Welcome to Ecommerce Camp, where today’s topic is Video Production and Live Shopping.
I edited my first video in 2016. I started a YouTube channel, it did well and it’s now almost a million views on the channel.
I’m not an evangelist, and I’m not here to convince anybody, hopefully, it should be glaringly obvious that people should be focusing efforts and marketing efforts towards video production these days.
Video Consumption
Here are a few statistics listed in a particular order, providing a more generic overview of consumer behavior. Initially, discussing content in general, then getting more specific, particularly for e-commerce business owners.
So, let’s go through them:
- Approximately 3.37 billion people worldwide currently consume videos online, constituting 82% of the total global internet traffic. This shift toward video consumption has been significant over the past five to eight years, indicating a consistent upward trend.
- Another notable statistic: 92% of marketers affirm that video content yields a positive return on investment (ROI), a substantial number that highlights its effectiveness.
- Moreover, 90% of customers state that video content significantly influences their buying decisions. Understanding these reasons is crucial, and I’ll elaborate shortly.
- An essential point to consider is that 90% of consumers watch videos on their mobile devices. This aspect is integral, especially if you’re planning to create video content for your business.
The prominence of mobile viewing underscores the importance of tailoring videos to suit mobile screens. While traditional videos were filmed in landscape mode, the trend is shifting towards a 9×16 aspect ratio, optimized for portrait mode, aligning with mobile viewing habits.
If these stats aren’t convincing enough, I’d recommend checking out the ‘Wise Owl Video Marketing Review: State of Video Marketing Report in 2023.’ It’s a comprehensive resource containing all the data showcasing why you should consider integrating video.
While I can offer my explanation for the surge of video, particularly in ecommerce, this report provides concrete insights into the trend.
Product Video Benefits
1. Video gives a more accurate description of the product or service.
There are many reasons for that.
Compared to the photo you can move the camera or you can move the subject in a video, so you get all sorts of different angles and you just get that understanding visually of what the product is, what it looks like, what it looks like in certain settings, etc.
2. It’s also the most efficient communication method.
Especially it is in our current era of decreasing attention spans. Unfortunately, numerous studies indicate a decline in attention spans. With the escalating supply of content, competition for audience attention has intensified. Consequently, people’s attention spans have diminished.
Video is quicker in conveying messages or showcasing product/service features, making it outperform other media forms.
3. This is my observation, but the video seems considerably more effective and resourceful for businesses in the realm of ecommerce.
The weight of what consumers think about your brand increases when you host videos on your website. Professional and legitimate appearances aid in building your brand.
Additionally, factors such as SEO and algorithms for both search engines and social platforms play significant roles.
4. Video content is heavily favored by social media platforms and search engines.
Similar to the previous point, it adds weight to the brand and enhances its perceived legitimacy.
Video Production: First Steps
I’ll guide you through starting to create your video content.
I’ve been in this field for five years, and my videos maintain a professional appearance. I always focus on making them visually appealing.
However, when clients want to create their own, I strive to keep it simple.
- The best way to begin making video content is simply to start creating. It’s important not to overthink it; instead, start producing and testing ideas.
- The best camera to use is the one you have with you, and for most people, that’s their mobile phone. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with using mobile phones to create video content because they perform very well on social platforms.
This is because content like this is native to those platforms. What I mean by ‘native’ is that consumers are becoming increasingly less tolerant and more opposed to traditional types of marketing.
And that means the better-performing types of marketing video content are more aligned with actual organic content seen by your friends and connections on a social media platform.
This is why user generated content (UGC) is much more popular these days.
There are a few studies suggesting that the same content filmed professionally by a videographer versus native content filmed on a mobile phone—the native content will outperform the more polished-looking content.
This is very dependent on the industry you’re in and the platform you’ll be hosting on.
This isn’t necessarily true for video shows on websites; it’s more pertinent to social media platforms where you’re likely targeting new customers.
- If you’re looking to create your video content, I suggest utilising the tools provided by the platforms themselves.
For instance, on Instagram, the Reels tool is a great feature enabling users to create videos. It offers a wide selection of audio, songs for background use, numerous ideas, and current trends to engage with.
Platforms like TikTok also play a significant role in enabling users to get started.
Video Production: Content Strategy
- I believe it comes down to iteration, trying, and testing things out.
No business will have the same video content strategy, as products and services differ.
I’ve come to this conclusion through my experience in meetings discussing possible video ideas.
Let’s say I’m invited to a meeting with the managing director and the marketing manager of the business. Typically, upon entering the room, they would already have a pre-formed, rigid idea of what they want the content strategy to be or what they envision the video to look like.
However, this vision often stems from their ideas about their business and isn’t necessarily based on tested video content. - Video content and content marketing should ideally be crafted based on feedback from your customers, and on how previous content has performed. This feedback is crucial in determining the most effective type of content.
NOTE:
This is a script of our in-depth webinar with Pat Hanratty, uncovering key strategies and insights essential for mastering the fusion of video production and live shopping experiences.
Gain valuable expertise in leveraging video content to drive engaging live shopping interactions across various platforms.
To further assist you, we’ve made accessing this valuable resource simple. You can easily view the full video recording:
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