How videos transform your online marketing

Perhaps more than anything else, videos have the power to transform your digital marketing strategy.

According to HubSpot, putting a video in an email leads to 200-300% increase in click-through rate, a video on a landing page increases conversions by 80%, and mobile consumption on YouTube rises 100% every year.

And videos don't just build engagement. They also break up web pages and give eyes a breather. And they provide easily shareable content that can go viral. Sharing content with your audience keeps you on their minds—and that proves to be handy come buying time. The more educated and immersed people become in your brand, the better they feel about making outdoor furniture investments with you.

For something that doesn't require much budget, videos can be put directly on websites, blog posts, in email blasts and social media posts. That covers a lot of ground!

Outdoor furniture retailers and manufacturers need to take advantage of videos as a marketing tool.

Here are few ways to do just that:

Live Social Media

Social media platforms have certainly gotten the memo and are taking advantage of this visual approach. The most popular example is Facebook Live (check out this Furnitureland South example). Users have always had the ability to share and upload videos, but this takes it a step further—anyone who wants to post can film themselves live and interact with their followers in real time.

Facebook sends out a notification to your friends and followers, alerting them to the live video, and they can choose to view it while cameras are rolling or they can watch it later, as it gets saved to your profile. Engagement and views often skyrocket for those who engage in live videos, and these videos will even get your newsfeed preferential treatment compared to other Facebook profiles.

Other platforms that have similar live capabilities include Instagram, Twitter via Periscope and video calls for Snapchat.

Website Content

Web surfers are notorious for having short attention spans, but videos are a great way to capture their attention. Casual retailers can use videos to talk about products, improve branding, engage potential customers and even answer frequently asked questions.

Videos are a great way to share your expertise and reach a range of new audience members who don't wish to read. Also, it allows you to "humanize" the brand—viewers can see some of the behind-the-scenes action and possibly learn more about the people involved.

Some examples of engaging videos include: product care, history of the brand, spotlighting individual employees, explaining shipping/return policies, customer reviews and quirky/humorous material that relates back to your brand or products.

Keep it Simple

For anyone who hasn't created a video before or is still a rookie, it can be overwhelming. Here are a few simple things you can do to make your video look and sound great:

• Test the audio. If needed, do a 10-second "test run" to see how you sound on camera. If you're live, speak up and/or go somewhere that doesn't have much background noise.• Keep it short. Not everyone has the time to watch 30-minute videos, and you don't want to lose out on viewers. Two to three minutes is a good range.• If you're nervous, practice what you're going to say. If you're not live, you have the ability to edit out any mistakes. If you are live, know that it's OK if you stutter or misspeak—people won't be judging you. They know you're human.• Live videos can be done using your phone, so if you think there is a chance you might need to use the live features when you're out and about, make sure your phone (or mobile device) is charged.

One of the many goals in SEO campaigns is to engage your audience. Videos are possibly the most engaging platform that brands can use to sell their product.

Source: How videos transform your online marketing