Guest Post: 5 Reasons Why Video Should Be a Part of Your Content Marketing Strategy

By Andre Oentoro

In the last decade, the content marketing world has shifted from text posts to videos. Before, YouTube was just a site with only a dozen videos. Now, it’s the second biggest search engine right behind Google.

Today, our social media feeds are dominated by videos. Whether it’s on your Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter, videos are taking over the Internet and it’s planning to stay.

So what makes them so great and why should you have them in your content marketing strategy?

Easy to Digest

Videos are easy to process because they are visually appealing and we’re all visual learners.

95 percent of consumers retain information through video, while only 10 percent retain information from reading.

Videos are also great for describing services or new products. A video that shows how a product or service works is an effective way of conveying information. 98% of users say they’ve watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service.

Other than that, they’re excellent for explaining difficult concepts, especially animation. Sometimes a bit of fun animation can bring a boring concept to life, making the message easier to convey.

Great for Increasing Conversions and Sales

90 percent of consumers say product videos affect their purchase decisions. Having a video on your landing page can increase conversions by 80%.

Other than that they can also lead to sales. According to a study, 74% of users who watched an explainer video about a product subsequently bought it.

Google Loves SEO

Having a video on your site increases the time spent by visitors. With a longer exposure, you can build trust because more time spent on your site signals search engines that your site has good content.

According to Insivia, you are 53 times more likely to show up first on Google if you have a video embedded on your site. Ever since Google bought YouTube, there has been significant growth in how much videos affect search engine ranks.

Make sure to optimize SEO for your videos on Youtube. Create interesting titles and descriptions and don’t forget to add a link back to your website, products, and services. The most important thing is to add a call-to-action at the end of the video.

Videos are excellent for mobile users

A lot of mobile users watch videos on their devices. In fact, 90% of consumers do this. According to YouTube, mobile video consumption rises 100% every year. This means that the user-base for mobile is huge and is a great opportunity for reaching a broad audience.

This is because people like to watch videos on the go. The growth of mobile video means, brands need to be more aware of personal experiences people have on their smartphones. Brands can do this by making a video more compatible with mobile devices. This can be done by making fonts or images in the video bigger for viewing.

Video is engaging

Lastly, video is an excellent tool for learning since it’s super easy to consume. These days, no one has the time to read long product descriptions. The customers of today want to see the product in action.

The use of video marketing can capture a wide audience and engage viewers— even the laziest ones. Make sure you target not only the eyes but also to the ears of your audience. Invest in a decent script and interesting dialogues.

Andre Oentoro is the founder of Breadnbeyond, an award winning explainer video company. He helps business increase conversion rates, close more sales and get positive ROI from explainer videos (in that order).