Are you planning to invest in video content marketing?
Lots of blog posts and articles are talking about the age of video content marketing from 2020 onwards.
To be frank, I have been reading about video content marketing and why it is important for your content marketing success for a few years now.
A couple of years ago Cisco predicted that by 2022, 82% of Internet traffic will be video.
This is not surprising.
Internet connectivity is cheap and easily available these days.
An increasing number of people have mobile phones that can show videos from multiple video streaming websites like YouTube and TikTok.
From gadget reviews to learning French to solving high school maths, videos are watched for every possible purpose under the sun.
TikTok videos are atrocious but still it is the fastest growing video app in the world.
Facebook allows you to upload videos.
Twitter allows you to upload videos.
Instagram allows you to upload videos.
You can send videos using instant messaging apps like WhatsApp and Telegram.
Countries like India with big populations have begun to dominate the web and in these countries, people mostly watch videos.
Even illiterate people can watch videos because for watching videos, you don’t need to know how to read and write.
When formulating your content marketing strategy, I will never suggest you to go by numbers.
Simply because more people are watching videos doesn’t mean that you should focus more on video and less on text, or less on images.
You have to know what your audience prefers.
If you want to target people who drive a lot then you neither want to give them text nor video, you want to give them audio, something like podcasts.
If you want to create content for devices like Amazon Echo or Google Home then you want to target content that is easier to read, answers questions and gives precise information that is useful to people.
Video is going to be of no use in this case.
Trends are good.
They give you an idea of how technologies are evolving and how people’s tastes are changing and what type of content they prefer.
But when it comes to creating and publishing content specifically for your own audience, focus on what your audience prefers.
My prospective clients are looking for a content writer – someone who can write.
They’re not looking for someone who can create videos.
Hence, I write.
Looking for a copywriter to write your video script?
I’m not interested in creating videos.
Does it mean I shouldn’t create videos or I am advising you against using videos for content marketing?
No.
What I’m saying is, put maximum energies into content your target customers and clients prefer and then if you have extra resources, then try to focus on other channels and other content formats.
For example, sometimes I try to create videos explaining various content writing and content marketing concepts.
This helps me expand my brand presence.
Is creating and publishing videos for content marketing difficult?
It depends on what type of videos you want to publish.
If you simply want to talk to people, you can use your mobile phone and then a decent video editing software like Filmora to fine-tune the video.
You can show your customers and clients how you work in your office, again, using your mobile phone.
Most of the mobile phones these days allow you to make very decent videos.
Office 365 has PowerPoint which allows you to create almost professional-looking videos.
What I’m trying to say is, you don’t need a very big budget to use videos for content marketing.
Having said that, I would like to repeat, create and publish content according to your target audience.
Should you start investing in video content marketing?
Not because people are saying it, but because you feel your audience will appreciate video content.
I’m not undermining the importance of creating and publishing videos.
As I have mentioned above, I too sometimes create videos, but I do so for brand visibility, not expecting work from YouTube.
I know that people looking for a content writer or a copywriter are not going to go to YouTube and search for “I need a professional content writer”.
I know that they are going to look for a content writer either on Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, or LinkedIn, or maybe Twitter.
On the other hand, if I sell a blender and I want to show what a strong blender I have got, I know a series of videos will certainly do a lot of good to me.
So, again, think carefully, and then decide.