Why Mobile Video Should Be Included in Your Content Marketing Strategy

CopyPress

October 18, 2016 (Updated: February 28, 2020)

Whether you’re producing video for entertainment, education, or advertising, the footage must render perfectly on mobile devices, from the smallest smartphones to the largest tablets. If you’re not creating video or if you haven’t optimized your video for mobile, you might find yourself straggling behind the competition. Here are some reasons that content marketing has grown far beyond the printed word — at least for companies that reap great results.

Mobile-Only Video Advertising Continues to Grow

Image via Flickr by Sean MacEntee

From Facebook and Twitter to Instagram and Pinterest, mobile-only advertising has become one of the most popular ways for brands to reach their target markets. Pinterest, for instance, unveiled its mobile-only video advertising functionality earlier this year. Writing for MarketingLand, social media reporter Tim Peterson covered the new program in depth. Unlike Facebook, Pinterest’s video ads don’t play automatically. Instead, users must click the Cinematic Pin overlay to view them.

Regardless of the social media network you choose for advertising, your video ads will prove to be most effective on mobile devices. In fact, according to research analyst Brian Solis, 60 percent of the time people spend on digital media occurs via mobile platforms. Consumers have abandoned their large screens in favor of the devices they carry with them when they leave the house.

Ad Networks Now Permit Longer Videos

YouTube video ads can run three minutes or longer, while many other social networks have increased their time limits to 30 seconds. Most allow users to skip a video advertisement after a certain length of time, but research shows that consumers often watch longer videos. They might become more invested in the story with a longer ad, and your brand receives more exposure.

You don’t have to produce extra-long videos, but you might gain more return on investment (ROI) from them. Additionally, creating longer educational and entertaining videos might also increase brand awareness. In the education sphere, for instance, you’re providing more information and therefore more value with a 20-minute video than with a three-minute spot.

You have other options, too. YouTube has deployed a six-second ad option, which essentially gives your brand brief visibility without irritating the consumer. Test different ad lengths to find out which ones produce the best results for your brand.

Your Target Customers Watch Videos on Their Mobile Devices

How do you pass the time when you’re waiting to hear your name at the doctor’s office or sitting on the train during your morning commute? You probably consume media on your mobile device, whether you’re posting your status on Facebook or watching funny videos on YouTube.

Since people carry their mobile devices wherever they go, they often find themselves watching videos to keep themselves entertained. From 30-second snippets to entire movies, they can consume tremendous amounts of data in a single sitting. If they use sites like YouTube, they might watch multiple videos sequentially, which makes video advertising and marketing an even more powerful tool.

Mobile Traffic Continues to Increase

As mentioned above, more people are turning to their small screens when they need to access the internet. They don’t bother getting up from the couch and walking into the computer room to look up a fact or to show a friend a video. They have a perfectly capable device right in their hands.

Consequently, neglecting responsive mobile video in your content marketing strategy might hinder your ability to gain market share. A responsive video resizes to the screen on which it’s viewed, so it’ll look the same on a smartphone screen as it does on a three-monitor desktop setup.

Your Competitors Are Increasing Their Ad Spending

Reporting for AdWeek, Tim Baysinger reveals that “advertisers and media buyers have increased their investments in original digital video programming by 114 percent over the past two years.” In other words, if you’re not producing responsive video for mobile devices, your competitors have probably beat you to the punch. The last thing you want is to surrender market share.

While creating your own unique approach to content marketing can help set your brand apart from competitors, you don’t want to ignore your competition’s strategies. If they can create success through mobile video, consider implementing your own initiative so you can capture consumer attention through the video medium.

Programmatic Advertising Has Become Essential on Mobile

Advertising has gone the way of eBay, becoming the next platform for bidding wars between brands. In programmatic advertising, companies bid for ad space on specific networks and channels. This takes place in real time rather than in advance, and it uses software instead of human-to-human communication, which makes it far more efficient.

As programmatic advertising becomes more popular, it will likely take over mobile video. Networks want advertising buyers to increase their spending, so they’re creating more flexible ways to sell their advertising space. What does this mean for brands? It suggests that mobile video will become increasingly important, especially for advertising.

Video Proves More Compelling Than Text on Mobile Devices

Have you ever tried to read a book on your smartphone? You’re constantly increasing and decreasing the text size, especially if you’re on a site that hasn’t been optimized for mobile. Reading small print can give you a headache in more ways than one, and it’s not practical for many users. Even on a tablet, the screen can become difficult to read.

That’s why consumers watch video on their mobile devices. They don’t have to squint to see the content, and the accompanying audio helps clarify what they’re seeing. Plus, many people carry headphones or earbuds so they can listen to audio without disturbing others around them.

Producing great content is only half the battle. You must also produce the right types of content. While articles and blog posts will remain relevant far into the future, video has become increasingly relevant in terms of consumer engagement and brand awareness.

If you haven’t produced video yet, or if you’re not optimizing your video for mobile viewing, consider changing your strategy. You can create content yourself or work with a professional third-party provider to create beautiful videos that your audience will love.

Laura College

CopyPress writer