Five reasons to adopt a video-first approach to marketing

As lockdown restrictions begin to ease across the UK, more companies are looking for creative ways to showcase their products and services – albeit in a vastly different marketing landscape.

Whereas before lockdown, traditional channels such as TV, radio and print were mostly viewed as slowly receding (though not without use), the newly emerging world order as a result of COVID-19 has exacerbated their demise to the point where adopting anything but a digital-first approach would be seen as a fool’s errand.

For businesses both big and small, this signals the dawning of a new era. With marketing budgets stretching only so far, getting as much bang for your buck has never been so important, and without a properly utilised Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn channel, traditionalists may be the first to fall.

What’s great about these channels is that they sit at the forefront of one of the fastest growing areas within digital marketing. With research showing that video consumption continues to rise by up to 100% each year, if you’re not sharing video-based content to promote your business online, chances are you’re already falling behind.

In this article we’ll run through five statistics to bolster this claim, highlighting the rise of video marketing and its place within the post-lockdown world.

Video > Text

Let us get one thing clear from the off: text still has its place in marketing.

However, with research by HubSpot showing that 72% of people would rather learn about a specific product or service by way of a video as opposed to reading about it, you may want to consider combining your service and/or product descriptions with a video-led asset once in a while. Take the video below as an example.

As well as detailing information on its COVID-19 policy through text-led blogs and web copy, one of our clients, Use.Space, knew that the best way to get its message across would be deliver a short video, highlighting several measures put in place before the co-working space’s grand reopening on July 1.

The result? While only 26 users engaged with the company’s text-led asset that detailed its original policy during lockdown, the revised video-led piece led to 126 engagements – an increase of over 350%.

Standout on social

Now more than ever, simply having a social media account isn’t enough. In fact, even if you’re consistently sharing photos, static assets and blogs across your channels, you’re still at risk of falling behind without video.

Research from HubSpot shows that social media posts that feature video have 48% more views compared to static assets such as photos or text-led posts – that’s 48% more views that your competition could be putting to good use at this very second.

A shot in the arm for SEO

To reiterate an earlier point, text still has its place online – especially when it comes to SEO. Without regular blog posts, accurate product descriptions and various other forms of copy on your site, you stand zero chance of making it to the top of Google’s search engine results page.

But that’s not to say that video doesn’t have a role to play when it comes to enhancing your SEO strategy.

Research from Insivia shows that websites that feature video content are 53 times more likely to bag themselves a place on page one of Google. And when you consider that 95% of internet users rarely click onto page two, that’s a stat worth remembering.

Increasing click rates

Helping businesses market new products and communicate with their customers, email marketing can prove to be a fruitful channel. However, even the most enticing subject line can only get you so far, and if there’s one thing that lets email marketing campaigns down, it’s disappointing click-through rates.  

According to HubSpot, adding video to your emails can increase click rates by as much as 300% - especially when it’s used to replace your template’s header image.

So even if you’re only adding a 30 second teaser or quick-fire update, you’ll find users will be much more receptive when your emails include a video.

Stepping beyond social

Even the biggest influencers will tell you that posting on Instagram can only get you so far.

At the time of writing, YouTube boasts over 25 million subscribers and a user base of over 1.9 billion people – roughly one third of the internet – and they’re not all using the platform to watch cute dog videos or slow-motion water melon explosions.

In fact 65% of people use YouTube to help them solve a problem.

Looking to build a shed but don’t know the best way to go about it? YouTube.

Unsure how to trim your own fringe? YouTube. 

Thinking that you really ought to incorporate video content into your digital marketing strategy but don’t know how? YouTube. YouTube. YouTube.

How we can help

While big agencies charge top dollar for video content and campaigns, due in part to excessive overheads and staffing costs, Studio Lester can produce a range of assets from as little as £250 per day.

What sets us apart is our agile team of professionals, unburdened by restrictive working hours and fixed contracts. Instead, we work remotely on a freelance basis, working with a range of clients across several sectors, including retail, events and real estate.

For just £250 per day we can shoot, edit and deliver not just one asset, but a whole suite of videos for you to share across a range of channels. Owning a range of professional-grade equipment and drone permissions from the CAA, our services go beyond what traditional agencies can offer.

All you have to do is tell us your vision. We’ll then make it our job to bring it to life.