Content marketing - and especially online video - is a rapidly growing area for marketers. In fact it’s highly likely that you’ll be watching this article in just a couple of years. And for good reason: people love stories that are relevant and nothing else captures their emotions quite like a great video. People are also increasingly more inclined to press play and watch information rather than read a page of text.

 

Technology is another reason for the video boom. Higher bandwidths mean people can easily watch internet based video wherever they are.

Reliable sources say that mobile internet traffic will be 70% video by 2017 (that’s next year!).

 

Can your business afford to miss out on what many experts consider to be the future of marketing? Investing in video specifically has already proven effective in targeting existing customers for repeat business and also acquiring new customers. In fact, 85% of companies in the USA will use video marketing as a core strategy this year, and Australia is moving the same way fast.

 

One of the key ways to engage people effectively is through videos that don’t look like ads: with customer centric stories about how has your product or service meets their needs; with client testimonials or endorsements that are genuine and creative; with ‘branded content’ -something useful, unusual, or fun that your brand can be part of to get under people’s radars.

 

There are unlimited opportunities for content ideas. These should naturally be an extension of your brand personality and appeal to your target audience’s needs.

 

While there’s no one size fits all solution, video content is extremely effective across:

• Owned media, e.g. website explainer videos, e-news stories, social media channels, Youtube

• Earned media, eg. video shares, blogs, reposts, reviews

• Paid media, eg. online advertising, video display ads, paid content promotion.

 

• Ensure that your website is optimised for mobile devices, as that’s where the majority of web video is being consumed.

• Develop a strategy for custom video content that is relevant and on brand, with an appropriate budget

• Create the videos with the required production value. This doesn’t have to very expensive.

• Distribute and promote your videos effectively across multiple channels (often a story can be re-cut for different purposes)

• Measure effectiveness and apply feedback to future video content, and adapt the plan if necessary.

 

Quality videos will also improve your search engine optimisation (SEO). Google loves websites containing video, meaning more traffic, more engagement with your brand, and - depending on your conversion strategy - more sales.

 

Perhaps you’re dipping your foot into online video with a few 15 second Instagram videos, or maybe you’ve already produced a successful branded mini-documentary for your Youtube channel. Wherever you sit on the spectrum, there is no escaping the impact - or the revolution - that web video is having.