Advertising and marketing have always been fluid industries, quick to adapt to new trends and eager to experiment with the latest technologies and work practices. In recent years the focus of this experimental attitude has been the potential of social media to gain brand attention and attract new customers.
Facebook in particular has access to millions of users and a vast amount of information, both of which can help businesses ensure their marketing campaigns target the right people at the right time.
While many people will associate YouTube with viral video content, Facebook has recently made moves to compete with the site by enabling video embedding.
This means videos uploaded to Facebook can now be embedded on company websites, making it easier to like and share video content. A small but significant shift is seeing brands move from posting YouTube videos on Facebook to uploading videos straight to their Facebook business accounts.
With these changes set to affect businesses in the near future, TellyJuice has investigated the practical benefits and drawbacks of investing in Facebook video marketing for your business.
Facebook video marketing can attract new customers
Facebook has almost 1.5 billion active monthly users, with more than 30 million estimated to use the site in the UK. With these kind of user numbers it is possible for Facebook video marketing to target very specific demographics of potential new customers based on extremely useful parameters such as recent purchasing behaviour or relevant upcoming life events.
Even if you don’t wish to go down the route of using Facebook’s own marketing tools, a well-made video on the site can help your business attract new customers just through organic likes and shares.
Creating entertaining video content is paramount
Facebook videos can be a chance to show customers the light-hearted side of your business, and explain your product or service in a clear and concise manner.
Investing in an entertaining explainer video, one that potential customers are likely to share, can prompt increased awareness of your brand even if there isn’t an immediate growth in sales.
Facebook enables businesses to post spontaneous videos which can be invaluable for interacting with your local customers. However, use with caution as they can sometimes confuse your brand image.
Facebook has several nifty features which can help your business
While videos uploaded to Facebook can’t yet be seen in Google search results, you will be able tag people or businesses involved in the video which can help reach a larger audience and spark interactions with your business.
If users comment on your video, or even just like it, it will appear on their Facebook news-feed and in turn expose your business to loads more potential customers.
You may have noticed while using Facebook that videos on the site play automatically, which will give you some valuable seconds to try and engage users in your video and dissuade them from scrolling down.
This is something to keep in mind while planning your content – if you can’t engage users in the first few seconds of your video then you may lose them. (Although this might change soon, as Facebook have begun trialling “floating video” which allows users to continue to watch videos while they scroll.)
There are multiple conversion opportunities
Facebook has become a handy tool as the process of customers liking content and engaging with your business has become increasingly organic, intuitive and less intrusive for users.
If customers watch a video created for your business on YouTube then you are relying both on the power of the video’s content and the willingness of the users to actively investigate your products and services.
Facebook integration is much more seamless: users who are not connected to your business can watch your video content and “like” your page with no pause in the video or disruption to the viewing experience.
It is worth devoting some thought to the timing of your post, which might be different depending on your ideal customer demographic, as well as the purpose of your video (what will be the “call to action”?).
Video marketing on Facebook is part of a trend that has seen businesses finally embracing social media and seeing the potential in each platform for attracting new customers and increasing brand awareness.
While specific techniques are changing rapidly, one of the most consistent truths about social media marketing is that the priority for businesses should always be to create entertaining and engaging content which users will want to share.
