Let’s take a look at the most recent Global, US, and Canadian research on the effectiveness of Video Content Marketing. My goal is to deliver key video marketing statistics to help both B2C and B2B Marketing Managers assess the value of video content relative to other content marketing types, make smart video production decisions, and help justify a stronger investment in business videos.
We’re going to be looking at credible video marketing statistics from industry thought-leaders – like the Content Marketing Institute, Google, and some of the top video platforms and leading video content providers. Meaningful statistics, not like the often quoted “One minute of video is worth 1.8 million words”. Cute, but just how useful is that insight for Marketing Managers?
So let’s dive right in.
Video is now a “top 3” choice for both B2B & B2C Marketing Managers
If you’re considering a bigger investment in video content, you’re not alone. The Content Marketing Institute, in conjunction with Marketing Profs, recently released their “B2C Content Marketing – 2018 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends for North America”. Their research is based on 195 respondents in B2C from across North America. The survey shows that Pre-Produced Videos are the 2nd overall content type preference of B2C Marketers, actively used by a whopping 76% of surveyed marketers.
In B2B, surprisingly, video has not yet made as big an impact on marketers (but is rising rapidly, especially in niche B2B sectors like Manufacturing, as we will see later). In a similar 2018 study of 870 B2B Marketing Managers, pre-produced videos rank 3rd overall as the content type most preferred by B2B Marketers. But in a 2019 follow-up study by CMI, we see that A/V content is seeing the fastest growth of all the content types, with 64% of B2B Marketing Managers indicating an increasing investment in A/V content such as business videos. So I expect it won’t be long before B2B managers catch up to their B2C counterparts in their strong preference for video content.
How about the Manufacturing niche of B2B?
Finally, 2018 video marketing statistics by CMI based on 155 Marketing Managers in the Manufacturing niche, video is seen as the single most effective content type in helping manufacturing organizations achieve their specific business objectives, ahead of the old stalwarts such as Blogging, Case Studies and Whitepapers. Check out this Manufacturing Corporate Video from StackTeck Inc., and the resulting testimonials.
Which types of business videos dominate?
The types of videos marketers prefer clearly depends on the specifics needs of their company and their industry, so I won’t cover this in great detail. Here’s some recent video marketing statistics from Vidyard’s “2018 Video in Business Benchmark Report”. The 10 most popular video types:
- Product Videos -63% of marketers have invested in this type of video
- Product Demo Videos – 59%
- Explainer Videos – 54%
- Webinar Recordings – 45%
- How-to/ Educational Videos – 42%
- Social Media Videos – 38%
- Customer Videos – 37%
- Livestreams – 24%
- Culture Videos – 23%
- Vlogs – 13%
I am not surprised by the top 5, since these all can be categorized under “Edutainment”, and videos excel at combining education of even complex subject matter with some degree of entertainment. I am surprised at the relatively low adoption of Social Media Videos, since these are quickly becoming the star of the video world (and we will be covering in an upcoming blog). The relatively low adoption of Vlogs should not be surprising, since written blogs are easier to scan and easier to digest than most “linear” Vlogs. There is nothing more frustrating than watching a talking head drone on, without an ability to first scan the material being covered to see if the material is of any interest.
Up and Coming Types of Videos
There a several new categories of videos that are worth mentioning: Interactive Videos, 360 Videos, and Personalized Videos. According to 570 marketers surveyed by Wyzowl in their “State of Video Marketing 2018” report“:
Interactive Videos
Interactive Videos are becoming more popular because it gives the video audience the opportunity to “branch” by clicking, scrolling, or other actions to interact with an otherwise “linear” video content. Key video marketing statistics:
- 20% of marketers have used interactive videos
- Of those that used it, 78% have found it to be an effective strategy
- 28% of marketers plan to use it in 2018, a 40% increase
360 Videos
360 Videos (immersive videos shot using an omnidirectional camera or a collection of cameras) are finding their niche in travel, adventure experiences, and real-estate. Key video marketing statistics:
- 15% of marketers have used 360 videos
- Of those using 360 videos, again 78% have found it to be an effective strategy
- 16% of marketers plan to use 360 videos in 2018
Personalized Videos
And then there are Personalized Videos: videos that merge data and video to deliver personalized experiences that capture the viewer’s attention. Vidyard shows us several powerful examples. Check out the video below, and imagine filling in the blank spaces on paper, posters, smartphone screen, etc. and with the donor’s name.
According to Vidyard’s video marketing statistics, personalizing to the individual level is more than just fun—it has a measurable impact on your marketing success:
- 4.5x increase in total/unique click-throughs – Vidyard
- 500% higher email conversions – Vidyard
- 35% higher retention rate than non-personalized videos – Vidyard
- 75% of late-stage prospects that received a personalized video became closed won deals – SalesLoft
And you can create your own in mere minutes. Try it out here.
Video length: Go short (or very long)
According to Vidyard’s “2018 Video in Business Benchmark Report”, the average length of a B2B video hosted on their platform is 9 minutes, and yet 75% of all videos published in the last year are less than 2 minutes long. What does this mean?
From our experience, it appears that video length distribution is turning ‘bi-modal’. Dwindling attention spans, especially on Social platforms, means that marketers are forced to communicate their video messages quickly and efficiently. That’s actually a great development, and brings to mind the timeless quote of Mark Twain: ““I didn’t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.” Shorter videos can be more focused and more compelling. But it does take better scripting, and tighter editing to create an effective, short video.
On the other hand, long-form content is making a comeback with both viewers and with Search Engines. Videos that target the bottom of the conversion funnel – like webinars and virtual-tours – can easily keep their hyper-targeted audience captivated for 10 minutes or more. As Vidyard’s video marketing statistics indicate, 9% of B2B videos are 10 minutes or more.
