From snappy reels to informative podcasts, there’s no doubt that the use of video both B2B and B2C marketing has evolved over the years. In a post-pandemic world, video content, across a variety of platforms, has been shown to have a lasting impact on company success, with 81% of CMOs claiming that video marketing has helped them directly increase sales. Discover why now is the time to consider implementing short-form video content into your business’ marketing strategy, and what this entails for static imagery as we know it.
The Consumption of Video Content is Changing
The use of video in brand marketing has been on the rise in recent years and, having been catalysed by the recent COVID-19 pandemic, video content creation is now more popular than ever. In 2020, there were over 3 billion internet users consuming video content, which is projected to increase annually, reaching a staggering 3.5 billion by 2023.
Courtesy of HubSpot
So, why has the consumption of video content accelerated over recent years? With video content readily available and multi-purposed across major social networks and online platforms, consumers have learnt to rely on marketing videos from brands to further their product knowledge and discover additional information pre-purchase. Video gives consumers further insight into real-world product usage and is likely to offer more information than that of a text-based description.
Video is also popular for its ability to help you laugh and unwind. Emphasis was placed upon this during the pandemic where people would seek interaction and escapism. Whilst marketers should use humour wisely and appropriately in their video content, it can be used as a tactic to help you to make your content unique and stand out from the competition. In fact, one survey showed that 72% of people would choose a humorous brand over the competition as post-pandemic, consumers are longing for experiences that make them smile and prefer brands they can both relate to and feel are more ‘human’.
The Rise in Demand for Short-Form Video Content
Following the popularity of platforms such as TikTok, the demand for short-form video content has increased dramatically in recent months. Videos that are 90 seconds or less have a 50% retention rate, compared to a 10% completion rate for videos over 30 minutes. Therefore, when it comes to retention span and consumers watching your videos, less is more. The rise in demand for short-form video is only on the up, so it is key for marketers to evolve in line with their audience.
Courtesy of HubSpot
Examples of Short-Form Video Content for Business
Whilst similar in length, short-form video content can vary significantly, with different content resonating with different audiences. Some examples include:
- Teasers , great for building anticipation and building up the curiosity of your audience. Not everything can be properly relayed in short-form videos, so this is an effective way of giving the audience a preview of an upcoming product, service, or event without revealing all the information.
- Behind the scenes videos offer viewers a look at what goes on in the background and can help build up that all-important rapport with your customers. This can be anything from manufacturing or factory tours, behind the scenes at photoshoot to team days and events.
- Explainer videos are a great way of conveying more complex messages in an easy-to-understand way. Content that educates and solves the problems of your consumers can increase brand loyalty and trust, whilst supplying them with the knowledge they need to make an informed decision. These could include videos explaining why a consumer needs to use your service or product explainer videos.
How Algorithms Have Adapted to This Trend
There are a number of ways to present your short-form videos, but it is important to consider the platforms which will prioritise your content, and where you are most likely to be seen by your audience.
Social media channels are continuously changing their algorithms in line with current trends, but each channel has adapted differently and introduced different solutions in response to the increasing demand for short-form video.
Recent algorithm changes have seen video prioritised across our Instagram feeds, helping small and large-scale businesses to expand their reach and feature on the Explore page. Offering up to 90 seconds of video, Instagram Reels are an easy way to create and discover short and entertaining content and for businesses to be discovered by consumers with likeminded interests. Reels are featured on the Explore page twice as much as regular content, and recently, Instagram have been shown to de-prioritise static imagery, making them a strong field for organic growth.
TikTok
The home of short videos, TikTok is renowned for its video length limit of just 10 minutes, with the optimal recommended video length a mere 21-34 seconds. Unlike other platforms, TikTok uses a unique discovery platform that gives every video an equal chance of going viral, meaning that businesses have an opportunity to increase brand awareness, without the need for high numbers of followers. Businesses can create a wide range of video content for consumers to engage in on TikTok, from behind the scenes, teaser videos, challenges or product/service explainers.
