Why video content is the future of marketing

While it may be overused, the old adage, “content is king,” still rings true — perhaps more so than ever. According to eMarketer, a total of $118.4 billion has been spent on content marketing in 2013 alone and, as we allocate more and more of our budget towards content, we must contemplate new ways to keep the information we produce fresh and engaging.

Many marketers are seeing video as a prominent player in the future of content marketing — it’s a quick, consumable and provides a creative way to tell a story or communicate ideas without exhausting an audience. It can offer a refreshing, laid-back alternative to the large quantities of text we consume on a daily basis, not to mention it’s likely your competitors have not implemented video into their marketing strategy yet, giving you an advantageous leg up.

Traditionally, video content has been very difficult to measure and analyse, making it impossible to justify via ROI. But with new advancements in video content analytics, you can see who is watching your video, for how long, what parts are being skipped and what parts are being re-watched.

Once you decide that video content marketing is the right move for your company, how do you implement it successfully? Here are a few tips to make video as engaging, compelling and cost-effective as possible.

1. Don’t Break the Bank

You don’t need to throw your entire budget into one, high-production video to bait followers. Make your video part of a wider content marketing campaign that aims to generate ongoing, sustainable outcomes. Over time, when/if your goal changes, you will have the funds to be able to produce additional videos to meet your evolving needs. It is also important to note that it is unlikely at best that your video will be completely optimal your first attempt. If you make a pig’s ear of the first one, your economical approach will allow for changes and improvements to be made withinyour remaining budget.

2. Make Use of What You Have

Have any of your company members spoken at an industry event? Been on TV? Maybe you’ve filmed some product testing or development in the past? If so, there is a good possibility you’ve got some compelling footage already on hand. And if there is still not enough to put together an engaging video package, there are plenty of inexpensive ways to generate content that will give your customers an inside look into your business (think staff interviews and office tours). A tight budget doesn’t have to stop you from putting together a great video that connects with your audience.

3. Leverage Events

Holding events provides you with an abundance of subject matter for video footage. The key is to be resourceful and creative; use these opportunities to collect a wealth of content in one go. Interviews with international staff who would otherwise be unavailable, visiting speakers at the event as well as your own company speakers can all be accessed in one location! Now would also be a prime opportunity to gather some time-lapse footage depicting the buzz generated from your product or service at the event in question.

4. Assure Your Video Works Across Mobile Platforms

As more and more people access content on the move via iPads, tablets, and smartphones, it’s important to be sure your videos are optimally displayed when viewed from mobile devices. When choosing your distribution channels, make sure that at least one is properly formatted for responsive design and will support video playback on a variety of devices (remember: Flash is not accessible from iPhones/iPad).

5. Make it Interactive

There are tools that are now allowing for more consumer interaction within video. Dynamic content and maps as well as an ability to ask for responses within a video’s frame are just a few of the new capabilities available. Mozilla’s Popcorn is a good tool to look into to and find out more about video interaction.

The opportunity for your brand to creatively engage with its audience is constantly progressing and expanding. Video has undoubtedly shown a vast upward trend in the past two years alone and the best part is there is no one way to incorporate it into your marketing strategy. Whether you are a multi-million dollar brand or a mom and pop shop, video can be business and budget friendly.

If you think your business is ready to introduce video into your marketing strategy, contact our Managing Director, Steve Ballantyne. p: 09 950 2140

Mobile ads: A little less conversation, a little more action

Mobile devices have undeniably become an intrinsic part of our daily life and routine. They are so indispensable, in fact, that we are starting to associate them with our innermost circle of vital personal belongings — right up there with our keys, wallets, and watches.

And why wouldn’t it be? Calls, texts, email, online banking and social media is in the palm of our hand and instantly accessible. It’s a wonder then, that mobile isn’t hailed as the quarterback of the advertising platform team. In fact, it’s not even close. Mobile is like the third-string kicker. Who is only on the team because he’s the coach’s nephew…once removed. And if you aren’t following my American-sport analogy, mobile advertising’s performance is so underwhelming it is getting relatively no action whatsoever.

So what is holding mobile advertising back?

First and foremost, our preservative attitude about our mobile devices — they contain personal matters, i.e. contacts, pictures, messages, that we deem private. Unwarranted advertisements that appear on screen are generally felt to be intrusive and unacceptable.

Aside from being a general annoyance (fun fact: an individual is more likely to survive a plane crash than click a banner ad), mobile ads are difficult to read, unattractive and cumbersome. It is estimated that around 50 percent of mobile ads are clicked unintentionally due to awkward placement and tiny screens, making it impossible to gauge an ad’s effectiveness or collect an accurate reading.

Mobile campaigns are certainly facing some unavoidable hurdles, but who doesn’t love a good underdog story? Getting advertisements seen via mobile is possible, we just have to shift our focus.

Too often marketers exhaust their efforts by measuring the direct response success of a campaign when the most effective methods are those that are cross-platform and branding conscious. For the past few years, Starbucks has led the mobile marketing push with a carefully integrated, cross-channel programme. They operate with a high level of consciousness about their clients; by tracking mobile payments, rewarding customer loyalty and cleverly presenting ads across countless platforms, Starbucks’ success becomes measurable and their actions become branding experiences.

Mobile marketing, when delivered in an intelligent way, can certainly be advantageous to a brand. The challenge now for marketers and advertisers is to be open and experimental to find new and innovative ways to breed better ads that are delivered as a part of a larger, cross-platform campaign.

Curious with how mobile marketing could work for you?

Have a chat with Managing Director, Steve Ballantyne about how effective it can be on +64 9 950 2140

How your mobile browser experience affects your SEO

Search engine optimisation can be a tricky procedure for any business — especially on mobile. But as we live in the now, a world of tablet computers and smarter smart phones, we must accept the decline of the desktop in favour of something more portable and accessible. In the end, mobile is the future. While we cannot predict when mobile search will overpower desktop, it is inevitable. And to help ease us through the transition, Google has ordained and established a few suggestions.

 

 

Responsive Design — This is Google’s recommended configuration

Responsive design crafts sites to provide an optimal viewing experience — easy reading and navigation with minimal scrolling and re-sizing. And isn’t that what it’s all about? This type of web design adapts the layout to the viewing environment, which is great for mobile, tablet, and desktop devices! If you want to play it safe and smart, consider using this type of design for your next site (will also save you the headache of having to code both mobile and desktop sites).

 

Mobile Redirects

Mobile redirects are particularly essential to an eCommerce site with a variety of products. For example, if a person searches for “soccer ball” from a mobile device and a result is returned by say, Rebel Sport, that result must be directed to the mobile version of that page. In the event that only a portion of this site is optimised for mobile (home page, checkout, About page), it is recommended that the user is taken to a specific page, and not one which is a mobile-optimised home page.

 

Stay away from Flash!

Attempting to load a web page from a mobile device, only to find that is uses Flash, generates mounting frustrations as you unwillingly lower the proverbial anchor on any thought of further page navigation. Using embedded video that has been developed in HTML 5 will be accessible to all users. This way, if someone does happen to access your desktop site from a mobile device, the video will work seamlessly, and any attempt to view your product or service will not be thwarted by inflexible Flash.

 

404’s are a sure fire way to kill the mood

When Google says, “All pages should be optimised for mobile,” Google means it. If your site is mobile-friendly, but redirects users to a desktop 404 page, you’re still not quite hitting the mark. It is essential to confirm that your mobile 404 page is, in fact, formatted for mobile. Bear in mind that mobile 404 pages can be interesting and interactive for your users. Perhaps a game or a quiz?