If your conversion rate is puzzlingly low and your site visitors close the tab after 30 seconds, you must include a crucial component from your content strategy - and it might not be what you expect.
If there's one thing that the popularity of TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube shorts are proving, it's that video marketing is king.
And if you want to tap into a new generation of consumers, you'll have to embrace this new way of communicating.
In this blog post, you'll discover:
- Why video content marketing is so important
- Where to find free stock videos to add to your site
- Top 6 tips for using video content to engage visitors
Let's get into it.
Why Video Content is So Important for Your Website
Using free stock videos from websites like Freepik on your site is a must if you want to improve the performance of your website. Here's why.
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Videos are more engaging
Imagine two landing pages. To break it up, one has a massive chunk of text without visuals, paragraphs, or headings. The other features some short, snappy text and a 30-second explainer video.
Which landing page is most likely to keep customers sticking around?
In the digital age, when you're battling multiple other tabs for consumers' attention, having information that's quickly and easily accessible is a must, which is why video content is so effective.
Video is also better at creating humor or helping to hone a unique brand identity through the visual images you choose to display.
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Videos increase organic traffic
Websites don't appear on the front page of Google by accident - they get there with a little something called SEO.
SEO (short for search engine optimization) is optimizing your site in a way that Google's algorithm likes.
Google's internal algorithm is a fan of video, so having more video content marketing on your site can help boost your rankings. and provide clearer marketing analytics.
Likewise, video is great for increasing traffic; the more traffic to your site, the more likely Google will rank it highly.
Consider this if you need more clarification about how much video content can impact traffic. In 2022, a whopping 82% of global traffic came from video, showing how powerful this content format is.
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Videos help content appear on Google Snippets
Featured snippets represent the information shown at the top of Google, and video content is increasingly showing up in these snippets.
Your page might also be included if your video does an excellent job of meeting search intent.
Top 6 Tips for Improved Engagement on Video Content
- Use existing videos
- Consider your target audience
- Reduce return rates with product videos
- Take advantage of user-generated videos
- Keep it consistent
- Put the video at the top of the page
1. Use existing videos
You don’t have to be a video content creation whizz to succeed with video. You don’t have to create your videos at all if you don’t have the budget.
Sites like Videvo stock videos allow you to download video content free of charge, so you can use engaging stock video content on your site without breaking the bank.
2. Consider your target audience
As with the rest of your marketing, tailor your video content to your target audience in style and content.
For example, if you’re marketing to Gen Z, you’ll want to use quick and short videos featuring somebody talking. After all, there’s a reason that Gen Zers are TikTok’s most prevalent users.
If you’re selling to affluent consumers, you’ll want to use videos that evoke a sense of luxury and timelessness.
3. Reduce return rates with product videos
Many site creators remember to make videos for the home page and landing pages but need to pay more attention to one essential type of video - product videos.
By producing videos showing scenarios where your products are in use, users will better understand what they’re buying.
That way, they’re less likely to complain about or return a product because it doesn’t meet their expectations.
Consider using text-to-speech technology to create videos with voiceovers that explain your products in detail, enhancing the viewer's comprehension and engagement.
4. Take advantage of user-generated content
User-generated content (UGC) is the crème de la crème of all content.
Not only is it a powerful form of social proof (arguably, the most powerful), but it also makes your brand feel more authentic, which in the world of increasing competitors, can be critical to your brand standing out from the crowd.
The stats on the matter are clear, with marketing campaigns resulting in 29% more conversions when encouraging UGC than those without, with 70% of brands believing that UGC will help them better connect with their customers.
And that’s because it’s true.
User-generated content is just that - content that your customers and users create. Famous examples include ‘unboxing’ videos, in which a user will open the package and use the product, acting as a video product review.
User-generated content shows users they can trust you because they have the ultimate proof - other happy customers.
It’s accurate content by real people, and people love to connect with that level of authenticity.
5. Keep it consistent
All the world’s best-known brands share one common feature - an instantly-recognizable brand identity.
From a Starbucks cup to an iPhone, you instantly know one of their products at first glance, which is excellent for creating ubiquity.
If creating a strong brand identity is one of your priorities, keeping your content consistent is non-negotiable.
Don’t do one video in black and white and the others in color. Keep the quality, style, and tone similar throughout your video content creation.
6. Put the video at the top of the page
In SEO terms, it doesn’t matter where you embed your video on the page. In user terms, it matters.
If a user has clicked on your site for the primary purpose of watching the video as they’ve been linked there by a search engine, making them scroll down to watch it will lose you serious points for usability.
Instead, keep your most engaging content at the top of the page, and use it as a tool to encourage site visitors to read on.
Video Content is Your New Secret Weapon
Whether you download pre-existing stock video content or create your own, one fact remains the same - you’ll enjoy better site traffic and engagement.
Not only will Google’s algorithm gladly rank you a few pages higher with well-crafted content that meets search intent, but users are more likely to stay on your site once they get there.
What’s not to love?