Video distribution: More is better
Once you create compelling video content, you want to leverage your video investment across as many channels and platforms as possible (see ROI section below). Again, Vidyard’s “2018 Video in Business Benchmark Report” shows that B2B marketers promote their video content across various channels – from their own website and Social Media accounts, to emails and sales conversations.
In a related report by Wyzowl “The State of Video Marketing 2018” focusing on both B2C and B2B marketers, we see the preference for various Social Media platforms for sharing video content, and the perceived effectiveness of each of these platforms. YouTube (poor video player but exceptional reach for supporting inbound search traffic) and Facebook (primarily for the B2C market) lead the pack in reach and effectiveness. Although not as popular as the other SMM platforms, LinkedIn is seeing strong growth and preference for video across B2B markets.
Videos are effective throughout the marketing funnel
Not surprising, videos are extensively used along the entire marketing and sales funnel, from shorter promotional videos early in the funnel (less commitment from your target audience = shorter attention span), to longer, more instructional videos at the bottom of the funnel. This level of content adoption throughout the funnel is unusual for other content types, and speaks to the versatility of the video medium.
Videos for the Top of the Marketing funnel
At the top of the funnel, you’ll find shorter promotional videos but also longer educational videos specifically designed for hi-level, informational queries and demand generation. According to thinkwithgoogle.com, Millenials turn to YouTube to answer the “how to” for just about anything. In fact, 67% of millennials agree that they can find a YouTube video on anything they want to learn. Home Depot is an excellent example of a B2C company that has tapped “how to” videos to educate customers, gain trust, and build the brand. A study by eyeviewdigital.com shows that using video on landing pages can increase conversion by 80%.
Videos for the middle of the Marketing funnel
In the middle of the funnel, Explainer videos excel, increasing dwell time on web pages where the videos are hosted. Not only does this assist with SEO, but the rich video content builds trust and brand preference. According to Wyzowl’s video marketing research, 72% of consumers would rather watch a video to learn about a product or service than read text.
Videos for the bottom of the Marketing funnel
At the bottom of the funnel we see longer testimonial videos, case histories, product demos, and virtual tours of manufacturing facilities. Here video acts as a ‘tipping point’ for an overwhelming majority of consumers – a decisive factor that convinces them to buy or download a product or piece of software. According to Wyzowl’s – The State of Video Marketing 2018 – 81% of people have been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a brand’s video. Similarly, Forbes video marketing statistics show that 64% of customers say that seeing a video makes them more likely to buy.
Video ROI: Finding the right balance between Quality & Budget
We know that video is a preferred content type for both B2B and B2C marketers. But does it actually deliver ROI? According to Vidyard’s video marketing statistics, 78% of marketers say video gives them a good ROI. Similarly, according to Wyzowl ,76% of marketers say it helped them increase sales.
Vidyard’s video marketing statistics also show that organizations that actively leverage video in their marketing grow their revenue 49% faster year-over-year than non-user organizations, and as a result commit an increasing percentage of their budget to video.
We all know that video production costs can vary widely, from home-made videos with a ‘shoe-string’ budget, to exorbitant productions using high-end technologies and expensive film crews. Which approach tends to deliver the best ROI? Wistia did a clever test to shed some light on this issue, creating 3 videos with a similar objective, but working with drastically different budgets: $1K, $10K, and $100K.
According to Wistia’s research, the $10K video performed twice as well as the $1K and $100K ads, with nearly half the Cost Per Install (CPI). On YouTube, the $10K ad had an average CPI of $6.66 vs. >$10 for the other two ads, and on Facebook, the difference was even more dramatic.
Using internal versus external Video Production Resources
According to the Content Marketing Institute’s 2018 video marketing statistics, 47% of B2B marketers and 49% of B2C marketers outsource content creation, including video production.
Vidyard provides a little more granularity in its 2018 Video in Business Benchmark report. The majority of marketers (all sizes of companies) use external resources for some video production, most likely because of the specialized skills and equipment required for high-end video production. Smaller companies (less than $25 million in annual revenue) rely more on internal resources, likely because of budget constraints and because the requirement for professional video production quality is less.
How to capitalize on these Video Marketing trends in 2019
Based on these key video marketing statistics, the trend is clear. Video is rapidly becoming the preferred content medium for both customers and marketers. But what is the most cost-effective way to capitalize on this trend?
Strategy precedes Creative
As with all-things-marketing, strategy should always precede creative if you want to drive business results. So, step one is to outline your Video Content Strategy (we’ll cover this subject in more detail in an upcoming post). What types of videos will deliver the most impact and ROI? How will you ‘platform’ and distribute your videos to ensure they get eyeballs from your target audience? And how will leverage video analytics to measure and demonstrate results? I’ve helped literally hundreds of B2B and B2C marketers develop cost-effective Video Content Strategies, and On Point can help to make this otherwise tedious process both fun and effective.
The right mix of Internal versus External Video Production resources
Next, what is the best combination of external and internal resources to meet your video production needs? What videos require sophisticated storytelling and high-quality production? What videos can be effectively created internally on a prosumer SLR or even an iPhone, and edited in iMovie? There are amazing technologies available today, like this under $200 iPhone teleprompter, that will allow you to turn out credible talking head videos using internal resources for literally pennies. Find the right mix that delivers the best ROI for your organization.
If you’re looking for an objective video marketing specialist to help you and your organization fully take advantage of the video content trend, contact me at On Point Video. And let’s get the power of video to work for you and your organization.