Product, Educational, and Instructional Videos Remain Most Popular Among Consumers
Consumers are demanding more videos in their buying journey. So, how are companies meeting the demand, what works for their video strategies, and what resonates with the audience? Check out a few key insights from Wistia’s latest study.
- The demand for video content by consumers is growing.
- So, how are companies meeting the demand, what works for their video strategies, and what resonates with the audience?
- Here are a few key insights from Wistia’s latest study.
The demand for videos in marketing is growing. According to Wyzowl, 89% of consumers want to see more videos from brands this year. To understand how companies are meeting the increasing demand for video, what is working for their video strategies, and what is resonating with viewers, Wistia conducted a study. The biggest takeaway is that the audience wants to learn how to use the product and gain industry expertise, and creating educational videos doesn’t require a large budget. The following are a few more insights from the study.
Video Is an Important Part of Marketing Strategy
According to the study, video is an important part of marketing strategy for most businesses (93%). Only 7% of the respondents said it isn’t an important part of their marketing strategy.
Many companies primarily use video to generate leads and boost sales or educate potential customers on their products and encourage purchase. About 38% use videos to generate leads and drive sales, while 31% use them for product education and adoption. About 17% use them for brand awareness and PR, and 8% for social media engagement.
All that said, while most companies are eager to make more videos this year, only about 57% are preparing to dedicate more resources to their video creation efforts.
See more: Video Commerce for the Enterprise: A Comprehensive Guide
Most Videos Created Last Year Were Product and Educational Videos
The study found that most videos were created by individuals and teams within the company. While 62% of videos were created by individuals within the company, 46% were created by in-house video teams or producers. About 21% were created by freelancers, and 16% were created by video production agencies.
On average, small businesses created about 15 videos, medium businesses created 84 videos, and large businesses created 118 videos last year. As business and company size grows, the number of videos created grows.
So, what kind of videos did companies create last year? The most popular were product videos, educational or instructional videos, webinars, and live events, and they continue to be the go-to choices this year.
Types of videos companies created in 2023 and plan to create this year
Source: State of Video 2024
That said, more businesses plan to make more short-form social videos, customer testimonials, sales videos, and original series this year.
Regarding video length, the average length of most videos in 2023 was either under three minutes or between five and 30 minutes. Compared to the previous year, companies created 7% more videos shorter than a minute, 12% more videos between 1 and 3 minutes, and 5% more videos between 3 and 5 minutes.
Time and Bandwidth Are the Most Challenging Aspects of Creating Videos
Companies face several challenges when creating content. Time and bandwidth top the list, with 61% of respondents reporting them. This is followed by team size, resources, and technical capabilities (44%) and cost and budget (36%).
This is where artificial intelligence (AI), especially generative AI, can help. While only 18% of respondents are weaving AI tools into their video production workflows, 66% are looking forward to using generative AI to create videos this year. Here is how they are using or plan to use AI for video.
How companies use or plan to use AI for videos
Source: State of Video 2024
Most Companies Distribute Videos Primarily on Their Websites and Emails
Distribution of videos is as important as creating them. So, where are companies sharing the videos? About 67% of companies create videos primarily for their websites, while 49% share videos on emails. About 43% and 40% of companies distribute videos on LinkedIn and YouTube, respectively.
Companies mostly have multiple distribution channels for social media videos. According to Hootsuite, companies post videos on at least two of the four platforms: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. They also post videos around 3-5 times a week.
See more: How Conversational Video Storyboards Boost Engagement
Consumers Are Watching More Videos
Regarding performance, the study found that total video plays have gone up for businesses of all sizes compared to last year. This shows that video is a worthy investment for getting the brand in front of the audience, even for small businesses. A key trend observed over the last three years is that companies get most of their video views in Q1 and Q4 every year. The second and third quarters have the least views.
Further, videos longer than an hour have the maximum play rate (58%), followed by those 30-60 minutes long (50%). Longer videos also usually catch more clicks per page visit, and shorter videos may not get the highest play rates on a web page.
In terms of engagement rates, videos that are more than a minute long have an average engagement rate of 50%, while videos that are 1-3 minutes long have an average engagement rate of 48%. The average engagement rate seems to fall as the videos become longer, with videos over 60 minutes having an engagement rate of 17%.
An important metric is the conversion rate, which is the percentage of viewers who find a conversion opportunity, such as a CTA or form, in a video and take a desired action. The study found that conversion rates tend to increase with video length. Videos over 60 minutes have an average conversion rate of 13%, while videos shorter than a minute have an average rate of 1%. Conversion rates also depend on the position of the conversion opportunity. For example, videos with a conversion opportunity in the last quarter tend to have a higher conversion rate. That said, a combination of video length and position may further affect the conversion rate. For example, placing conversion opportunities at the beginning of the video may be ideal for videos between 5 and 60 minutes. However, videos shorter than five minutes and longer than 60 minutes have higher average conversion rates when the opportunity is placed at the end of the video.
All that said, data shows that companies don’t necessarily place conversion opportunities where they convert best. One thing is clear: There is much room to optimize conversion opportunities for better conversion rates.
Takeaway
Irrespective of the size of the business, videos play a significant role in putting it in front of its intended audience and converting prospects into paying customers. As consumers demand more video content to aid their purchase decisions, brands and businesses should take note of these insights and dedicate resources and efforts to leverage video content to maximize their revenues.
How are you using videos to maximize your revenues? Let us know on Facebook, X, or LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you!
Image source: Shutterstock
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