YouTube
In response to the demand for short-form video, YouTube recently introduced ‘Shorts’, which are capped at 60 seconds, allowing creators or businesses with YouTube channels to create quick videos that resonate with their audience on a personal level. These could include product explainers, how to’s or behind the scenes videos.
As a B2B platform for professionals to connect, video content is increasingly more important in helping to boost your professional and personal brand and is considered highly in LinkedIn’s algorithm. Whilst LinkedIn native videos allow for 15 minutes of content when uploading from desktop, the platform recommends keeping your content under 30 seconds when looking to boost brand awareness and consideration. Examples of good videos for LinkedIn are Q&As, interview-based videos or explainer videos.
Where Does This Leave Static Imagery?
As the consumption of video content increases, is there still a place for static imagery? Whilst major social media channels are continuing to prioritise video content and push this within their algorithms, there is still a clear use for static imagery within both B2C and B2B companies. With that being said, imagery should always be carefully considered and planned into your digital marketing strategy to compliment any short-form video content.
A/B testing is recommended to ensure you know what content works for your specific context, and to understand which formats your audience responds to best. Testing should be continued over time to align with trends and natural changes in attitudes from your audience.
What Does this Mean for Your Digital Marketing Strategy?
As emphasis continues to be placed on video content and audiences are engaging with this type of content more, platforms are using this evolution to prioritise video. This means that video should be an important consideration within your digital marketing strategy, whether B2B or B2C, in order to expand your reach and grow as a business. There are extensive benefits that come with diversifying your strategy and incorporating short-form video content into your digital marketing mix, including:
- Short-form video isn’t just limited to social media usage. Embedding video into your email marketing campaigns can help to increase open rates. Statistics also show that attaching a video in an email can lead to a 200-300% increase in click through rate.
- Video can also have a positive effect on both SEO and engagement on your website, not to mention conversion rate. By improving the quality of your website, you can also improve ranking for keywords and so get your site delivered higher in SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages). Search Engines also pay close attention to how long visitors spend on your website, and video will more consistently keep people on your page for longer periods of time, helping you to improve position, visibility and share of voice.
- When carefully strategised, video marketing is likely to provide a good return on investment for your company in the long run, as users continue to demand and consume video content and search engines leverage that trend to deliver the content their users are looking for.
5 Tips for a Successful Short-Form Video
Now is the time to begin the planning and implementation of short-form video content into your brand strategy. Here are our five top tips for creating a successful short-form video:
1 - Grab Attention
Most users only take a few seconds to decide whether to keep watching a video or to skip it. This means you need your video to stand out with a bold and catchy thumbnail. Once their attention is captured, make every second count since 65% of viewers who make it past the first 3 seconds will keep watching until the 10-second mark .
2 – Keep It Short & Sweet
You normally have 60 seconds or fewer for short-form video, depending on the platform – offering marketers even less time to hold the audience's interest. The ideal period to capture your audience's attention is between 15 and 30 seconds, with consumer attention span getting shorter over time.
3 - Create A Version For Each Platform
The reach of your video will expand if you can post the content across several social media sites, indicating that you have optimised your content for mobile, which improves the viewing and interaction experience for users.
4 - Repurpose Content
Repurposing content is one of the easiest ways to generate new short-form videos, without creating them from scratch. Maybe you have a suite of long-form videos already made waiting to be cut down into short videos and optimised for social media.
This is a great way to extend lifetime value of long-form videos and ensure the audience gets as much value as possible from the video content.
5 - Use A Powerful Headline & Caption
Make sure your video's title and caption are catchy (and click-worthy) before publishing it. This will draw viewers in and give them a sneak peek of what to anticipate. Knowing your target audience's demographic and what draws them in will help you elicit a powerful emotional response.
Engage with a Wider Audience by Incorporating Video into Your Digital Marketing Strategy
With ample potential and benefits to your brand, incorporating video into your full digital marketing strategy is pivotal for continued business success and growth over time. We understand that being heard above the digital noise online is challenging – but we can help. Get in touch with Innovation Visual and explore our diverse range of video services and how you can leverage them for your business.
