4 Practical Reasons Why to Use Video Marketing, For Any Business

Every business seeks to attract customers, engage them, and subsequently convert them to returning buyers. This is regardless of whether the business is brick-and-mortar, strictly online, or a combination of the two. The bottom-line is to have customers that will patronize the business and buy products and services.

For online businesses, an effective way that brands go about this is through the content. After all, it is often said that “content is king”. In delivering the unique, high-quality content that will move internet users from mere visitors to customers and promoters, online video marketing has clearly taken the lead.

A good example of good video marketing are the videos that you can find on Newegg’s YouTube channel about their various Newegg offers in the form of gadgets (laptops, gaming PCs and the like). Not only do they offer actually useful content to their customers, but they advertise their products through the same medium.

Video marketing has proven to be arguably the most effective content marketing strategy for businesses and brands in engaging and converting customers. It is commanding more and more investments from marketers and continues to deliver the goods.

Here are some of the numbers that demonstrate this fact (source Infographic: ‘Brands Using Video Marketing'):

• The click-through rate (CTR) of video ads is almost 20 times higher than HTML banners
• In 2016 alone, 96% of marketers invested in video marketing
• Using videos in social marketing increases sharing by 10 times
• In the US, 70% of advertising agencies reckon that video ads are more effective than TV or other types of marketing
• Personalized videos increase email conversions by 50%
• One-third of retailers increased conversions by more than 90% with the use of videos

From the highlighted facts, it is evident that videos have taken the forefront of marketing efforts. Here are four important breakdowns why you should shift your attention towards video content:

1. Videos enable you to track your results

With traditional content, it can be quite difficult to measure specific metrics of how much of your content your consumers are exposed to. For example, it may be challenging to know for sure how many people have read your post(s), what parts or paragraphs people find most interesting, or whether they read again any parts.

With video content, however, you can keep track of consumer activity on your content better. You can know when they stopped watching if they had partial or full views of the video, and how often the video led to a conversion.

Also, the video offers more opportunities to track individual results, much more than text results. This content analysis is further enabled by software and apps such as Google Analytics, Smaply, Gliffy, etc.

2. Mobile Tech loves video

The rate at which technological advancements are made is quite breathtaking. With constantly evolving tech, video content continues to be optimal and in demand for marketing.

Take the mobile tech industry, for instance. Videos are optimized for mobile devices, making it more accessible to consumers. A stat that shows this is YouTube – 70% of YouTube viewers use mobile phones. Since mobile phones go everywhere the consumers go, it means that you have the unique opportunity to create customized and engaging videos that will reach your consumers right where they are.

Irrespective of the avenue through which they watch the video (social media, emails, your website etc.), you can command their attention just at the click of the “play” button. Even when they do not press the “play” button, the “autoplay” feature can kick in and the content is still delivered nonetheless.

3. Videos offer effortless engagement

When presented with the choice of either reading about a thing or watching a video about it, videos will be the preferred option. With them, you save your customers the trouble of extensive reading and browsing through endless online catalogs. Even the most dismissive and uninterested buyers and consumers are not immune to the power of videos.

Furthermore, as they watch videos they can engage, share, and make comments on the video. Promotional video and educational video content then basically presents the possibility of eliminating the demand for reading, while also presenting the user with all required information to make a decision and convert. It is worthy of mention that a video should include a call to action to achieve the desired engagement or conversion.

This may be a request for a follow on your social media account or a visit to your website. You lead them where you want them to go.

4. Videos work for every occasion

Online video marketing is a versatile form of content marketing. Any kind of content that you want to push out can be done through video. If you have a new product, you can put up a demonstration video or video tutorial on how the product can be used, and even why it should be used. If there’s a trending topic related to your product(s), you can push out video content about your products that can either affirm stories or debunk rumors.

There are near endless options and variations on video content and the ability for a brand to make use of the medium. If you've got a great idea or experience your business has been able to utilize, please share below in the comments!