7 Eye Opening Video Marketing Stats

When it comes to video marketing, we know that it’s the coolest kid on the block. Sure blog posts like this one are super useful, but countless studies show that people prefer to view videos than read text because it’s visually engaging and really easy to consume.

But as with everything else in content marketing, the world of video is changing. 

#1. 77% of consumers have been convinced to buy a product after watching a video

Product videos are the very best way to educate your customers on what your product can do for them, which will ultimately increase your ROI.

And the great thing about a product video is that you can create any kind that you like.

For example, you could hold a webinar and educate people about your product in-depth, create an animated video to show the benefits of a service in a fun and engaging way, or produce a screen-recorded walk through instructing a user on how to use your product. The choices are endless!

#2. 70% of consumers say that they have shared a brand’s video

So the good news is, those videos that you create for social don’t go to waste! You’ve probably already noticed more and more videos popping up on your social feeds, and most of them are from brands.

But the key to a shareable video somewhat differs to that of a product video. You should aim to see this as a brand awareness goal, rather than trying to hit your conversion goals. That’s not to say that you won’t increase your conversions, but it’s important to understand that videos on social should be more focused towards the initial attraction stage of the buyer’s journey.

So what does it take to get a person to share your video on social…?

#3. 76% of consumers would share a brand’s video if it was entertaining

When it comes to social media, the aim of the game is to get people to hit that share button. But if you’re struggling to see many shares then it could be to do with the type of content you’re trying to promote.

Does it keep your audience entertained? Getting weighed down in trying to push your product onto your viewers is why most people will switch off. Think about what you can do to make it fun, interesting and entertaining.

#4. 61% of consumers were put off buying a product after watching a bad explainer video

Yikes! This is an important statistic to take note of. If you’re going to create a video to explain what your product or service does then you need to make sure that it’s done right. And by right, we mean quality scriptwriting, illustrations and animation — the whole package.

Interestingly many respondents told us that they were put off buying a product because the messaging was so unclear. Rather than trying to squeeze in every single feature that your product does, think about using the video as the hook rather than the manual.

The very best explainer videos follow a very similar formula in that they connect with the problems of the viewer, they then go on to show how that business solves those problems by highlighting the product benefits, and they close with a killer CTA.

#5. 72% of businesses say video has improved their conversion rate

Do you have a video on your website? If you don’t then you could be losing out on a huge opportunity to increase your conversion rates.

The Crazy Egg video is the perfect example of this. The reason they wanted to create an explainer video was because they discovered that their customers found it difficult to justify paying so much for their service. By creating an animated explainer video and featuring it on their homepage, they grew their conversions by 363%.

The reason it worked so well is because not only does it use a fun character to keep it super engaging, it drills right down to the core and shows viewers the benefits of how they can actually use their product to increase their own web conversions.

#6. 53% of businesses struggle to promote their video content

Promoting any content can be tricky, let alone a video. But if you want it to be a success then you need to ensure that you have a promotion strategy in place.

So where do you start?

Once you’ve created your video and sourced a hosting platform, first step is to put it on your website — so that could be your blog, your product pages, or your homepage. Next, share it on social and pay to promote it so that you can attract your target audience. Once you’ve got that covered, email your database, leverage influencers and set up an ad campaign so that you can drive plenty of viewers to your video.

#7. 91% of businesses say they plan to increase or maintain their spending on video in 2016

If there’s one thing we can say for certain it’s that video isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. We learnt that in 2015 on average, marketers intended to spend up to $5,000 on video, and this looks set to increase for 2016.

After looking at the stats it’s clear to see that the future is bright for video marketing. With more and more businesses using it to educate their audience, raise their brand awareness, and increase their ROI, isn’t it about time you jumped on the video bandwagon?

  Source : http://bit.ly/1Ym64je

4 Web Design Trends for Ecommerce in 2016

Web design  is constantly evolving, especially in the ecommerce arena where most retail companies heavily rely on online sales as their major revenue source.

The need to constantly innovate, adapt and stay on top of the most recent web design and online marketing trends is what makes the ecommerce space so fierce and competitive. The top preforming ecommerce sites for 2016 will be the ones that take advantage of the latest online trends, including the rapidly growing mobile sales market (mCommerce).

