Today’s internet is a video-first experience: 72% of people prefer video to text when it comes to content consumption. Even on corporate websites, video reigns supreme. According to Forbes, websites with video content hold their visitors’ interest 88% longer, and overall, viewers retain more than 90% of a video’s message. For text, it’s only a 10% retention rate.
So what’s ahead for video marketing as we head into the end of 2019 and prepare to move into 2020?
Interactive Video
Possibly the most exciting new development in video marketing is interactivity. Games are the ones currently making waves with this feature – potential customers are given the chance to actually play the game exactly as they would in the app itself. But this functionality can also be used for many other apps as a way to give potential users a chance to actively experience how the app works.
There’s another way you can make use of this technology, even if your app doesn’t seem to fit the bill, and that’s by creating a “choose your own adventure” style video, where you include several “stopping points” with hotspots – clickable links that jump to a different video or a different section of the same video – that create different paths your customer can take so that they are in control and can choose the content they see. Even something as simple as using short quizzes to create a more engaging experience for your customer and lead them to the right content can turn a video into something even more memorable and enjoyable.
The inability for a potential customer to experience/test an online product has been a major downside to purchasing virtual goods. With interactivity, that downside is effectively eliminated. Expect to see more companies making use of interactivity in their video marketing in the coming year.
Increased Personalization
Personalization in the form of marketing and video targeted towards specific audiences has already come a long way. Expect this to continue with even further personalization by age, ethnicity, even down to a completely customized video for an individual customer. AT&T has already made use of this concept by sending personalized video bills, but given how easy it is these days to gather personal information about a potential customer, this trend of ever more personalized video will continue as we move into 2020. Personalization doesn’t have to be difficult, either; it’s easy to edit and add a simple personalized message into an already-existing video as a follow-up to an inquiry or as a thank-you after a customer purchase.
Multiple Videos
A single demo or explainer video is no longer sufficient as a means of reaching your audience. The successful marketing campaign will have multiple videos targeted not just at customer demographics, but also customized for each individual social media platform. Marketers will also have to take a platform’s demographics into account as well when designing their campaign; Facebook’s primary users are now older, while Snapchat and Instagram are younger. Videos geared for the more casual social media sites won’t suffice on more professional platforms such as LinkedIn.
Multiple videos can also work well as an engagement tool for customers all throughout the customer journey – from enticement to visit a landing page, to a product explainer video or webinar, through the initial sale, and then on into customer service and support, with video tutorials in place of a text-only instruction manual and FAQs.
Deploying a variety of videos on multiple platforms and at multiple points during the sales funnel will be part of future successful marketing strategies, and there are many types you can consider adding to your arsenal:
- Explainer: an explainer video is the most basic, first video in any marketing plan. Its use is early in the sales funnel, and is generally kept short (under 2 minutes) and is intended to introduce your product or service and create an interest to learn more.
- Demo: the demo video is used further along in the funnel, when you want to give potential customers more information about your product or service and how it functions
- Advertising: commercials have been in existence for decades, and they still have a place in a company’s marketing strategy
- Customer Testimonials: these can also fall under the “stories” category. Testimonials are a great way to help viewers trust you and your product.
- Tutorials, Training, and FAQs: videos offering answers to frequently-asked questions, along with training and tutorials on how to best use your product or service, are a great way to provide interesting content for your customers and get away from potentially-boring text on a screen.
- Stories: telling a story through video is a great way to have an impact on your viewers
- Live Streaming: thanks to the numerous social media platforms that have created easy ways to stream live video, talking live with your viewers has become quite popular.
Live Video Streaming
Streaming live is increasing in popularity across all platforms, and there is research indicating that live video does encourage more viewer engagement with your business and brand.
Top-quality live video is expensive and potentially beyond the budget of many smaller businesses, but you don’t need a lot of money to create live video that will appeal to your customers. In truth, a low-production-value video can give an impression of authenticity and approachability, as long as you take the time to actively respond to and engage with your viewers.
In the end, our best advice is to take the time to consider whether or not live video will be a benefit or a detriment for your business; if you aren’t sure it will add significant value, or you don’t have the time to do it well, then using professional pre-produced video is your best bet. If you do decide to live stream, be sure you record it so that you can then use it to create an edited version that you can post on your website or YouTube.
Storytelling Through Video
Using video to tell the story of a product or service – demonstrating its features and showcasing what it can do – is nothing new. But expect storytelling to go a step further. Now, we’re seeing videos that tell a different kind of story. Creating a video that tells the story of your company or introduces your staff, is a way to make viewers feel connected to you and your company. On the other side of things, using video to tell the story of a customer and how they use your product or service is also increasing in popularity across all platforms.
Virtual Reality
Virtual Reality technology is still quite new, and is untested for a lot of industries, but already it’s showing itself to be a promising technology that will undoubtedly become a big trend in the coming years – especially as wearable AR/VR tech becomes more popular. Imagine being able to create a virtual environment to showcase your product or app in real-time with the use of VR. We’re not quite there yet in terms of the technology, but it’s possible that by the end of 2020, we could see more uses of VR in video marketing.
Conclusion
Using video as part of your marketing strategy will have a positive impact, as long as you take the time to create a plan designed to use it properly. If you’re ready to start your video journey, please get in touch. We’d love to work with you and help you develop your video marketing plan.