Online marketing trends change with every new delivery method and channel. Each year brings new technology, new opportunities, and new social channels to catch user fancy. The big winners in the battle for buyer attention might be early adopters throwing resources into promising new technology that proves successful, or businesses who stick with a particular channel to build a huge following.
Video marketing is certainly not new, but the market is changing, and video has emerged as a clear winner.
Video Marketing Trends
YouTube already dominates the field, with a billion users watching hundreds of millions of hours every day. To sweeten the marketing appeal, YouTube reaches more 18-49 year-old viewers than any of the cable networks.
While YouTube traffic expanded more than 40 percent since last year, video viewing options also opened up. Facebook now offers embedded videos and in-line livestreaming, and services like Periscope and Facebook are starting to attract the bravest of no-do-over video pioneers marketing in real time.
Video Ads in Search Results
Another clear indicator of just how popular video marketing has become is the inevitable launch of in-SERP video ads. Google and Bing are both testing video incorporation into rich search results.
The new True View for Shopping, a product that allows users to order products from inside a demo video, has already yielded impressive results. Sephora and Wayfair test cases report increased viewing time, revenue and ad recall.
With big retailers and eager viewers already on board and social media and SERPs ramping up viewer opportunities, video marketing is set to explode like never before.
Why Video Marketing is Effective
Content marketing and social media changed the marketing game in a major way. Brand storytelling took center stage, propelled by the advantages of humanizing and allowing businesses to connect in a more meaningful way with their customer base.
For small businesses, video is an inexpensive way to level the playing field. Here, big businesses and slick, expensive advertising spots don’t always have the advantage. Smaller companies can stand out in several ways:
- Answering customer FAQs
- Showcasing products in action
- Asking for user-generated contributions featuring real-life customers
- Introducing staff and showing an intimate look around operations
- Demonstrating product use
- Featuring video testimonials
Thousands of small YouTube businesses have built audience and credibility with simple, straightforward advertising, and case studies show that video has a big impact on sales, especially for small businesses and cottage industry. More than half of marketers responding to the 2014 Video Statistics study by Invodo said that video offers a higher ROI than any other type of content.
New Technologies in Your Future
Every aspect of marketing in the last few years has moved toward personalization, targeting and interactive content. New video technology takes the concept to a new level, with engaging videos that move from viewing into response. Data collection forms, surveys, polls and choose-your-adventure videos will become more common.
You’ve seen these formats in Hulu big business advertising for years, but not in heavy use elsewhere. That’s bound to change as new video production programs make fancy interaction cheap and available for any user.
Approximately 96 percent of B2B advertisers are already using videos, but smaller B2C businesses may have been slower to adopt due to production costs or simple reluctance to waste marketing dollars on a technology they may not feel is effective.
Now that you know which way the 2017 marketing winds are blowing, are you ready to jump on board with video marketing?
Video Marketing Photo via Shutterstock
This article, “Why Video Has Become THE Hottest Digital Marketing Trend” was first published on Small Business Trends