Social platforms are increasingly moving towards the use of video content. Facebook caused controversy when it introduced auto-playing videos, but now, we all expect to see them in our streams.

Twitter has championed video with Vine, and we’re seeing more videos pop up in Pinterest. MeVee is the newest player in real time social streaming, up against Meerkat and Periscope.

ReelSEO found that 96 per cent of surveyed B2B marketing stakeholders are engaged in video content marketing. Cisco estimates that, by 2019, 80 per cent of the world’s internet traffic will be video. If you’re a marketing professional, you have two clear choices: get on board, or get left behind.

The impact of video on marketing

Content marketing is a dynamic landscape, and goes far beyond blogging and tweets. Video is way to generate leads, but it’s also a very useful way of creating two-way conversations, which is the essence of successful social campaigns.

Image Source

In a survey of 350 B2B marketing professionals, 73 per cent said video has a positive impact on ROI and results. 41 per cent said they planned to increase their spend.

Respondents are using video for a range of approaches, including website and email marketing and brand awareness. Research suggests that you can boost email open rates by 19 per cent, simply by using the word ‘video’ in the subject line. ReelSEO also found that 75 per cent of respondents are optimizing video to boost SEO.

The game changers

The figures that support the use of video are truly staggering. 78 per cent of people watch videos online every week, and more than 65 of viewers watch more than three quarters of a video.

Image Source

To leverage these big audiences, you’ll need to identify and overcome barriers to adoption, and allocate the right budget and resource. You must devise ways to measure the ROI of your videos, whether they are used on social platforms, or deployed as ads.  And authenticity is key, so if you don’t have in-house video producers, you’ll need to recruit or outsource immediately.

Changing landscapes

Cisco says that video consumption will increase over the next 4 years, driven by streaming services and the increasing number of fast internet connections. Soon, half the world’s population will have internet access, and each individual will have several connected devices that are video-ready.

The IAB says that half of our daily consumption of digital media takes place on smartphones and tablets, and Ericsson confirms that video traffic will grow 55% per year, for the next 5 years.

We’re also going to see 4K video improving engagement with super-crisp clarity and exceptional quality. The faster our connections are, the more we’ll be able to enjoy this new high standard in video.

Video is here to stay

Mobile and social have evolved to a point where the use of video is everywhere. 81 per cent of businesses now feature video on their website.

To stay relevant and engage your audience, you’re going to have to increase your use of video, using it to underpin inbound marketing and boost communication with your audience. You simply can’t ignore video any longer.

2016 is an exciting year for marketing; all of the tools you need for video marketing are out there to be exploited. We’ll continue to update you throughout the year as the use of video marketing explodes.