The value of videos: why eCommerce businesses need social media videos
Looking for a new way to increase reach and generate sales for your eCommerce business? Social media video marketing is a strategy you need to get using!
Video marketing is a strategy used by advertisers to showcase their business through video content. It is an engaging, interactive, creative way to keep the attention of viewers and deliver key messages. The beauty of video is that it can include other content too, like images, sound and copy.
If you combine video marketing with social media marketing (a strategy used to engage a target audience through social media platforms) you can increase your reach and use videos on social media to generate sales for your eCommerce business. This is known as social media video marketing.
If you want to learn more about the importance of social media video marketing for eCommerce businesses and the different types of social media videos you should consider for your paid social strategy, then read on!
Why is social media video marketing important?
Because everyone else is using videos! If you take a look at your competitors, we can almost guarantee they will be utilising the power of video on their socials.
Content like pictures, articles and blogs aren’t enough on their own anymore (although they’re still really important!). Your eCommerce business needs entertaining, informative, eye-catching video content to drive conversions and increase sales.
The numbers don’t lie: 92% of marketers believe that video is an important part of their marketing strategy and 93% of marketers use video for online marketing, sales, and communication. We told you everyone is investing in videos!
There are several reasons why brands use social media video marketing as part of their paid social strategy. Let us break it down for you:
- Video increases conversion rates: If you create video content that captures the viewer’s attention and encourages them to explore your brand further, you can boost sales and build a loyal customer base; 84% of consumers have been convinced to make a purchase after watching a brand’s video.
- Videos build community and trust: Video content gives you the ability to showcase multiple aspects of your business; from testimonials to your team to a behind-the-scenes look at how the business works. You can use video content to humanise your brand and connect with your audience. User-generated video content is an effective way to highlight authenticity. The more the audience resonates with your videos, the more likely they are to trust your brand and become a customer.
- Videos work well for mobile users: Mobile’s are a huge part of everyday life. People consume content all the time – whether that’s on the way to work, waiting for an appointment or relaxing on a Sunday. Having video content that viewers can watch at any point of the day is an effective way to increase reach and engagement. Mobile users also like to share videos; 92% of mobile video consumers share videos with others, so using video content can also increase the reach of your brand.
- Video increases engagement on social media: Viewers can interact with video content quickly. Users are also more likely to watch a video rather than read a 1000-word article and are 95% more likely to remember a call to action after watching a video.
As you can see, there are many reasons why eCommerce businesses need to value the power of social media videos. Let’s find out what types of social media videos you can use for your eCommerce business.
6 types of social media videos to generate eCommerce sales!
‘About us’ videos
Making your audience resonate and feel invested in your brand is essential when building brand trust and loyal customers. ‘About us’ videos give people an idea of what your brand and team are all about. Here you can go into detail about what you do, why you do it, brand values, your team and why you are better than your competitors! All of this information is important for your audience, so providing it in an engaging, creative video is an effective way to clearly deliver all of it.
The more people feel like they know your brand, the more likely they are to engage with your brand and become customers.
‘Product close-up’ videos
People love to see products in detail; no one wants any surprises when the product arrives. Before making a purchase, people want to be sure of the physical quality of the product. A ‘product close-up’ video allows you to get all the angles needed to promote your product and showcase the best parts in detail.
A ‘product close-up’ video should reduce any questions or queries a viewer may have about your product. Therefore, they will be more confident in the quality of the product and be more likely to make a purchase.
‘Product Overview’ videos
A ‘product overview’ video provides a summary of the product. In a ‘product overview’ video you can showcase not only the physical properties of a product but also the product functionalities, purposes and prices. The idea of a product overview is to give the audience all the information they need to make a purchase.
There are 3 main types of ‘product overview’ videos:
#1 Informational: This type provides helpful information to the target audience. By establishing authority using this video type, you can generate sales.
#2 How-to: Tutorials provide that extra layer of information. By making the customer’s life easier you are increasing brand trust and confidence.
#3 User-generated: As these videos feature real stories from previous customers, prospective customers are likely to find this type of overview extremely engaging. Ultimately, people trust other people, so having previous customer testimonials will encourage people to trust your brand.
‘A message from the founder’ videos
As the person who started the business, the founder is someone you should have on your social media videos. Hearing from founders or CEOs is crucial in making people feel at ease and trust in the company. It not only humanises the brand to generate sales but this video type can also be used as a way to recruit new employees.
Themes for founder videos could be:
- Announcements (founder videos can draw attention to new product launches or events)
- Appreciation (founder videos can make customers feel valued and cared for)
- Q+As (founder videos can provide information to prospective customers)
- Live videos (founder videos can be created in real-time which can help customers interact directly and resonate with the brand)
‘Explainer’ videos
Sometimes there is a lot of product information to share. ‘Explainer’ videos are a great way to clearly and creatively deliver all the information the audience needs.
Explainer videos are effective because audio and visual stimuli work together to explain detailed aspects of the business and product.
This type of video will hopefully give the audience confidence in your product and remove any confusion.
‘Trending’ videos
Jumping on social media trends in your videos is a great way to increase reach and engagement. If a trend is popular and you include this within your video, you are going to appeal to and gain attention from your audience.
However, it is important to note that social media trends are constantly changing and if you post after peak popularity, it is likely your content won’t receive great results. Keeping up to date with trends and timing your post perfectly is key!
3 must-dos when creating social media videos
| 1. Understand your audience | 2. Try different ideas and test them | 3. Take into account platform suitability |
| You need to know what your audience wants.
You should have your audience at the front of your mind throughout the entire creation process. Remember, you are creating a video for them. If it isn’t relevant to them, they won’t engage and they won’t buy! To ensure your video hits the mark, do your research and learn about your audience’s interests, behaviours and demographics. |
Experiment with different video content and see what works!
By monitoring your analytics, you can see which videos perform best and then make more videos of a similar type. You can look for patterns within your video content; do certain topics perform better? Do certain video formats get more likes? Do certain video lengths increase views? Once you figure this out, you can refine your social media video strategy to achieve ultimate success. |
Each social media platform has different content specifications and recommendations.
Making sure your video content fits within the platform specifications is essential because if it doesn’t, the content may not drive the results you want. For example, YouTube videos require an eye-catching video thumbnail. Facebook requires native content so users don’t immediately disengage with the video. On LinkedIn, vertical videos will look square on the newsfeed so you need to take this into account. |
Feel inspired to start creating social media videos?
Hopefully, you now understand the power social media video marketing holds for eCommerce businesses. If you want support with your social strategy and video content, get in touch! We are ready to help you with all your paid social needs.
