When people say “content is king” what type of content are they referencing? Content marketing over the last five years has evolved. It went from simple blogs to generate more website traffic, to intense brand storytelling, to published articles and guest blogging, now it’s evolved to podcasting and video content.
So ask yourself this; What type of content best reaches your target audience?
HubSpot recently released some great digital marketing data. From their findings we breakdown a very compelling argument why video content is a key for a content marketing strategy moving forward.
By the numbers: Why small business need to think video content.
Facebook owns six of the top 10 most used apps in the world. The reason why this is important, outside of knowing a fun Facebook fact, is that we know Facebook has put a HUGE emphasis on video content in 2016. Scroll up and down your news-feed on Facebook and you will see it’s filled with video content.
If that’s not convincing enough. Let us show you the data. The image below shows how users are viewing their mobile screens. The reason this is important is because it shows that 29% of current mobile view times are spent using a vertical screen. Why are people using a vertical screen? You guessed it – to get more mobile real estate for videos!
Do you still need more data to convince you? Well if so, this might be the most staggering stat of them all. Native Facebook video posts get more reach than ANY other content format.
Currently video content receives on average 5% more engagement than plain “photo content” on Facebook. Every marketer understands how critical organic reach is on Facebook, this data shows us video is the best content to reach an engaged organic audience. Oh yeah- One last fun fact, it’s been reported that 65% of viewers watch more than ¾ of a video. This tells us it’s worth putting the time in when it comes to content creation.
Create lazy and simple content for your readers
A few months back we told you simple ways to improve your email response rate. One of our suggestions was to “write like a third grader”. The reason for this is because in today’s digital age people want simple content. And to be frank, in today’s online world, most people searching for content are lazy and want “quick” storylines and answers. I’m just as guilty of it as anyone else.
Most people don’t stay on a website or blog longer than seven seconds. As content marketers we not only have to grab attention, it’s also our job to keep people’s attention. As you can see in the data above that was provided by Hubspot, the best form of content to keep someone engaged is video.
The New Trend: Interactive Content Marketing
Here at GoEdison we have been using the term “interactive content marketing” since the beginning of 2016. We aren’t sure where it came from, but it just seems to fit. If you look at the trends from the past year, it’s been about new types of content that’s promoted through different channels. Let’s break this down a little more. Listed below are some trends that proves our audiences need interactive content marketing.
Periscope: Originally founded in 2014 Periscope didn’t blow up until May of 2015 when Twitter acquired the company and released the video streaming app to the public. Periscope gives users the ability to live broadcast their life.
In August 2015, the first TV channel launched on Periscope. Parachute TV was created by Caroline Lesley and Jon Erlichman. Currently the channel features over 60 shows a week from over 100 creators. Also to note, the first ever Periscope Awards were hosted this past April.
GIFS: Another feature Twitter has really brought to the forefront through social media that we are now seeing in content marketing strategies are GIFS. GIFs are great content pieces that allows you to get creative with your marketing.
Some people are claiming that GIF marketing is a thing for millennials only. We would disagree. We fully think GIF’s are a new form of interactive content that catch attention and build engagement.
As you know, we are big advocates for email marketing. Here’s a new fresh way brands are using GIFs to master email marketing.
Facebook Live: Full disclosure, I love Facebook. We recommend many small businesses to use Facebook. But one thing Facebook is really good at is mimicking. Facebook mimicked the hashtag, they have started to implement GIFs, and yes, you guessed it, they are now mimicking “live” broadcast videos, similar to Periscope.
Back in May, Facebook announced that it will now let users view live broadcast windows for 24 hours a day. Before you could only use Facebook live for a total of 90 minutes. Facebook has worked hard to evolve their live video platform since it’s launched back in April. They are now allowing users to geo-tag specific locations where they want their video to only be streamed.
Moral of this story here is two things: Once again, it shows that Facebook is not only putting an emphasis on video content, but live broadcasted videos. Second; if you can do it, Facebook can and will do it better.
Podcasting: Although podcasting isn’t video, we want to make brief mention of it. Podcasting has seen a BOOM of users start using it has a content channel the last two years. Again, this is another trend that proves our point that content has to go further than just a simple blog or article. Our content now has to become more tangible. We have to hear it. We have to see it.
In the world of digital marketing, timing is everything. Catching the waves before and while they happen can elevate your brand into a different echelon of marketing. Now we have the ability to make incredible content from the palms of our hands. Literally, we can record and edit videos from our phones. Small businesses (and most businesses in general) are missing huge opportunity when it comes to utilizing video content in their content marketing strategy.
Blogs are now expected. They are status quo. Be Bold with your marketing strategies and stop settling for average. Get in front of the camera and show the world your brand.
A great source to follow or contact for all of our your video needs would be one of our partners, OutFit Marketing. When it comes to Denver video production they do wonderful work for small to medium sized businesses.
We love to build and create. Let us give you a FREE content marketing audit today.