Video content has always been a big part of social media. After all, YouTube is the second most popular social media platform with over 2.5 million users a month.
Add YouTube’s consistent popularity to the rise of TikTok, Instagram Reels, and Facebook Stories, and you can easily see how video content is transforming the social media landscape.
This is especially true for brands and businesses that use social media. If you want to gain traction, you must start using video content.
Let’s look at why your business should post video content and why you could lose your audience if you’re not.
Why Your Business Should Post Video Content
Most people think the point of using video content is to go viral, but there’s much more to using video in your content marketing strategy.
According to Sprout Social, 93% of companies claim to have gained new customers thanks to their video content, even though video still only makes up less than 15% of all content on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. That’s an overwhelmingly high return on investment.
Video content is popular with social media users, too. Sprout Social claims 85% of users request that brands produce more video content. This is a good thing to remember, especially when planning out your company’s 2023 content marketing strategy.
This type of content is not only good for brands and users, but for social media algorithms as well. Though ever-evolving, the algorithms of most social media platforms have been loving and pushing video content over plain text or graphic content. Oftentimes this is because they know their users will enjoy and engage with video content.
Regardless of who you’re creating content for, you must start making quality video content if you want more exposure. It’s one of the best digital marketing tools available.
3 Benefits of Posting Video Content on Social Media
There are three major benefits to posting video content on social media and all of them will help your brand’s bottom line. Let’s discuss them.
1. Guarantee an Increase in Engagement
The first benefit of video content is that it guarantees an increase in engagement numbers. Whether your call to action involves sharing, liking, or commenting, chances are that your audience will be more likely to engage with your brand if you’re using video content.
Not only does this help your content to be seen by people in your audience’s close circles, but it also helps boost your content with the algorithms. If the algorithm can see that users are enjoying your content, it will be more likely to produce it for new audiences.
2. Builds Trust and Credibility
When it comes to digital marketing, trust and credibility are incredibly important. Video content is a great way to build authority, and show your audience that you know what you’re talking about while putting a face to your name.
Social media success is found in how consistent you are with your posts. If you post consistently with branded content, your audience will start to understand that they can trust you and the product or service you’re selling. You aren’t a fly-by-night kind of company. You’re a brand that is willing to do the work to stand the test of time. This type of trust goes a long way with consumers.
3. Brand Awareness and Recognition
Brand awareness and recognition are key if you want to build a sustainable brand. You want people to think of your brand the minute they are searching for your type of product or service. That’s where brand awareness and recognition come in.
Because video content is so dynamic and engaging, it’s more likely to be shared or commented on. The more people engage with your content, the more people will see it. The more people who are exposed to your brand, the better.
5 Video Ideas You Can Use Right Now
One issue with video content is that a lot of people don’t know where to start. The idea of producing video content can seem so daunting and overwhelming.
The truth is, though, video content can be easy! Here are five video content ideas that any brand can use right now to produce a video that is sure to receive a ton of engagement.
1. Behind the Scenes
This one is so simple that anyone can do it!
By nature, humans are curious. We want to know what other people are doing and how they are doing it. Why not tap into that and give your audience a peek into the operations of your business?
Show them a piece of the production process if you produce a product. If you sell a service, give them a small peek into your day and some things you do that improve your service more than your competitors.
Anything to make your audience feel like they’re seeing something that is usually reserved for company employees or close connections will help to boost their trust in your brand.
2. Quick Tips
There’s a reason why blogs and posts titled “Top 10 Ways to XYZ” have so much traction–people want to know how to make their daily tasks easier!
In your video content, give a quick tip on how to use your product or service to benefit your audience. If you sell a cleaning product, show them how to use it in a popular way. If you are a car mechanic, record a quick video on how to change a tire. Any tip that can be taught in a minute or less that relates to your brand works perfectly.
In addition to being an easy topic to record, quick tips are also shared frequently. Often, a consumer will see the tip, find it useful, and then share it with a friend or family member. This actually benefits everyone. The consumers learn a valuable tip that they can use in the future and your brand has gotten more exposure, potentially to an audience they haven’t been in front of before.
3. Testimonials
You can say all day long that your brand is the best, but it means more when it comes from an actual customer. That’s why people love testimonial videos!
Have a few of your best customers record a quick testimonial, giving your brand high praise. Your consumer will love hearing real and honest testimonials from other customers who have actually used and enjoyed your product or service.
4. Frequently Asked Questions
Regardless of your brand or what product you sell, consumers are going to have questions. Why not satisfy their curiosity with an FAQ-style video?
Some brands will go live and answer questions. While others will do an AMA (or Ask Me Anything) in a recorded video, where they answer a list of popular questions.
If you want to boost engagement, have your audience submit questions ahead of time and answer them in your video. You’ll be answering a question that other consumers probably have while making the consumer that submitted the question feel as though your brand actually heard them.
5. Highlight Your Product/Service
Another popular way to use video content to boost your views is to highlight one of your most popular products or services.
Show your audience exactly what you have to offer. This works especially well for product-based businesses because a video is going to show your product to consumers at angles that photos and graphics can’t.
Show your audience what your product is, how to use it, and why it would benefit them. Make it as interactive as possible by giving them questions to answer in the comments of your video.
Start Including Video Content in Your Content Marketing Strategy
Now that you see how beneficial video content is to your social media and content marketing strategies, it’s time to consider how to work it into your existing strategy.
Remember, your video doesn’t have to be perfect. It just needs to solve a problem or engage with your audience in a way that will build brand awareness, invite them to connect with you, and encourage them to engage and share your content. So whether you want to start with TikTok or Instagram Reels, the biggest hurdle is just that – getting started.
If you are still hung up on how to incorporate video content into your strategy, you could reach out to a professional, like the digital marketers here at Ignite Visibility, to get you on the right track.
Because when you get started, we’re sure that you and your audience will love your engaging and dynamic video content.
