Perhaps the most important element of modern-day marketing and advertising is video. In fact, video has been referred to as the king of content because it represents greater consumption numbers than television, radio, and print combined. This guide examines the history of video in marketing and advertising, the amount of video used, the advantages of using video, and the different types of video content produced.
History
Many believe that video is a product of the digital age, but this is a misconception. The first video advertisement dates back to 1941 when a video was shown on a billboard in New York during a baseball game.
In the modern era, the use of video in advertising and marketing is inexorably tied to the internet. Video advertising on the internet first began in earnest with the advent of YouTube in 2005. The advent of YouTube was complemented by the development of high-speed internet and improvements in video compression technology. These three factors led advertising agencies to promote video ad inventory and marketers to increase the proportion of their advertising budgets that were dedicated to video.
In 2006, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) was formed and it defined three distinct video format categories. These were: In-Stream Video, In-Banner, and In-Text formats. In 2008, IAB introduced VAST – the Digital Video Ad Serving Template. VAST offered a standard protocol that allowed servers and video players to communicate. This meant that advertisers could now utilize video ads across different formats, different devices, and different publishers.
Statistics
The U.S. motion picture, video production, and distribution industry in 2019 produced a total revenue of 74.97 billion U.S. dollars,
Digital video internet ad revenue in 2019 was $21.7 billion. This was a 33.5% increase over 2018 digital ad revenues.
Reasons why people are using video to advertise:
1. Video generates a high level of ROI.
It is estimated that approximately 83% of businesses report a good Return On Investment (ROI) Making a video is not a cheap exercise but the return on investment suggests that it is certainly worth the time and money spent in producing one.
2. Video Builds Trust – Seeing is believing.
Video tends to build consumer trust. Video allows producers to demonstrate a product’s use before the consumer’s eyes. Video, engages watchers and induces an emotional response. Consumers trust video because it portrays a product before their eyes and therefore becomes more believable. The trust level is increased when a product is linked with a personality who is known and respected.
3. Videos affect search engine ranking.
Statistics show that video directly affects a website’s search engine ranking. It is believed that videos will cause people to spend a long time on a site. This longer exposure is interpreted by search engines as signifying that a site has good content, and the result will be a higher ranking. In fact, statistics show that if a site has an embedded video, it is 53% more likely to gain a higher ranking on Google.
4. Video is the format of choice for mobile users.
Video and mobile phones complement each other perfectly. It is estimated that 90% of consumers will view videos using their mobile phones, and YouTube estimates that overall mobile video consumption doubles every year. Statistics also demonstrate viewing habits. For example, statistics show that viewers using mobile phones are twice as likely to view a video than TV viewers, and 1.4 times more likely to view a video than viewers on a desktop computer.
Some different types of video content:
1. Vlog
A Vlog is basically a video blog and it has the advantage of being easy and cheap to produce. A Vlog builds a connection with your audience and provides the chance to build a brand image. A successful Vlog creates followers and provides a chance to explain what you do and how you do it.
2. Behind-the-Scenes/Company Culture
This video format gives viewers a “behind the scenes” look at company culture. This has the advantage of connecting with viewers and make them feel as if they are part of the team — part of the company culture. Viewers come to relate to characters in the video, identifying with their character traits and the events that happen to them. This is a subtle way to establish corporate and brand loyalty.
Corporate videos, such as the behind-the-scenes video, can be done by the corporation itself or by a professional corporate video production service provider. There are numerous other forms of corporate videos, and video production will normally give companies different options.
3. Animation video
Animated videos are surprisingly popular on both the production side and the viewing side. From the production perspective, they are less expensive, easier, and quicker to produce. Animation is also a great way to simplify a complicated message to make it easier to understand. From the viewer’s perspective, animated videos are popular because they can be easily and quickly consumed.
Video as a medium has technologically evolved at a rapid pace and continues to do so in present times. This accelerated evolution has occurred in tune with the internet. As the internet evolves, so does video. In today’s internet-dominated environment, video content is king. The video market is experiencing unprecedented growth, both in terms of production and consumption.
