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Video marketing has been on the rise over the past few years. Business organizations are adopting powerful video campaign to popularize their brands. Videos with quality and appealing content draw the attention of visitors. The more creative the video is more the audience like to view it.

Video marketing is an essential part of social media marketing. Video marketing includes posting videos on video hosting sites such as YouTube and micro –video platforms such as Instagram and Vine. YouTube is one of the most demanding platforms to watch videos, since individuals spend hours watching videos on this platform. In business, YouTube is an excellent medium to post videos relating to products and services and increase customers reach.

Here are few ways to make video marketing effective on YouTube:

• Great content: The first step to make your video appealing is to have quality content. The content should be informative, useful, and valuable. It should deliver the message. While creating quality content, your video should not be so complicated that audiences may find it difficult to decipher the message. The video should be engaging and easily understandable to viewers.
• Engage with the audience: If you are simply posting videos on YouTube and not making an effort to interact with audience then you are missing a lot. You should encourage comments, discussions, and should respond to comments you receive. Also, YouTube rewards channels with high engagement, including overall time spent on the channel, watch time, likes and dislikes. Hence, it is necessary to interact with audience to increase conversion rate.
• Increase brand awareness: Apart from developing creative content it is necessary to make your channel look visually appealing. Branding your channel and writing an interesting bio about your channel makes your channel look professional.
• Promote your YouTube videos on social media platforms: Promoting your YouTube videos on other channels is an important way to increase visibility. Posting videos on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest increases engagement.You should also pay attention to the time frame of the videos. Popular videos on YouTube intended for marketing typically last less than 5 minutes.
• Post appropriate thumbnails: Thumbnails have a big impact on click rate especially when they are appealing and have catchy title.

With the growing market competition it is necessary to be unique in your approach to drive customers to your brand. To be successful in video marketing you need to be true to yourself and communicate with your audience in innovative ways.

It is a known fact that video marketing has changed the face of content marketing. Thanks to its viral nature and ease of access, video marketing stands out as a smart way to entice the audience, build brand value, and boost business. Despite the innumerable benefits, many marketers are still reluctant to try their hand at utilizing this channel. They are misguided by various myths surrounding the concept and fail to add it to their marketing strategy.

So, here we’ve listed some myths associated with video marketing that you should dispel to realize the full potential of this amazing marketing channel -    

Video marketing is expensive

When it comes to making a video for their brand, most marketers imagine a fully equipped movie set, with lights, cameras, and all the vital accessories. But that is not how it is. The basic idea behind a marketing video is to harness the sentimental value of the video to deliver a message that really stands out. And this can be done in a number of ways.

Nowadays, creating a video is a lot easier than it used to be. Your smartphone can do the trick as long as your content is genuine. Audiences give priority to authenticity rather than quality. So, don't stress about having a limited budget if you have something valuable to convey.

Tracking ROI on videos is difficult

It is difficult to track ROI on videos unless you’re using the right tool. Most marketers fail to measure a video’s impact as they are limited by the tools they use. What they need to do instead is measure their videos just like they measure their website.

There are various video enablement platforms that provide a full picture of how well the video is doing, similar to the information that analytics tools provide for a website. Videos have features that make them extremely trackable, provided you use the right platform.

Understanding when and where to use video is challenging

Video marketing without a clear plan can be challenging, which is why you need to develop a video marketing strategy. Videos have numerous applications which can be realized as soon as you accept the fact that they can be created in-house and within a defined budget.

Once you’re all geared up to enter the field of video marketing, put down your strategy in writing, and discuss and get approval from company stakeholders. Define your goals and set clear guideline for everyone involved to make the entire process a piece of cake.

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Down ‘n’ dirty or überposh, there’s a place for all quality of video marketing in the world today.

Recently we noted marketers’ growing acumen at not only parsing available social data, but also using the social media environment to probe the social community and glean consumer preferences and other social insights.  

We said, “Filling the role of the modern-day focus group, social media insights are also valuable for taking the temperature of the public on an idea such as a logo or slogan, a product or service. Testing the social media world’s tastes and perceptions allows for adjustment before launching, saving money and perhaps even preventing a catastrophic mistake.”

A recent experiment co-sponsored by Google and L’Oreal was one such probe that asked “whether storytelling changes for different age groups?” Results provided interesting insights into the minds of the under-45 crowd and how they respond to various styles of video marketing.

The study presented three L’Oreal ad spots (via YouTube) promoting a new eyeshadow. Researchers then documented which of the three had the greatest impact across three age groups: 18 to 24, 25 to 34 and 35 to 44.

The first ad is a traditional cosmetics commercial- gorgeous photography, high glamour. The kind of ad we’d expect to see on television. This one was named “The Glam.”

The second was more of a how-to video but still retained some glamorous elements. This one was called, “The Show.”

The third, named “The Tell,” was a user-generated DIY video. A regular “girl next door” talking about the makeup and how to apply it. Straight forward and practical.  

The results were both expected and surprising. Let’s explain…

“The Glam” scored very well, indeed. Topping the charts for both the 18-24 and 35-44 age groups, with no major difference in their rate of viewing.

The report states that “Regardless of age, "The Glam," the most traditionally structured and produced video, was the most "unskippable" ad with the strongest view-through rate (VTR).”

No real surprise here, right? We all love gorgeous images, compelling copy and a little eye candy never hurts. 

But here is where the experiment gets interesting.

Although “The Glam” view rates were 82% higher, it was “The Tell,” the DIY, user-generated styled video that did exceedingly well with the 18-24 age group (aka millennials) in the category of Ad Recall, coming in 100% higher than “The Glam.”

What the marketing study showed clearly was the changing generational tastes in regards to how marketed products are received. “The Glam” was accepted by all age groups as the highest visual quality with superior storytelling, but failed to provide the same viewer retention as “The Tell.” “The Tell” provided obvious how-to value and millennials had no problem accepting the unpolished amateur style of video. In addition, because “The Tell” felt more like “taking advice from a friend” it produced a click-through rate two times higher than the “The Glam” and “The Show,” meaning even in its bling-less status, the how-to video created a stronger call to action.

The report suggests millennials are miles more accepting of low-fi video production than the Gen Xer's… even when they know it’s an ad. For marketers that’s a pretty big deal. If the study proves accurate upon additional testing, anyone with a smartphone and some chutzpah can shoot marketing videos (bringing the cost to nearly zero) and still have the same chance at online virility, the holy grail of digital marketing.

All this to say, there appears to be a place for both “The Glam” and “The Tell” in today’s online marketplace, given the tastes of millennials to accept less traditional, high-gloss marketing as long as it offers legitimate value. This opens the door for greater marketing opportunities no matter what the budget.

For more articles on Sales and Marketing, visit smstudy.com.

[Spring Eselgroth, VMEdu staff writer, contributed to this article.]

Sources:

“2015 Will Be the Year of Video Marketing,” Tyler Lessard, Dec. 17, 2014 http://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2014/26719/2015-will-be-the-year-of-video-marketing

“How Demographics and Storytelling Style Affect Video Ad Effectiveness,” Ben Jones, January 6. https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/articles/how-demographics-storytelling-style-affect-video-ad-effectiveness.html?utm_source=LinkedIn&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=Think

“In Search of Social Media Insights,” SMstudy.com. http://smstudy.com/Article/the-search-for-social-media-insights

Photo credit: Laura Lee Moreau