In the digital marketing space, video and video marketing has gone from novelty to necessity. Companies that use video marketing, in conjunction with traditional content marketing, see much more engagement and higher click-through rates than those without a video marketing strategy. Video's strongest area, however, may be in the sales process—and this is most important thing you should relay to your boss or CEO when pitching video marketing.
Video increases brand association by 139%, and roughly 1/3 of all online viewership is spent viewing and sharing videos.
For most marketers, the value of video is pretty clear; but how do you sell video to your boss? You know it can help your business bring in and close more deals, but what's the best way to convince your company decision-makers that's the case?
Branding, Trust and the Sales Process
Video's greatest strength is in its ability to tell a story; to establish a brand using emotion, relation and trust. There is no form of content more powerful than video when it comes to recognition and high-level engagement, and that's a great way to start the conversation when getting your CEO to buy-in with video marketing.
Visual content, and video in particular, resonates very well with general audiences (especially those on mobile; in 2016, 51% of all video plays were via mobile, an increase of 15% from 2016 and 203% from 2014). Your viewers will be more likely to share content supplemented with video, and landing pages that feature video typically convert at much higher rates than those without.
Placing a single video on a website's landing page can increase overall conversions by as much as 86%.
Why is this? Trust. Your audiences (and not to mention, their decision to buy) are dependent on trust. They need to know not only what your product is or what your business does; they need to know they can trust in your business to fulfill a need or want. Time and time again, it's been proven that video is among the most effective ways to generate that trust.
More Engaging Content Across All Mediums
In addition to branding and sales power, video provides versatility. Video is an essential in social media marketing and as a form of cross-platform content. With the rise of live video streaming on social media, platform integrations with video hosting options and rising multi-device engagement, video is now a central part of sales and marketing.
Multimedia is multi-use. Video content and conversion elements resonate extremely well with today's mobile audiences, and that's definitely a point to touch on when discussing video marketing with your CEO. In fact, 48% of millennials watch video solely on their mobile devices.
If you're looking for higher engagement on social media and the conversions that come with it, then video, and media like video (such as custom team GIFs), are a great option for your business. Of course, the best way to sell video marketing to your boss is by tackling what they really care about: the bottom line.
Your Strongest Argument: ROI and the Bottom Line
When you get down to it, the best way to justify investment in video and video marketing to your CEO is by focusing on the bottom line: how will video content help the business achieve its sales goals and generate more revenue? Video is a great supplementary content for sales and marketing, but what kind of end-all, be-all ROI do most businesses see from their efforts?
98% of users say they've watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service. 74% of users who watched an explainer video to learn more about a product subsequently bought it.
The modern state of video marketing is one that blends simplicity with branding. It's never been easier to capture data from video marketing to drive more informed and supported sales conversations. Most video hosting and marketing software (such as the one by our trusted pals over at Wistia) can be integrated with marketing automation software.
Your sales team will be able to actually see, within your sales CRM, when a lead plays your prospecting or email marketing video, as well as how much of that video they viewed and if they took action after viewing. The more insight your sales team has going in to a conversation, the better; video is the most engaging way to both draw that information and turn MQLs into SQLs.
"Using the word 'video' in an email subject line boosts open rates by 19% and clickthrough rates by 65%."
When push comes to shove, there's nothing more valuable than the stats. Here are some of the most convincing figures we've found through years or practicing and promoting video marketing for our clients:
- This year, it's estimated that video content will represent 74% of all Internet traffic (HubSpot)
- 72% of businesses who use video believe that it has improved the conversion rate of their website (Wyzowl)
- 75% of executives told Forbes that they watch work-related videos at least once a week (VidYard, Forbes)
- Businesses using video spend 19% less per marketing-generated lead than those without video (The Aberdeen Group)
So, what's the best way to pitch video and video marketing to your CEO? Focus on the numbers. What kind of growth have businesses like yours experienced with video, and what areas in your current marketing strategy can you identify that video can improve? If your sales process needs an extra push or your social media strategy is growing stale, convincing your boss to invest in video marketing is a wise move for your next quarter marketing strategy.
Alex Dunn
Alex is a University of South Florida mass communications graduate and Video/Media Specialist at Bluleadz. He is a big movie nerd, loves (possibly dangerous) concerts and enjoys taunting co-workers with a camera. He's probably seen The Royal Tenenbaums 14 times by now.