As we reach a new decade, it’s clear for all to see that video is king — it’s estimated that video content will account for 80% of all online traffic by 2022. And if you’re a business trying to reach your target audience, you’re likely to want to invest your effort and capital in video marketing.
As a medium, video lends itself extremely well to marketing. It can convey a lot of information efficiently in a short space of time. It’s an immersive medium that’s easy and enjoyable to consume. What’s more, in an era where the majority of people access the internet through their smartphones, video can be consumed much faster and easier than other long-form marketing content like advertorial posts.
But while doing any form of video marketing is a step in the right direction, it’s a fast-moving discipline. And like any form of creative marketing, it’s subject to its own trends. If you want to impress your clients and resonate with your target audience, keep an eye on these emerging video marketing trends of 2020…
1. 360 degree video
Since 2016, mobile use has overtaken desktop use as the way people prefer to view online content. This shows absolutely no signs of changing in 2020. What’s more, viewing video content through a smartphone can potentially have a profound effect on the way users interact with video content. When combined with an affordable head harness (you can even make your own out of cardboard), any smartphone has the potential to be a VR headset. And that can lead to much more immersive videos that put viewers in the middle of the action.
As more and more consumers become VR savvy, that opens up enormous scope for production houses to create VR-friendly immersive videos that allow users to build a much more personal relationship with clients’ brands. And there’s evidence to show that 360 degree ads work. As in, really work!
The chocolate snack Kit Kat is a notable success story. Upon launching its 360 degree Youtube campaign for its matcha flavored candy bar, the brand found that the campaign delivered a 100% increase in ad recall and a 35% increase in consideration.
Overall, these kinds of videos have a 7% higher purchase intent and lend themselves to more immersive and personal brand storytelling.
As production houses start to create more VR friendly videos, it behoves them to ensure that they invest in a Video Asset Management (VAM) platform. This allows them to get quick access to VR optimized assets that can be reverse-engineered into more videos and aid collaboration with outsourced talent who are experienced in VR optimized video.
2. Shoppable videos
One of the great things about video is that it can get the customer journey off to the best possible start. It can hook and engage them and promote genuine interest in brands and products. But if efforts aren’t made to capitalize on that interest straight away, it’s likely to dissipate.
That’s why we’re seeing a rise in shoppable videos which is only likely to grow in the coming year. Shoppable videos allow a seamless transition from the video to purchase, linking directly to a product page where viewers can learn more about a product or even make a purchase.
These videos ensure that none of the momentum is lost in the customer journey and helps brands to capitalize effectively on the interest that their content promotes.
3. Personalized videos
The digital experience of the 2020s is all about personalization. Customer interaction with the digital realm through a personal device creates some exciting opportunities for your clients’ brands to forge a personal connection with their consumers.
In an era where brands are practically screaming at them trying to engage their attention, it stands to reason that consumers would grow numb to generic marketing content, no matter how well written. Personalization is no longer a novelty — the majority of consumers expect it. Indeed, over 70% of consumers say that they will only engage with marketing materials that are personalized. If your video content plays to what you know about their habits and preferences from their purchase history, it’s likely to be much more resonant with them.
Personalization makes video content more relevant and can lead to better quality engagement with brands. Of course, in order to make video personalization work, production houses need to get quick and easy access to their video assets and collaborate with other production talent no matter where they are. A good VAM platform can make this quicker and easier by using proxy sharing with state of the art encryption.
4. Search Engine Optimized videos
SEO is going to be every bit as important to your clients as it ever was in 2020. As brands scramble to gain the attention of fickle consumers, their positioning on Search Engine Results Pages can make all the difference between making a sale and losing one to a competitor. The good news is that your videos can help your clients to improve their SERP rankings with Search Engine Optimized videos.
Adding captions is absolutely essential. They improve accessibility for hearing-impaired viewers and allow viewers to watch on the train, in the breakroom or anywhere else where listening with audio isn’t appropriate. They also help to improve searchability as the text in your captions is just as searchable as the text in a web page or blog post.
5. Education and Tutorial videos
Of course, video tutorials and educational videos are nothing new. In fact, it’s arguable that the boom in popularity that video content has enjoyed is largely attributable to these kinds of videos. Video has allowed us to have our very own personal tutors everywhere we go who can coach us on everything from bleeding our radiators to getting our incline press technique just right.
Still, while not necessarily a new kid on the block, educational videos are expected to keep going strong in the new year. They’re a great way for your clients to position themselves as experts in their chosen field and generate content that is of real practical value to their clients. With that in mind, it’s no wonder why brands love them.
These tutorial videos can use stock footage either as padding or to provide illustrative examples to viewers, so production houses need a VAM system which allows them quick and easy access to the stock footage they need that’s well indexed and readily searchable. And with the new breed of VAM platforms, searching for an image or even a spoken word is almost as easy as pressing CTRL+F on a word document.
Demand brings its own challenges — make sure you’re ready!
Video is here to stay, and as more and more brands get on board with the coming trends in video content, production houses are likely to be very busy in 2020. Just make sure that you’re able to cope with the influx of demand and the growing sophistication of video content without compromising the quality of service that your clients expect from you.
With the right VAM platforms, it’s not only easier to create videos that adhere to the latest trends, you can also improve production workflows and enjoy faster and easier access to your archived materials. Properly armed, you can get the new year off to a perfect start!
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