Here are a 4 emerging web design trends that will become more and more popular among eCommerce websites for the 2016 year.

1. Simple & Standard Site Designs

When it comes to ecommerce web design, simpler is always better. Just take a look at some of the most successful online retail giants Amazon and Walmart. Both retail sites are nearly identical in design. A simple site frame with a basic header, search bar, featured web banner, and popular product listing is all that’s really needed in a homepage.

The reason for this isn’t a lack of creativity, but rather a strong focus onconversion rate optimization (CRO). Successful ecommerce sites know what works and doesn’t when it comes to generating more sales online, and will most likely continue to stick with their same winning formula with a few design tweaks here and there.

2. A Focus on Mobile Commerce

With mobile commerce (mcommerce) sales continually on the rise, more online retailers will continue to come up with new innovative ways to create more mobile friendly sales experiences online.

With mobile sales conversions still relatively low, there exists a huge potential to tap into this still young and growing mobile commerce market. Expect to see many innovative web design trends focusing on improving and further integrating mobile friendliness and user phone experience.

3. More Pop-ups

Although pop-up ads are extremely annoying for many online users (myself included), they are still highly effective in converting sales. Otherwise, why would so many eCommerce companies still be using it?

Pop-ups are a highly underrated web marketing and design tool for converting customers in all steps of the online sales process. Adding in a quick coupon pop-up might entice a potential online customer to buy your product or at the very least sign up to your newsletter and return to your website at a later time.

4. Images Sell, Not Text

Ever heard of the saying “A picture speaks a thousand words”? Well it couldn’t be truer for eCommerce, and online in general. Think of Instagram. In a social media-dominated Internet, images rule – and ecommerce is definitely no expectation.

By incorporating high quality images that promote your product effectively, you can quickly grab a customer’s attention, and hopefully their checkout too.

Source : http://bit.ly/1S5zz9j

5 Quick Ways to Automate Social Media Marketing

There are experts who tell you not to automate social media. But small businesses devote a lot of time and energy to marketing – and the job is a continuous one.  It’s essential to invest time to market your business, but often hard if you have to manage orders, market, create content, advertise and sell at the same time. According to LinkedIn, 81 percent of small and medium-sized business use social media. It’s a great way to market your small business but can turn into an unwanted distraction.

When automation is done right, it allows you to put some tasks on autopilot. Here are some great tips to keep in mind as you enter the world of automation.

Queue your tweets.

Twitter can easily turn into a time suck leading to little productivity – something your small business can’t afford. Avoid getting distracted by queuing in advance. You will reach more followers on Twitter by spreading your tweets across a few hour time frame. You may wonder how to write for social media – don’t underestimate the importance of your posts. When it comes to Twitter, make sure your message is short and scannable for more engagement.

Use apps.

It’s simple to manage automation while you travel now that most social networking tools have apps for smartphones.  Apps can save you countless hours and streamline the automation process.

Interact

Log in and interact socially on all of your social networks at least daily so that all of your posts aren’t automated. Dive in daily for spontaneous updates so you remain engaged from beginning to end. It’s acceptable to take a break from social networks when you are on a vacation, just make sure you join the conversation when you return.

Automate your RSS.

Bloggers want to share their latest posts to as many social platforms as possible. Since nearly everything that ends up on the blog eventually makes its way to social media, automation comes in to play. You can automate so that new posts get transmitted directly into your social media channels. The only catch is that you want to double check the formatting of everything prior to setting this process in motion. Pay attention to the feedback from you audience – RSS content can scream automation which may turn off some of your social audience.

Recycle your blogs.

It takes a lot of time to create new and valuable content, which is why it’s so important and smart to create pillar content that can be re-shared often. Content creators often want to know how to make your content go viral. One way to do this is to create pillar posts — ones that should not ever go out of date and will likely be shared time and again.

Remember that the goal of automation isn’t to remove all of your work entirely. It is actually to help you work more efficiently. Automation can allow you to work more effectively and frees up some time for you to spend on the other tasks that accompany small business ownership.

What tips do you have for social media automating?

Source : http://bit.ly/1Sk1vWt

How to Explain Influencer Marketing to an 8-year-old (or your boss)

You ’ve read all the recent Influencer Marketing case studies and are a little jealous of the return other brands are achieving. You would prefer to be the ‘cool kid’ rather than the ‘new kid’ on the block and have a great idea for an Influencer Marketing campaign. There is one thing stopping you from achieving rock star status with your branded content – approval from your boss.

