marketing

Video marketing has become today’s most important promotional tool. American companies spent $135 billion on video marketing in 2017, a Magisto survey found. This represents nearly double the $71.65 billion a year U.S. businesses spend on TV advertising, underscoring the rising importance of video promotion. The average U.S. company now spends $20,000 a year on video marketing, with most marketers spending a quarter of their budget on video.

One reason marketers place such a high priority on video marketing is the higher user engagement it generates. Video marketing techniques such as personalized marketing, 360-degree immersive videos, and social media video sharing allow for more customized, more immersive, and more social promotional strategies. Here’s a look at how video marketing is helping companies boost consumer engagement.

Personalized Video Marketing

One way video marketing is helping boost consumer engagement is by delivering more personalized content. Video platforms such as YouTube not only have their own search engines that allow users to search for content they want, but they use recommendation engines that suggest other content based on the user’s viewing history, and they have social networking features such as commenting that build communities around video viewing. Together these features make video content consumer-driven rather than advertiser-driven, translating into higher engagement. Personalized videos generate a click-through rate that is 164 percent higher than generic videos, with a 116 percent increase in conversion, according to customer personalization provider Idomoo. When combined with email marketing, personalized video boosts conversion rates by over 500 percent, says Vidyard product marketing director Jeff Gadway.

One company leveraging these benefits of personalized video marketing is Amway. Amway’s YouTube channel features video content geared toward users seeking information about how to start a business. By offering this type of informative content, Amway attracts entrepreneurs from YouTube’s search engine and recommendation engine, tapping into the power of personalized marketing.

360-degree Video Immersion

Another video marketing technique helping to boost consumer engagement is 360-degree video immersion. 360-degree video records footage in every direction by using an omnidirectional camera or multiple cameras. When playing the video back, the viewer sees the footage in a panoramic view, which they can navigate as if they were walking around with the camera. This gives viewers more control over the content they view, encouraging engagement.

Google has tested the power of 360-degree view for user engagement by partnering with Columbia Sportswear to promote an ad campaign revolving around two Olympic skiers. The experiment compared results generated by 360-degree versions of videos with standard versions of the same content. While standard video outperformed on view-through and retention rate, 360-degree video generated higher click-throughs and interaction rates, as well as 41 percent higher views, shares, and subscriptions. As virtual reality becomes more popular, 360-degree video will be more widely deployed for promotions geared toward VR users.

Social Video Sharing

Video also promotes higher consumer engagement by generating higher social media engagement. When social media users see a video they find entertaining or informative, they are more likely to share it with friends and followers than other types of content. Video marketing generates 1,200 percent more social shares than text and images combined, Brightcove research has found.

The engaging power of social video is illustrated by the staggering number of shares generated by the most viral videos of 2017. The reality show “The Mask Singer” generated an amazing 199 million views for a video featuring a singing oyster. Oreo-sponsored advertising generated 119 million views with a video of ping-pong trick shots and other feats triggered by Oreo cookies lined up like falling dominoes.

Personalization, 360-degree immersion, and social sharing are three ways that video is helping companies boost user engagement. By learning to implement these techniques effectively, companies can create content that generates customized appeal, immersive interaction, and viral distribution.

Roy Rasmussen, coauthor of Publishing for Publicity, is a freelance writer who helps select clients write quality content to reach business and technology audiences. His clients have included Fortune 500 companies and bestselling authors. His most recent projects include books on cloud computing, small business management, sales, business coaching, social media marketing, and career planning.