Video is incredibly popular. Experts estimate that in 2018 and beyond, video will just continue to expand.
Listen to what Marketing Insider Group stated:
“As we turn the corner to 2018, the evolution of video marketing isn’t slowing down. In fact, with one more year of technological innovation and creativity behind the camera, the world is in for more captivating video content over the next year.”
Facebook Live
Back in 2015, consumers spent an average of five-and-a-half hours a day watching video content. That number continues to rise. On Facebook alone, some 500 million users view 8 billion videos on a daily basis.
And since Facebook Live debuted in April 2016, its popularity has soared. Here are some interesting numbers:
- Facebook Live stream search popularity has risen over 330% since it’s rollout.
- Between January and May 2016, Facebook saw a 300% increase in live videos.
- 5% of all Facebook Live broadcasts happen inside Groups.
- One out of every five videos on Facebook is live.
Video, because people watch so much of it, is useful in marketing. At the same time, it’s important to keep your videos to approximately 90 seconds. Five percent of viewers will stop watching a video after 1 minute and 60% by 2 minutes.
Video in General
In 2016, HubSpot, a software and internet marketing company, published a list of statistics about video. I’ll just mention the highlights.
- 90% of users say that product videos are helpful when deciding whether to buy something, such as a book
- People recall great video ads, even up to 30 days after seeing them
- 92% of mobile video consumers share videos with others
- If a consumer enjoys a video, the intent to buy increases
- Video can improve your website’s SEO and will improve click-through rates
- Videos increase consumer conversions or purchases
Video and YouTube
As if all these facts and findings weren’t sufficient reasons to create videos and post them on YouTube, consider the following significant benefits as well:
- Videos on YouTube tend to be highly ranked, so your video could appear high in Google search results. That’s awesome for SEO (search engine optimization).
- The human connection is important in book sales and videos allow your readers to hear and see you.
- Videos can drive traffic to your website, blog, book landing pages, or Amazon.
- You can use video for your blogging.
- If you write nonfiction, you can create training videos.
- If you write fiction, you can talk about why you wrote your books.
- And let’s not forget that you can be creating a book trailer – which is essentially a video commercial for your book and the link to this can then be promoted on your website, blog, and across all your social media platforms.
How to Get Started on YouTube
Just go to YouTube.com and click the signup link. Sign in with your Gmail account or create one. When you click upload next to the empty avatar, a popup will appear confirming your name. Click Create Channel, and you’re on your way to creating a YouTube account. Remember to use your author name when selecting a name for your channel or YouTube account.
I hope you enjoy this week’s social media updates for authors. There’s a lot of information packed into today’s Weekly Roundup, including information on Facebook’s newest feature, the importance of video, and the introduction of Pronoun. Read and enjoy.