Rock on, Video. You’re Everywhere

February 11, 2019

 

There was a time when you could put a video on YouTube, be satisfied that you produced content, and walk away with the expectation you may get a couple hundred plays. Then again, your greatest competition was this:

Incidentally, Me at the Zoo was the very first video uploaded to YouTube.  12 years later it has over 61 million views. Your video doesn’t have 61 million views – and chances are it never will. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t invest in video content, especially since 2019 is going to be a year where most brands and communication programs will expand their video content marketing either by the do-it-yourself model or by investing in video production houses like NAPCO Video.

 

Because of all the white noise from platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and of course YouTube, many companies don’t even want to spare the expense or effort to produce content that could very well head to the shadowy, ghost-filled unwatched corners of a Google server…never to be seen again. But if that’s what you’re thinking, then you’re shying away from some of the biggest sources of internet traffic dwell:  Video and VR (virtual reality). 75% of all internet traffic is streaming video content. That means Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and others are all but guaranteeing that 82% of all global internet traffic will be video traffic by 2022. That’s an uptick from 75% in 2017. Virtual and augmented reality content will increase 12-fold by 2022 (a 65% jump from 2017).

 

Widespread adoption of video as a conversational AND educational medium that can be leveraged as a key B2B tool means that companies need to consider how and when to initiate distribution strategies. That is the “white noise” challenge we talked about. In 2016 one of our clients, Canon Solutions America, brought us on after we pitched them an episodic series called The Connection. It was an 11-part web series released an episode at a time over the course of 4 months. Through dramatizations using three of their real production print customers, the series recreated personal experiences of the customers’ selection of Canon’s technology and how that personal connection extended to the end user. Not only did Canon create email blasts and social media pushes, but also “movie tickets,” gamification if you watched the entire video, and an AR-enabled poster:

This was a total collaboration with their communication teams and the video production company. With a production investment on the scale of The Connection, ROI was transformed into leads and engagement with the Canon Solutions America brand (and by proxy the customers highlighted in the series).

 

Video should have an upfront role in inbound marketing, brand websites, social media platforms, and on the trade show floor. In fact, we always push a social-first strategy with video. When we scope out a production there is a conscious effort to find out how the video(s) will be disseminated on social platforms. Most social media ingestion is passive; it’s easy to scroll through your feed, stop at the sight of a cat jumping into a box, and move on. How can your video possibly compete with the attention span of a thumb? Interestingly, Facebook IQ conducted a lab experiment that tracked people’s eye movements and facial expressions as they scrolled through their own feeds, followed by in-person interviews around the role of video in people’s daily lives. What they found was simple: Our eyes just can’t look away. They discovered that people gaze 5x longer at video than at static content on Facebook and Instagram. Smartphones, shorter attention spans, binge-watching, the importance of context and the thrill of novelty were all key factors in the success of mobile video.

 

Our ability to consume an ever-growing stream of content is more pronounced and faster than ever before. Your marketing spend should reflect this fluid reality where consumers of all ages use video to learn about products, brand culture, and solutions. While a watched tool, video is a physical manifestation of an idea. It’s about showing, not telling. This is why you need to pair your business with a solid production company that believes not only in excellent production value no matter the budget magnitude – but also understands how to leverage the footprint that video will make online.

 

Even if your video is about a trip to the zoo.

 

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Rock on, Video. You're Everywhere