Video is quickly becoming the number one go-to marketing strategy in 2022, and it shows no signs of slowing. An average person now spends 100 minutes a day watching videos online.
What is more - marketing statistics predict that this year, online videos will make up more than 82% of all consumer internet traffic. So, where are the best places to post video content to achieve maximum conversion? Well, it depends.
Different video channels attract different kinds of viewers. And each of your marketing videos will have a different end goal. By weighing the goal against the channels where your ideal audience hangs out, you will find the best place to post.
Ready to increase awareness, engagement and conversions? Here are the top 10 video channels boosting business growth right now:
1. Your website
Videos offer an excellent way to capture the attention of potential customers browsing your website. Video marketing helps boost your SEO by increasing click-through rates, lowering bounce rates, and keeping users on the page.
Even better, research has shown that combined audio-visual stimulus has a higher recall value. As a result, videos stay in the minds of your audience for longer, making your website more memorable and improving brand recognition.
What are the best ways to tap into video marketing on your website?
Here is how:
2. Instagram and Facebook
Instagram has recently announced that the channel is no longer a photo-sharing app but a video app geared towards entertainment. The algorithms love video content because it captures the user's attention faster and for more extended periods than images.
In addition, 50% of Instagram's users say they are more interested in a brand when they see ads for it on Instagram. It is the ideal place to promote your business.
Reels, Stories, and IG videos help highlight your products in a down-to-earth and fun way. These features humanize your brand and make it more accessible and authentic.
Although Facebook is similar to Instagram, it is used mainly for highly targeted paid video ads. With over 2.74 billion users, Facebook offers a huge audience to tap into with video marketing.
3. YouTube
As a video-focused platform, YouTube seems the obvious place to post videos. After all, it is the second largest search engine and video-specific platform in existence. Posting your videos on YouTube is also a great way to increase your SEO link-building strategy.
By putting a link to a relevant page on your site as the first line of text in the description box, you encourage viewers to click and learn more about the topic.
You also signal others sites to link to your video in their content since it may help them expand on a topic they are sharing with their audience.
Also, creating videos for YouTube means your content never dies. It has the potential to keep reaching new audiences. And with transcripts and captions available, your videos are more accessible to all.
4. Email
According to research from Campaign Monitor, using video in your email marketing can increase open rates by 19%. Worth a try, eh? But that is not the only benefit. Say hello to higher click-through rates (up by 65%) and lower unsubscribers (by 26%).
Our inboxes are crammed with emails these days. Using video within emails helps yours stand out, and it is more likely to capture attention. Moreover, it is quicker and easier to communicate information through video. It saves time for both the sender and the recipient.
5. Vimeo
Vimeo is a specific channel built for video, but it does not run video ads, unlike YouTube. This is a huge plus in getting your viewers to watch through to the end. With Vimeo, you have to pay for a business account.
The upside of this is the ability to customize your account with brand colours and set up a portfolio. It goes without saying that YouTube has a much larger audience than Vimeo (even though Vimeo gets, on average, 170 million viewers per month). Still, Vimeo is worth considering by smaller businesses.
6. Pinterest
When online users are looking for inspiration, they turn to Pinterest. According to the Pinterest team, more than 400 million people use the channel every month to inspire their next purchase. Now that is worth tapping into, would you not agree?
You can increase your brand exposure by using the video pin feature. Video pins are perfect for how-to posts and product demos, and they have the potential to drive consumers to your website or product pages.
As users scroll their feed, they come across your video and get a preview, which may entice them to watch.
7. LinkedIn
Considered the "professional" networking site, LinkedIn posts tend to focus mostly on companies, products, and careers. Despite this image, it is the perfect place to post stories, promotional videos, and occasional vlogging-style videos.
And with an audience of more than 610 million professionals worldwide, LinkedIn videos are the most likely to increase conversions.
8. TikTok
If LinkedIn is the platform for professionals, TikTok is fast growing as an alternative and less-formal way to promote your brand. Popular with younger millennials and Gen Z, TikTok now has over 1 billion monthly active users. That is a massive market to tap into.
For marketing purposes, TikTok is ideal for building communities and user-generated content. With authenticity fast becoming a sought-after brand value, TikTok offers an opportunity to shift away from old-fashioned marketing tactics and experiment a little.
Grabbing the attention of your target audience through short, engaging stories can be more effective than traditional marketing routes, especially with younger target customers.
9. Medium
The great thing about Medium is that it enables users to insert a video within blog posts. It acts as a striking element and makes explaining more complex topics easier.
Even better, it is much easier to show how a product works with a video alongside your writing if promoting a product. While it may not be the ideal choice for any brand and industry, it is helpful for brands with complex products and users who may want a how-to, tutorial, or demo content.
10. Yelp Or Google My Business
Adding video to both these channels is straightforward and brings a heap of benefits. Video helps you show off your differences from other companies and allows you to explain your products. With 72% of customers saying they would instead learn about a product or service through video, it is a great way to help people discover your brand and what you have to offer.
Keep video marketing a priority without going video-crazy
Listen. There is no need to try to post videos on all possible video marketing channels. It is almost impossible to keep track of it all, and the rest of your marketing may suffer. So, what is the perfect solution?
Look at your customer research and choose the channels where your target audience hangs out the most. Utilizing those specific video channels has the potential to reap enormous rewards for your business.
About the author
Torrey Tayenaka is the co-founder and CEO at Sparkhouse, an Orange County-based video marketing production agency. He has previously written for top publications like Entrepreneur, Single Grain and Forbes. Sparkhouse is known for transforming video marketing and advertising into real conversations. Rather than hitting the consumer over the head with blatant ads, Sparkhouse creates interesting, entertaining and useful videos that enrich the lives of his clients' customers. In addition to Sparkhouse, Torrey has also founded the companies Eva Smart Shower, Litehouse and Forge54.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this blog post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Think Little Big Marketing.