Are you a brand marketer trying to incorporate video into your strategy? Or maybe you already have a video marketing strategy but you can’t quite figure out how to produce the results you are looking for? No matter the reason, we have compiled the top five most commonly asked questions about video marketing to help take your video marketing efforts Beyond The ViewTM.
Is video worth it?
The short answer … YES! Online video is the easiest way to attract new people, explain what your business does and how it can help them. If done properly, your video can maximize a marketing budget and bring ROI for years to come. Video is also a great way for you to rank in search engine results. YouTube is arguably the second largest search engine and the third most visited site on the Web, according to Alexa and SimilarWeb. And if you need numbers to convince you, here they are:
- 70% of marketing professionals report that video converts better than any other medium. (VidYard)
- 52% of consumers who watch product videos say those videos make them more confident about purchases (Invodo)
- Only 24% of brands are using online video to market to consumers! (Kantar Media) That is an incredibly small number. Perfect time to join in!
How long should my video be?
That depends! Over the last two years, the web has exploded with new video hosting platforms that all tout different things. The success of Vine and Instagram has showcased the value of short-form, creative content with audiences enjoying six second and 15-second videos, respectively. On Twitter, users consume and share videos as short as six seconds and as long as 10 minutes. When it comes to YouTube, there is no limit to the length, but in the age of the ‘Skip Ad’ button, the first five seconds of your video is the most important hook you have. All that said, the strong and steady movement away from the 30-second television spot has given video marketers the freedom to create content for the open web. It has never been a more exciting time to be a content creator! We are finally seeing marketers abandon the boring, product-centric messaging of traditional TV and instead produce authentic, compelling content that establishes an emotional connection with their audiences. At Virool, we like to call this advertainment. In the end, ideal length will depend on where the content is being consumed and your focus should be less on video length and more on telling stories that drive emotional resonance with your target audience.
What is a view?
This is the question of the hour, day, year! Simply put, a view is when someone watches your video. It seems so simple, yet it is one of the hottest debates in the world of online video marketing. Why? Because each platform, YouTube, Facebook, Vine, Twitter, Instagram, the IAB etc., has set their own definition of what constitutes a view. These definitions range from three seconds to 30 seconds, and unfortunately, there isn’t a clear way of quantifying the value of a view. That is why understanding that 50MM views on Facebook does not equal 50MM views on YouTube, is imperative. The view is just one of many metrics that you should care about when evaluating the success of your campaign. A high view count doesn’t hold much value if it doesn’t achieve the purpose of the campaign. Instead of being so concerned with the view count, you should be focusing on the engagement. How shareable is your content? Is it compelling enough that viewers will feel the need to engage with it by liking, sharing, and/or commenting on the video?
So, should I be buying views?
Yes, engagement only happens once someone views the video. Without proper promotion, even great content can go unseen. But we also suggest to think Beyond The ViewTM and focus on driving engagement on your video — likes, shares, comments, posts, interaction – to further fuel the virality of a video. When promoting your video using a service like Virool, your video gets placed in front of the right people at the right time when they are most likely to watch and engage with your video. For example, if you want to promote your surfing video, we can place it on related sporting verticals where your video will be contextually relevant to what the viewer is already consuming, giving them a reason to watch and interact with the video. With one-click social sharing buttons layered on top of the video, we also give them an easy way to engage with the content, exponentially extending the organic reach of your video. Video promotion is your investment in your video but keep in mind that it is a reciprocal process—what you put in is what you get out. You will not get the same result by spending $150 that you would get from spending $150,000; however, $1,000 may not increase the production value much while $1,000 worth of video promotion could be just enough to make your video go viral.
How can I measure the success of my video?
A successful video campaign will drive meaningful results that matter most to you. We know that video performance is tied to more than a view count. Since view count is just one piece of the puzzle, we recommend staying focused on the purpose of the video and measuring success based on performance (views, minutes watched, video completion rate) and engagement (shares, likes, comments, clickthroughs to site). If you can tie a specific call to action (CTA) to each video, you can measure the performance of the CTA. For example, if the purpose of the video is to increase downloads, there should be a clear CTA asking the viewer to share the video. To make that even easier, Virool allows for the design of a custom banner with your CTA to be overlaid on top of your video. Tracking viewers actions is much more meaningful and informative than simply counting views.
In summary, yes, video is important to a marketing strategy and while views are not the ideal metric off of which to base success, views are needed to prompt engagement. Above all else, you need great content – advertainment – that inspires viewers to take a desired action.
Have any other questions about your video marketing strategy? Leave them in the comment box or get in touch! We’re here to help.
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