Sadly, there are still many businesses out there that have yet to integrate video into their overall marketing vision. And, there are many, still, that have not taken it seriously enough. These days, small businesses need every advantage they can get and that means deploying the best video marketing that you possibly can. Some recent research published by Oberlo seems to solidify the importance of video and how you need to get yours to the next level. The following is taken directly from that published research:
- According to recent research, as many as 85 percent of businesses have used video marketing in one way or another in 2020. This is a 24 percentage point increase from just four years earlier in 2016, during which just 61 percent of businesses used video for marketing. Of the businesses that use video marketing in 2020, nearly all (99 percent) say they plan to continue doing so (Wyzowl, 2020). That’s not all. More than nine in ten (92 percent) regard it as an “important” part of their overall marketing strategy, which is a testament to the effectiveness of video.
- The numbers say it all—in 2021, the average US consumer will have an average of 9.5 video streaming apps installed on their mobile phones (PR Newswire, 2020). Live streaming aside, short-form videos will also continue to trend as we enter 2021 (Design Shack, 2020).
- User-generated content plays a key role in marketing strategies and video content is no exception to this. In fact, user-generated video content ranks among the top video marketing trends in 2021. Its effectiveness in attracting users and keeping them engaged is clear. User-generated videos on YouTube receive up to ten times as many views as branded content. That’s not all: studies show that users who land on a site via UGC spend twice as much time on the site (Econsultancy, 2020).
- User-generated video content also does a much better job of converting users into sales. The chances of these users arriving on an ecommerce site via a video UGC and carrying out a purchase are also 184 percent higher and these users also spend 45 percent more.
- One of the biggest video marketing trends of 2021 has to do with e-learning. Already, the e-learning market is experiencing a huge surge, growing by 36.3 percent year-over-year in 2020 (Report Linker, 2020). This massive growth will take its market value to nearly half a billion this year.
- In 2020, video ad spend in the US hit $9.95 billion. This is expected to increase by 13 percent to $11.24 billion in 2021 (Statista, 2019).
- Nearly nine in ten (89 percent) video marketers agree that videos produce a good return on their investment (Wyzowl, 2020). In fact, 80 percent of them say that their video marketing efforts have directly resulted in increased sales, and 83 percent also say they’re getting more leads. These aside, video marketing has also helped more than 80 percent of marketers increase website traffic, time spent on their websites, and users’ understanding of their product or service.
- Shoppable videos provide interactive experiences for buyers as it allows them to purchase the product being advertised in the video ad directly from the content. This does away with having to search for the product seen in the ad, which makes for a faster and easier purchase. This will be one of the hottest video marketing trends not only in 2021 but beyond. Already, engagement rates of shoppable videos, particularly clickthrough rates and conversions, have surpassed those of display advertising (Internet Retailing, 2020).
-Written by Kevin Sawyer