You recognize Influencer Marketing is a necessary addition to your marketing budget, but how do you get buy-in from the top? It is simpler than you think. Just explain the concept of Influencer Marketing to your boss, as you would to an 8-year-old child.

Tell a story 

As humans, we are wired to be captivated by stories and easily recall information if it is relayed to us with rich meaning and visual cues. Stories engage the emotional side of our brains and drive us to take action. If you open your pitch with a story, you will be able to grab attention, make facts stick and data more retainable and understandable.

You know your boss best and what story would be relevant to them. Perhaps share a personal story of why you booked the company lunch at a restaurant that a friend recommended on Facebook. You could relate your story back to relevant stats such as: the average consumer mentions specific brands over 90 times a week in conversation with friends or family or that 68% of people feel that Facebook is the most trusted platform for product and service recommendations.

Tip: Don’t make your story long, but make it memorable.

Be the favorite teacher
Gives examples of superheroes Show how you can achieve a gold starBe ready to answer “Are we there yet?” 

We all had a favorite teacher at school that was an expert at explaining complex topics. Influencer Marketing is new and can appear to be overwhelming if explained poorly or if not understood correctly.

 It is important to provide background information, definitions, statistics etc. but don’t overcomplicate things to appear smart or knowledgeable on the topic.

Instead, keep things simple and avoid using too many technical terms that although might be relevant, make your boss feel that you need to be a rocket scientist to run a successful Influencer Marketing campaign. Don’t make them feel you are under qualified to do the job. Instead, make them feel confident that you have done enough research to take advantage of this new opportunity and are convinced of the value Influencer Marketing can add to your business and marketing plans.

Tip: When explaining complex topics, show how something works rather than resorting to just talking about a topic.

My own childhood superheroes were the Ninja Turtles and I was absolutely convinced that nothing could ever beat their ninja moves. In the world of marketing, there are many brand superheroes that kick butt at Influencer Marketing. The internet is full of case studies and examples that you can use to showcase potential success and return on investment. Search for case studies related to your industry, business objectives or even concepts you find innovative. These case studies will provide credibility to your pitch and also give you a foundation for best practice.

Tip: Show what your competitors are doing with their own Influencer Marketing plans and explain how you will differentiate your business. If they are not using Influencer Marketing yet, this is an added opportunity to highlight.

Now that you have given the background into what Influencer Marketing is and have shown the results that other brands are achieving, you need to explain whyyou think it is relevant for your business and how you plan on achieving your own Influencer Marketing gold star status. This is the point you need to reveal how it will add value to your business.

The most effective way to do this is to show that you have already put thought into your own Influencer Marketing plan.  In short, a solid Influencer Marketing plan will specify the target market, propose a campaign that meets the business objectives, identify relevant influencers, explain how workflow and logistics will be managed, as well as how you will track the results.

Tip: Having a plan instills more confidence that the additional investment has potential to add value. Ensure that you showcase what you foresee as being the potential return on investment for the new budget allocation. Use your Influencer Marketing plan to propose not only how you will achieve your first gold star, but also how it is sustainable to be awarded ongoing gold stars.

Once you have buy-in and approval to go ahead, first give yourself a pat on the back and then be prepared to answer many eager progress questions. Trying something new and innovative is not just exciting for you, but all the stakeholders involved. You will be anxious to prove your campaign victorious and your boss will want regular updates on the status and results.

Tip: There are Influencer Marketing platforms and tools which make tracking your campaign results easy. This is important to not only showcase success, but also to justify ongoing Influencer Marketing budget. The investment in these tools helps you answer the question, “Are we there yet”, with confidence and provide all of the relevant data of the journey.

The tips I have shared are intended to help you put your best foot forward when explaining Influencer Marketing to your boss. Just remember that you know the audience you need to pitch to best – so tweak and personalize your content to what is most relevant to them.

Source : http://bit.ly/1FPWUqx

Six Tips To Stay Ahead of Social Media Trends

Small business owners have enough on their plates. They have to watch expenses, create marketing pieces, go to sales meetings, follow trends in their industry and keep up with trends on social media. They might have trouble staying on top of them all, but if they fail to pay attention to social media trends, they could miss golden opportunities.

