Forbes magazine’s How Digital Marketing Will Change in 2018 reports that video is a hot trend this year but not just any video—professional live video. Gone are the days of marketers making a shaky video with their smartphone. Users today expect professional live video that speaks directly to their wants and needs.
Vidyard released its “2017 Video in Business Benchmark Report,” in which it found 92% of respondents report video is more important as a marketing strategy. It also found two-thirds are increasing their video budgets. Based on additional findings in the Benchmark Report, here are 5 ways you can drive leads with professional live video.
#1. Vary Your Video Types
Broaden your marketing horizons by varying the type of videos you produce. Try:
- Explainers
- How-to videos
- Testimonials
- Product demos
- Thought leader interviews
- Talking head style
- Live-action
- Pre-recorded
- Live streaming
- Cultural content
Per Vidyard, product feature videos are the most popular type distributed on social media, which they suggest points to mid-funnel content on social growing in popularity. Try different videos to create a mix of information that will reach your audience where they are in the buying cycle. Experiment with different ways to distribute your videos, such as on your website, via email, and through several social media channels.
#2. Vary Your Video Length
Vidyard found the average video length is 8 minutes, but over 55% of all videos published last year were 2 minutes or fewer. In addition, most B2B markets used long-form video content like product demos and webinars. Try different lengths to see which ones resonate with your users. You might find that explainer videos need to be around 8 minutes, but testimonial videos should be 2 minutes or fewer.
Consider your competition when varying your video length. Few businesses, regardless of company size, are producing videos between four minutes and 20 minutes. Producing videos in this span could help you stand out from the competition.
#3. Personalize Your Videos
Another Vidyard finding is the retention rate for videos less than 90 seconds was 53%, while a 30 minute video retained only 10% of viewers. But when personalized, video retention jumps 35% higher, significant enough to encourage you to personalize your videos. Personalized video includes an individual’s name, company name, or other unique content rendered in the video. Consider how you can create personalized viewing experiences for users at different stages in the buying cycle.
Pay attention to engagement rates to determine if your viewers are dropping off before your video’s primary message. These analytics will help you understand how well a piece of content is holding your viewers’ attention. With people’s attention spans decreasing every year, engaging your viewers with prime, personalized, professional live video can pay big dividends in leads generated.
#4. Optimize Videos for Mobile
Currently, Vidyard found more viewers watch videos on their desktop than on a mobile device. But with the skyrocketing use of mobile devices, you can get a jump on the competition by optimizing your videos for mobile. Experiment with building interactive video or in-video forms that are functional on a mobile screen. This can help you drive more leads than your competitors who only optimize for a desktop.
But do not forget about your desktop viewers. Per Vidyard, 53% of viewers watched videos on Chrome, with 34% on Internet Explorer, 9% on Firefox, and 4% on Safari. Marketers need to continue optimizing for all browsers to make sure you are not excluding anyone from your key content.
#5. Use Advanced Video Analytics
Businesses producing videos consistently are 2.5 times more likely to use advanced video analytics to drive their campaigns. As with all your digital marketing efforts, measure and analyze the data to see what is working and where you need to make adjustments. As you incorporate more professional live videos into your marketing mix, it becomes more important to track their performance and impact.
To understand your return on investment, use metrics that capture views by:
- Embedded location
- Viewer drop-off rates
- Viewer heat map
- Attribution to sales pipeline
Using these advanced metrics and more, you can precisely determine your revenue impact and ROI. B2B marketers who use advanced video analytics are twice as likely to report an improvement in ROI. You should parse enhanced lead scoring and segmentation from video engagement data on each individual viewer. Then use your marketing automation platform to boost certain videos that create more engagement and generate more leads.
Tap into professional live video for more than brand awareness in 2018. Use calls-to-action, video events, and more to engage and compel your viewers to generate more leads. Whether you use internal resources to product video content or outsource your video needs, adding video to your marketing mix is a must-have going forward. Considering the average business is doubling its video library size within 16 months, you cannot afford to wait any longer to implement a video strategy in your marketing mix.
Contact KEO Marketing for a free assessment of your marketing toolkit and to explore how video can enhance both your inbound and outbound marketing efforts.