Marketers are always looking for the game changer—the marketing strategy that’s so effective it measurably moves the needle on this or that key performance indicator (KPI) and does so simply because their target audience can’t get enough of it. Video is one of those game-changers.
Check out, for example, what Salesforce has to say about the impact of embedded videos on email click-throughs:
“Did you know there’s a tool floating around out there that will increase your email click-through rate by up to 300 percent and reduce your unsubscribe rate by 75 percent? It’s not an enterprise software system that comes with a big price tag and a lengthy service agreement; it’s something you interact with every single day. It’s video.”
What are the direct benefits of video marketing?
And the really good news is that, as well as video works in Email Marketing, it’s an equally powerful strategy when you use it in blogs, social media posts, and landing pages:
Consider these video marketing metrics from WordStream:
- Video increases organic traffic from search engine results by almost 160%
- Marketers who incorporate video into key marketing channels increase profits almost 50% faster than those who don’t
- Almost 65% of consumers buy products and services after watching branded social videos
- More than half of marketers say video is the type of content with the best return on investment (ROI)
- Including video on a landing page increases conversion rates by 80%
Rules of the road: how to make video work for your business
Of course, those numbers, impressive as they are, reflect average marketing performance. In other words, some businesses are far more successful with video—and some don’t do nearly as well.
What separates the winners from the losers in video marketing is execution. Leveraging best practice video marketing strategies to boost click-through rate, including the following 5:
- Keep it short: In general, embedded videos should be 2 minutes or less—but the optimal length of your video depends on how you use it. For example, YouTube viewers won’t balk at a 4-minute video, but Instagram viewers tend to get antsy after about 30 seconds. For your home page and landing pages, make it 30 seconds to 1 minute, and email videos should be about 45 seconds.
- Tell viewers what to do: There’s little point in posting a video without a clear, compelling call to action (CTA). It’s generally best to put your CTA near the end of your video. Keeping with CTA best practice, use strong action verbs and clearly explain the benefit of your CTA (as in, “Start your 30-day free trial today!“).
- Make your video visible: Whether it’s in a social media post, landing page, or email, it’s generally not smart to hide your video below the fold. Find reasonable ways to make sure your target audience can see your video near the top of the page. Remember that some people won’t scroll down all the way. Putting your video near the top ensures your most powerful content will be seen and viewed.
- Give them a video tease: There’s a reason consumers upload more video content on YouTube in a single month than all the major TV networks have created in the past 30 years—they love video. To increase open rates, click-throughs, and views, tell them if they take the action you want, they’re going to see a video. For example, simply including “video” in your email subject line boosts open rates by 20% and CTR’s by almost 70%.
- Give your videos a test: Odds are you’re A/B testing everything from email subject lines to headlines, fonts, and CTA copy, so why should your videos be an exception? The impact of your videos is important to the success of your marketing campaigns—whenever possible, push 2 or 3 versions of your video in an A/B test to see which performs best before you launch.
Video content can take your marketing to the next level across virtually every marketing channel—but you need to do it right to get optimal results. That’s where we can help.
To learn more about the ways our video, email, search engine optimization (SEO), and search engine marketing (SEM) services can help you achieve your top marketing goals—and take your business to the next level—book a demo today.
