There are enough marketing blogs about the rise of social media and video to make it to the moon and back. But if you’ll bear with me here, I’m going to add one more log to the growing video fire. Today, I’ll investigate the benefits of using video as a social media marketing tool.

For most businesses, video should be a part of your social media strategy. It gets better reach, it’s what your customers are looking for, and puts a human face on your brand. We’ll dive into the reasons why you should pursue video for social media. And then provide a few video ideas that you can use for your business.

Algorithm Friendly

Social media channels love video – and they will reward you for using it. It’s no secret that organic reach has been a free-fall the last few years. And now video is one of the only ways to effectively reach your audience without paying.

Video content continually and consistently outperforms all other forms of content shared on social media. So while video requires an investment, it can save you money if you are currently paying to expand your reach on Facebook or another social media channel.

Customer Desires

It’s not just algorithms that love video. According to recent research by HubSpot, 54% of consumers want to see video content from the brands they follow. That is followed by emails at 46%, social images at 41%, blog articles at 18%, and PDFs at 17%. Hubspot also found that video is the most memorable content that consumers viewed. Over 40% of consumers said video was the most easily recalled content (followed by photos at 36%, written content at 18%, and audio content at 3%).

These stats alone should be enough to convince you of the power of video. Customers are asking for video content – and social media providers stand ready to deliver that content. Don’t miss out on an opportunity to reach customers with a memorable message because video is scary.

Humanizing Your Brand

But the reasons to invest in video marketing go beyond just social media reach – they also serve to humanize your brand. By putting a face with your company, potential customers will see your brand as more trustworthy and personal.

There are hundreds (or even thousands) or people offering a similar service – you can stand out from the faceless crowd with video. Video can give consumers a peek behind the scenes at your business. And that is a valuable tool when facing regional, national, and even international competition.

Video Ideas for Social Media

It’s not hard to see why video is such a powerful tool for social media marketing. But wanting to use video and doing it are two totally different things. There’s no need to run out and drop ten thousand dollars on a professional production.

There are videos that don’t need that level of expertise. These videos can be produced either in-house or with the help your marketing company’s video department:

• Product Demos – Many potential customers want to see your product in action before they pull the trigger on a buy. Product demo videos are a great way to move people down your sales funnel by showing them what sets you apart.
• Tutorials – Tutorial videos are perfect for companies that provide more complex products or services. And they build brand loyalty as you show how you care about existing customers as much as landing new ones.
• Brand Introduction – Top-of-funnel content like brand introductions, vlogs, and company culture videos are a great way to catch the eye of potential customers. And they are some of the easiest to make – just turn on the camera and be yourself!
• Expert Interviews – Establishing your brand as an industry thought-leader takes time – but providing insightful videos like expert interviews will get you on the fast track to be an established voice in your market.
• Sponsored Events – If you’re involved with a local event you can use video to improve the value of your involvement. Showing off event video is also more likely to be shared and promoted by others that are also involved.
• Live Video – Live video shouldn’t be your first experiment with video marketing – but it is a powerful tool for experienced users. Just make sure you are going live when your target audience will have a chance to follow along – and make it interesting enough to keep their attention!
• Customer Testimonials – Everybody loves a good review – and there’s no better way to get a good review out there than by capturing it on video. It will take some time to find customers willing to go on camera for your brand – but a few video testimonials can help you close more deals.

Social Media Help

Navigating the ever-evolving world of social media marketing gets harder each year (especially now that our government is more involved than ever). If finding time to learn about organic reach and algorithms between running your business is getting out of hand, then it might be time to bring in the experts.

At Fusion Group USA, we eat, sleep, and breathe social media (along with a whole bunch of other things). We keep on top of algorithm changes and are always thinking of new ways to squeeze every drop of reach out of each post.

Contact us today to see how we can help build your social media marketing into something that changes your business for the better.