messaging. According to digital marketing expert James McQuivey, in a recent Forrester report, just one minute of video content is equal to 1.8million words (there is genuine maths and calculations behind this, I promise!). So, your video doesn’t need to be like the director’s cut of titanic, it should be the opposite in fact. Short! In 2016, Wistia carried out a study and found that video engagement is steady up to 2 minutes. They also found that a 90-second video will hold a viewer’s attention as much as a 30-second video (so don’t lose sleep if your video is over the minute mark), but will drop off significantly after the two minute mark. So, aim for that 60-90 second sweet spot!
However, it must be noted that the length of an effective video should be directly related to the point in the sales funnel to which it relates. In English? If your target audience is further along in their customer journey and closer to the point of purchase, they are more likely to spend longer watching your video. In fact, it is a perfect opportunity to tailor your messaging, video content and budget to each of your personas and sales cycle.
This is especially useful if you are running account based marketing (ABM) programmes. ABM is a laser targeted marketing strategy which speaks directly to a very targeted audience and provides exact solutions to specific pain points. A marketing strategy with which you may not always associate video. However, using tactics such as intent data, you could identify key decision makers at companies who are in market for products like yours and put a highly targeted, personalised video in front of them. in fact, 90% of customers say that video helps make buying decisions, so this to me sounds like a match made in heaven!
I could go on and on about this subject…in fact, it would probably take me 1.8 million words just to scratch the surface (I should have done a video!). So, I will summarise:
- Video is only going to get bigger, so get on board!
- It doesn’t have to cost the world, so utilise the free or low cost tools available.
- Target your video wherever possible and if you have the budget then even go as far as personalising it.
- Video can be used right across the marketing spectrum and will have a higher likelihood of engaging and even converting potential buyers.
- I still can’t fold my t-shirts like that lovely Japanese lady.
Right, I’d better block out my diary for the next 4,166,667 days as I have some serious cat videos to watch.
To chat about using video in your marketing or running ABM programmes, please get in touch on 01234 964000 or letschat@sherpamarketing.co.uk…I promise to pause ninja cat whilst we talk!
Infographic images courtesy of depositphotos.
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