Creating and purchasing online video ads is becoming increasingly easier. It encourages marketers to continue allocating a bigger budget for digital video, to the detriment of TV and other standard formats. Last year almost twice as much money was spent on video ads than on TV ads — around $135 billion and $71 billion respectively according to Magisto.
If you still haven’t used a video format in ads, now is the time to start. Online video works for every occasion, with many online platforms integrating this format.
Here’s an overview of the main reasons to actively start using video in your brand’s marketing:
1. The internet has slowly turned into a video-first kind of environment. The number of online videos is actively growing, and according to experts online, it’s time to classify it as a video-first world. Users and content creators focus more on the video format, and consumers expect this type of content from brands.
This video from an online magazine Platforma has been praised by users. It’s a simple guide to non-touristy locations in Kiev. Due to the creativity involved, it’s become a valuable piece of content that you actually want to share.
2. Everyone watches videos. Today it’s the fastest way to reach consumers, as more than half of all Internet users watch videos online everyday (MWP Digital Media). Even the simplest video in Facebook’s feed is capable of drawing more attention than an article on a popular media platform. This of course is owed to a format that’s more engaging, convenient to process and is on autoplay. That’s how the video about a caring ferret mom on The Dodo’ Facebook page was viewed by 4.2 million people in just a few days, gathered 179 thousand likes and got more than 59 thousand reposts.
3. Video is nudging other formats aside. According to several sources (Insivia, MWP Digital Media), three quarters of all internet traffic in the world comes from video. According to predictions, this number will only continue to grow, which is precisely why the use of video in marketing is an inevitable move for all advertisers.
4. Users trust video messages — a call to action at the end of an informative video on a brand’s site guarantees a 380% increase in clicks, compared to a CTA at the sidebar on a site from the same company (QuickSprout). I can assume that users have long grown accustomed to ignoring banners on the sides of web pages, but a message from a watched and obviously interesting video is perceived differently.
5. The target audience prefers video. 85% of Wyzowl’s respondents said that they would like to see more videos from brands in 2018. Yes, it’s hard to believe that users want to watch more ads, but inventive commercials can be so fascinating that users don’t regret having watched an ad in the end. A well made video ad isn’t even perceived as an ad format in that case.
For example, this video from Palmolive shares a tasty meat lasagna bombs recipe and in an unexpected twist — the video continues to show the cook washing the dishes with, you guessed it, Palmolive Dish Liquid:
6. Videos often become viral. “A short video, a simple infographic or a concise article are the most likely targets for something that goes viral”, writes Brian Horn in his marketing blog.
Why do some videos get 668 views while others a 100 thousand? Here’s an example of a viral video by Toshiba that garnered over 392 thousand views. Looks like all you need is to not take yourself too seriously and you might just attract even more likes!
To use videos in marketing, you don’t need to organize a whole production. You can take a video of adorable animals and post it as a meme, making a reference to a situation people can relate to. Adorable video + the right occasion = engagement. Don’t believe us? Check out The Dodo page where cute animal videos rarely get less than a million views.
7. Also, your video can help potential clients finally decide to purchase a product they’re interested in. Animoto’s last year report revealed that 64% of users make a purchase after watching a branded video on social media. Video reviews and tutorials are particularly popular. Even Rihanna promoted her Fenty makeup line in a fun tutorial video, which, by the way, got over 14 million views!
8. Using video in your brand’s marketing is easy and cheap. You can use Giphy to create GIFs, Crello to create animated ads for social media based on professionally designed templates, and Animoto which we’ve mentioned for video covers, creating little videos based on sample storyboards.
This simple stop motion animation showcasing a burger from McDonald’s became one of the most popular videos on the brand’s Facebook page, gathering more than 50 thousand views.
9. Simply mentioning the word video peaks your audience’s interest. Based on Syndacast research, the use of the word “video” in an email subject line increases the open rate of your emails by 19%. That’s 6 pairs of eyes on your content instead of every 5. If around 100 subscribers usually open your newsletters, mentioning video will get you 200 190 more.
10. When faced with a choice between a breezy video and a wall of informative text, users will choose text! Just kidding. 59% of managers note that when choosing between video and text on the same topic, they likely will prefer video, as stated by the aforementioned cover by MWP Digital Media.
In light of the facts and recent events, seeing as the rise of video is dominating the online schene, we have somthing that will help you add some dynamics to your projects with this format:
