How to add more video to your content mix

Video’s popularity has grown so dramatically that it's cemented itself as part of a business marketing strategy that you can’t ignore.

With a little creativity—and a well thought out plan—videos can help any brand stand out from the rest with an unforgettable voice, capturing and holding the attention of an audience while providing useful information. Add onto that the numerous ways you can now share video, and video content becomes a no brainer.

[RELATED: Ragan Consulting Group can help you find, tell and share your organization's compelling stories in any format]

Still unconvinced that you need to include video as part of your business’ marketing strategy?

The latest video stats

Earlier this year, Wowzyl and HubSpot released their State of Video Marketing Report for 2018, which makes the case for why video has become so important for businesses.

Here are some insights worth pondering over as you think about adding video to your marketing strategy.

• People watched an average of one-and-a-half hours of video a day in 2017, with 15 percent of those people watching over three hours of video every day. That’s a lot of opportunities to connect with your audience.
• In just one year, the number of marketers who used video as a part of their marketing strategy grew 81 percent (a growth of nearly 20 percent).
• More than half of the 19 percent that did not use video in 2017 have planned to use it this year.
• Most people (72 percent) would rather watch a video to learn about a brand or product than read about it.

Top video tactics

• Social Media : This is probably the most common avenue businesses (and people) share their videos. It makes sense—social media is a place where people gather online to engage with others as well as brands.
• Newsletters : Like social media, this method allows you the chance to get the video in front of your audience without waiting for them to approach it on their own. Adding a video that relates to the theme of your newsletter also reinforces your message.
• Blog : Don’t limit yourself to just sharing your videos on social media and in your newsletters. They also provide strong support for blog posts. Not only will you be placing the content on another channel—giving it more potential for viewers to see it—but you’ll also be doing your website a favor by adding content to your blog.
• Website : Videos can and should be used in other areas of your website—not just as blogging material. Adding a welcome video that visitors can watch as they enter your website, as well as on other important pages, can provide new and potential customers a unique look into your business and what sets you apart.

What platform should you use

Depending on your video marketing strategy budget and goals, there are a couple different options for video platforms you can use to upload and share your works of art.

YouTube: There are many reasons why YouTube has become so popular for consumers and businesses. It’s free, widely used and compatible with an extremely versatile range of applications and websites, plus it’s user friendly.

However, there are a few downsides for businesses to weigh. YouTube is ad heavy, which opens the potential for your viewers to decide not to watch the video or to leave YouTube to follow the ad. Either way, it’s a loss of viewers. Also, it’s worth noting that the video hosting site is not exactly known for easy-to-reach customer service reps, but they do have a fantastic library of tutorials, self-help articles and forums.

Vimeo: Vimeo is another popular video hosting site that many are turning to instead of YouTube. It has customizable features, a great analytics panel and, since it’s not as saturated as YouTube, a tighter-knit community of viewers.

These perks come at a cost though. While they do offer a free service option that’s nothing extremely fancy or exciting, it gets the job done. If you want more features and options, you need to sign up for a paid account at one of the levels they offer. Your account level will also determine the amount of storage you have access to for uploading and storing videos.

Danielle Winski is a publicist with Three Girls Media. A version of this article originally appeared on the Three Girls Media blog.

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