We are constantly bombarded with text and images. This information overload can become fatiguing; scrolling through as the feed becomes a blur. While the advertising spattered throughout the feed may be taken in subliminally, in the age of information, they will most likely become lost amongst the rest. This is where the power of video comes in. It was predicted by this year, 2020, that online videos will make up more than 80% of all consumer internet traffic and scrolling through your newsfeed, whether it be on Facebook or Instagram on any given day, that statistic is not hard to fathom. Videos break up that news feed, the minute you stop to watch one, you find the next one playing automatically. We have been there; one minute we are watching a video about the topic we were interested in, then two hours later we are somewhere completely different watching videos of cats getting up to mischief. That is the power of video, it keeps us engaged, it satisfies the senses audibly and visually while engaging the brain. If you are looking to increase brand awareness, advertise a product or just want to get more engagement with your company on social media, then seriously consider adding video into your next marketing campaign.
What are the statistics?
Videos find their way into our attention daily but just how effective is video advertising? According to research done by HubSpot, marketers state that video is the type of content that has the best return of investment (ROI) and social media posts with video have 48% more views. They also state that 72% of customers and consumers prefer to learn about a service or product through video. That is just the beginning. Marketing Land research shows that 62% of people said they became more interested in a product after seeing it on a Facebook story and Adweek reports that up to 75 million people visit Facebook’s video platform every day. Even LinkedIn is jumping on the bandwagon, with video campaigns on the site having a 50% view rate. Not only are videos on social media platforms viewed more by consumers, engagement with the content is also increased. G2 Crowd reports that videos on social media have 1200% more shares than content made up of text or image, combined. What we can take from these statistics is pretty clear; that posting a video about your brand or product, you have an increased chance of getting not only noticed but reaching and engaging with potential customers.
What is it about video?
As we mentioned up the top, video can encapsulate more senses than just text or images. Combining audio and visual, it keeps the brain more engaged. In a world where YouTube is the second most visited site after the worlds encyclopedia Google and that six out of ten people would rather watch online videos than television; this is hardly surprising. Videos allow advertisers to not just promote the product, but they can show how it used and this is a great way for consumers to be able to project and imagine themselves practically applying that products usage, which engages with their reality. Viewers state, according to Insivia, that they can retain 95% of a message that they watch in a video, which when compared to the 10% that they can retain from reading text, it shows just how powerful of a medium social video can be. Having people not only watch, engage but also remember your product and/or brand is powerful advertising. The next time they need a product or service, if you are in their memory before they even jump on Google to search for a recommendation, your business will be at the forefront of their mind- and that is the power of using video to advertise on social media platforms.