Spotlight on Video
The Online Guessing Game
Online marketing is a guessing game. There are lots of "experts" out there who can overwhelm you with data, but figuring out how to apply the data is a whole different matter. Take for instance trying to figure out when it's the best time to post on Facebook. You could probably find as many answers to that question as there are experts, because it really depends on what you are posting and when your audience is online.
Figuring out what to post is a little bit easier. Pretty much all data will tell you images draw more interaction than text and that, for now at least, videos get the best engagement. That's all well and good, but I wanted to know why and here's what I found out.
Why Video Works
Solomon's ancient wisdom, "there's nothing new under the sun," still stands the test of time. However, it is simultaneously true that humans adapt so well to whatever comes their way, especially technology, things are also constantly changing. That's why video is the hottest thing on social media. Humans haven't adapted to it yet, or at least, that's the theory I found convincing.
See, we've been adapting to the changes in social media at a break neck speed. Facebook and Twitter arrived on the public scene in 2006. Do you remember trying to upload your profile picture back in those days? It was quite an ordeal. In fact, adding pictures remained an ordeal for several years.
During your first few days on Facebook and Twitter, you probably read every single post that showed up on your newsfeed. Try to recall how long it took you to start scanning the profile pictures on the posts to decide which ones you would actually pay attention to - wasn't long was it?
Then the cameras on smartphones became highly functional with great quality. Instagram came along and we were in love all over again. We posted our meals, our cats and our kids - though not exactly in that order. Our minds were fascinated by the novelty...for awhile. Then we got very good at assessing the value of a still image very quickly and began to consume photos without even slowing down our scroll.
The new rage is video and one of the reasons it works is because our brains have not adapted to it yet. Stationary memes with large titles announcing their message are the norm and to our ever curious brain are almost passe. The good news is that your message gets across whether your audience actually stops to click or not.
Our brains still need to watch a few moments of a video to figure out what it is about, before it decides against it. So people click and videos continue to rack up stats, even as the length of videos dwindle to accommodate diminishing attention spans.
Need Video?
While your audience doesn't expect professionally produced video with every appearance you make on social media, you want to be sure you aren't cheapening your brand with too many spontaneous videos, filmed on the fly. Selfie photos are bad enough. Selfie video can be a lot worse.
That's where we come in. We can create high quality video images your audience will love - from quick slideshows, to full blown productions. Bring us your ideas and your budget. We'll work to put you in click-worthy videos you'll be proud to po
st again and again. Call today and let's chat about your social media plan.