Your content is compelling. Your writing skills are top-notch. You recently added a superb graphic designer to your marketing team, and your millennial staff is beyond fluent in social media. With LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts, you feel that your startup far exceeds the competition in terms of modernization. I have news for you: unless your team uses consistent video tactics on these platforms, the Dark Ages wants their marketing team back.
In fact, one Forbes article claims that by 2019, “video is projected to claim more than 80 percent of all web traffic.”
Blogging, whitepapers and articles are only useful when supplemented with modern, digital marketing tools that deliver information instantly.
Why is it that consumers are more drawn to video than various other marketing techniques? What makes it so attractive in both the B2B and B2C scenario, and how can your startup take advantage? Let’s take a look:
Lack of patience
According to an article by AdWeek, the average human attention span is now “shorter than that of a goldfish.” As you can imagine, this is not a prime condition for scanning large paragraphs or listening to long sales pitches!
In order to sell to the increasingly hurried, stressed, impatient consumer, marketing teams must quickly captivate and retain attention with movement and entertainment.
Related: 5 Video Marketing Trends Every Small Business Should Try
Building trust
Upon skimming large paragraphs for information, it is highly unlikely that a consumer will feel any sort of connection to the seller. Without a human face to attribute the words to, the article quickly goes in one ear (in this case, eye) and out the other. With videos, however, the brand becomes more personal and likeable. Personality, values and human relations can be portrayed through video much more efficiently than copy.
Millennials
Let me be frank. Good luck selling to a millennial without a video; they thrive on modern technology and visualization! It is highly unlikely that you will find this generation scrolling through long, technical copy, let alone making high-stakes decisions based on such forms of content. Don’t date yourself and your brand; be current and up-to-date.
“But I don’t know where to begin,” you might say. “What types of videos should we create?” Here are a few tips for finally entering the twenty-first century:
Consistency
When creating and posting videos for consumer purposes, there should always be a constant flow of content. Rather than posting four videos in one day and then waiting two weeks to post another, schedule them so that they are equally spaced and steady in nature. On the other hand, ensure that all videos are top quality. Rather than posting a poor video just to disseminate content on time, be certain that nothing reaches social media unless it is your best work.
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Native video content
As a general rule, native videos result in higher view counts than shared videos. Rather than sitting behind a desk and sharing everything that comes through Facebook, focus on creating original, relevant content that your organization can market as its own, and tailor content for each specific social channel. Each platform is used differently, by different demographics, and with different trends than the next. The goal should be to receive shares on your videos, so make sure you’re optimizing each video for each social platform!
Perhaps you’re still a bit intimidated by the prospect of creating and circulating video content. Perhaps you’re thinking to yourself, “The good old-fashioned way is fine for me,” or, “We just don’t have the resources for something like that.”
Let me break it down even further for you: in order for your organization to thrive, video content is no longer an option. Whether you fancy the idea, whether it causes you to shift uncomfortably in your seat, or whether you currently have a team ready to embark on such a journey, this is the reality that we all must face together. That is the nature of marketing: it always grows and evolves.
Naturally, so must we.