Besides new features added to Facebook, LinkedIn Twitter and Pinterest, new social media sites are launched that do different things. Being on the forefront of social media changes can be accomplished. Here are a few suggestions on ways you can do just that.

1) Create a stream on Twitter with popular hashtags

You can start your goal of staying on top of social media by using social media. Create a stream on Twitter with popular social media hashtags. You can use terms like #socialmediamarketing, #smchat or #TwitterTip. Don’t be too general because you will see an influx of tweets into your stream. This stream will help you know what you can expect for the next month.

2) Make a Twitter list of influencers in the industry

Experts in social media often hang out in the social media sites. Whenever there is a new announcement that you should know, you will be able to get advice from the industry leaders tweeting the change and discussing it. Use the hashtags that you gathered and pick out the most active or insightful people who are tweeting. Make a Twitter list based on your research and spend time each day listening to what they have to say. Ask them questions too. That’s why they are experts.

3) Use Google Alerts on terms and influencers

Now that you have a list of influencers that you can follow on social media, you can set up a Google Alert for some of them. That way you will get regular updates when they post content or are interviewed about social media. Pick your top three favorite influencers and set up Google Alerts for them. This will help you stay up to date on any breaking news in the industry. Getting the alert once a day is perfectly reasonable. All you have to do is type in your search term (the influencer's name), select the types of results you want to see (news, blogs, videos, etc.), select your frequency, and you are ready to go.

4) Join LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn discussions can get lively. Because the site is geared toward business owners, they talk about changes on Facebook, new social media sites launching or future trends. You also will meet a lot of other social media enthusiasts. You will be able to network and ask questions of these people.

5) Subscribe to social media blogs

Also, you should read blogs that post content about social media so you can be sure that you won't miss anything. If there's a new feature or trend, it will definitely be on written about in detail on these blogs. More important than subscribing to these blogs is making sure you set aside time each week to read through your content.

6) Go to a conference

Take the time to go to a social media conference. This will be a great opportunity to hear from social media experts in the industry and be able to ask the burning questions you may have. You will get the most up-to-date advice about running a social media campaign and what you should know when using social media. You don’t have to attend in person. For example, Social Media Week allows you to attend via your phone, computer or tablet.

Source : http://bit.ly/1YK0AQU

Study: Is Instagram Becoming Saturated?

Follower Growth and Engagement Down

Locowise has found that Instagram growth and engagement were down in July by significant amounts. Did you notice?

The company looked at 2,500 Instagram profiles and their progress for the month of July and found the average follower growth was just 0.34 percent, down 77 percent from May.

• Organic growth dropped from: 1.95 percent in April, to 1.48 precernt in May, to 0.49 percent in June and now 0.34 perdent in July;
• However, this is still better than the 0.21 percent organic page likes growth on Facebook, or the 0.19 percent growth on Twitter.

The average engagement rate was 2.12 percent of all followers, down 19 percent since May.

• Engagement declined from 2.8 percent in April, to 2.61 percent in May, to 2.14 percent in June and now 2.12% in July;
• This is still better than 0.52 percent of total page likes that engage with an average post on Facebook or the 0.15 percent of total followers that engage with the average tweet.

According to a company blog post:

300 million people now actively use Instagram. Facebook reports that a user spends 46 minutes per day between Facebook, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram. 32 percent of U.S. teens see Instagram as their main platform compared to 24 percent for Twitter and 14 percent for Facebook.

Other stats:

• The 2,500 profiles Locowise studied posted 2.39 posts per day on average
• 93.29 percent of all the posts were images, while 11.28 percent of all comments were on videos, despite video being only 6.71 percent of all content posted
• 97.64 percent of all interactions were likes, 2.36 percent were comments and the response time for the first comment to be posted was 49 seconds on average
• Photos engaged 2.16 percent of followers on average, while videos engaged 1.58 percent
• Up to 24 million Instagram users could be bot accounts. These are fake accounts that are active on the platform and are interacting with other users. These spam accounts have posted 6 images on average and have a follower-to-following ratio of 1:41.  

Source : http://bit.ly/1VhAhyJ