Regardless of industry, most businesses can find their customers online. Most consumers go online to find businesses with products or services to suit their needs and learn more about what they have to offer. If your business isn’t available, you could be missing out on profits.
Your business needs an online presence to attract customers and earn sales, and the easiest approach is with video content. Video marketing is incredibly popular – and growing – so it’s vital for businesses to develop a strong video marketing strategy.
Why is Video So Popular?
Video is popular and expected to grow, thanks to its versatile and engaging content. Users can get a real-life view of products or services, videos are easy to share, and complex or “boring” information is easy to understand and share.
Marketers like video because it has a potentially huge return on investment. Video does take some upfront work to create quality content, but it’s accessible for anyone with a device and internet access.
Some brands favor professional-looking videos, while others take a more authentic approach. Depending on the audience and channel, both options can gain a lot of traction with users.
Types of Video
Video is versatile – you can create all different types of video to suit your content marketing or social marketing strategy. Of course, it’s important to understand the purpose of your video and its intended audience to make sure that they align.
Here are some common types of videos:
- Explainer videos: These educate people on the product or service you offer and can be used with instructions or customer service.
- Interview videos: These videos encourage conversations about the product or industry or highlight a particular guest or influencer. One of the best aspects of an interview video is that you can repurpose the content into a podcast or blog post.
- Demo videos: These videos can show customers how to use your product, which is helpful for complicated products. It also highlights the real-world benefits of using your product and connects the dots for the user.
- Product reviews: These videos have a lot of authenticity and help customers trust in the product and brand. Usually, product reviews are created by brand ambassadors with followers that align with your audience.
- Live video: These videos are diverse in topic, but give you an opportunity to interact with your audience more directly and address questions or complaints. It’s especially popular on social media, and several platforms have a setup for live video specifically.
Different videos work on different platforms, depending on the audience and typically user behavior. There are numerous channels to post video, from social media platforms to websites and landing pages. So, which is the right choice for your business?
Check out the top 10 places to post your video and help expedite business growth.
1. Your Brand Website.
Whether your business is strictly online or online with a brick-and-mortar location, all businesses need a website. Search engine traffic makes up over 63 percent of all visitors, so your website may be the first place customers see you and interact with your brand.
In addition, most social media traffic will direct to your website, so you’ll earn traffic from other platforms – this is why having a video on your site matters. When a visitor reaches your site, a comprehensive video will keep them listening to what you have to say and spending more time on site, which can convert them from prospect to paying customer.
With a video on your homepage or landing page, it’s important to make sure it offers enough information in an approachable, engaging way, but doesn’t intimidate potential customers. Get to the point quickly and directly, but keep the tone and messaging aligned with your brand.
2. YouTube
YouTube is best known for its video content. With billions of users, YouTube offers a versatile platform with a variety of short-form and long-form video content in a variety of industries. No matter the industry or niche, your video has an audience on YouTube.
Like content, video marketing on YouTube relies on discoverability with keywords and phrases in your description. You should also include your website and social media pages in the description to help people find your brand.
Once you attract a subscriber list, you can post more videos and gain more engagement and followers. If you have complex topics, YouTube is a great place to put a video series that tackles individual subtopics and breaks them down for users in short, digestible bits.
3. Facebook
Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms globally with over 2.85 billion active users each month. Video is also popular on Facebook, with over 3 billion video views each day.
One of the best aspects of Facebook is its diverse audience. With valuable video content, you can expand your audience and attract new customers and prospects. Facebook also has a developed algorithm and an eye-catching Autoplay feature, so videos have organic reach and plenty of engagement.
4. Instagram
Instagram is among the top social media platforms and boasts over 1 billion active users. Built on visuals, the platform continues to grow among younger audiences. Because of this, video is popular on Instagram.
Some of the features that Instagram has for video include Stories, Reels, Live, and IGTV, allowing you to create highly targeted videos that will resonate with your audience.
5. Vimeo
Though less popular than some of the other platforms, Vimeo is a hosting platform for posting and sharing video content. The platform also has numerous tools to create professional-quality streams, such as templates, live tools, and embedding features.
You can start a Vimeo account for free, but you get more features and capabilities with a Pro or Business account. Some of these include private links, password protection for staff accounts, and more.
6. TikTok
Yet another platform built on video, TikTok is a newer social media platform that has a largely Gen Z and millennial audience. Not long after its launch, the platform grew to become one of the most popular social media apps in the world.
TikTok is intended for short-form video content, with most videos falling between 15 and 60 seconds, so you have to get your message across quickly. The platform also has numerous tools to enhance your video, such as filters, augmented reality, and trending music.
7. LinkedIn
Designed for a professional audience, LinkedIn is often overlooked for social media marketing. It’s a great place for professional networking and B2B brands, however. If you have the right audience for LinkedIn, it can be powerful for video marketing.
Viewers have specific preferences when it comes to video marketing, but users spend roughly three times more time watching video ads over static content on LinkedIn. Videos also earn more comments than non-video.
8. Twitter
Twitter is one of the big social media platforms, but its approach is wildly different. Finding success with Twitter requires more consistency and engagement than other platforms. Generally, Twitter is popular with users from 18 to 29.
Tweets with video are more likely to be Retweeted than photos or text, and video is the most shared media type on the platform. In addition, video ads save more than 50 percent on cost-per-engagement. If the audience is appropriate for your business, spend time gaining some traction on Twitter.
9. Tumblr
While it’s not a prominent platform, Tumblr still attracts a lot of traffic and ranks as one of the top websites in the U.S. Tumblr is considered one of the more creative and open platforms than other social media, making it popular for a lot of users.
In addition, visual content like images and GIFs have always been incredibly popular on Tumblr, so compelling video content gets a ton of attention. Users can also watch videos directly on the page and share it without disrupting their browsing.
10. Reddit
Often neglected as a social media platform for marketing, Reddit has a user base that rivals Instagram. Its format and use are quite different, however. Users must invest time and effort into gaining “karma” on Reddit, which allows them to post and comment. To post videos on a popular and tightly moderated subreddit, you’ll need a specific score and number of comments.
Reddit is also divided into communities or subreddits by topic, which helps you narrow your audience. There are millions of subreddits on the platform, so you’re sure to find your place as a brand. The platform recently announced its changes to make video uploads faster and easier than ever before, and users can watch a Reddit video while reading comments and engaging in conversation.
Embrace Video Marketing
Videos are gaining in popularity because they’re easy to create, post, and share, and they have far more engagement than other types of content. While you have virtually limitless options for where to post your video, each platform has its unique advantages and audiences to help you attract more customers to your business.