According to eMarketer.com, the worldwide digital ad spending will rise 70% (compared to 2018) and increase to $479.20 billion in 2022. The advertising space is getting more crowded and the platforms are running out of ad space. The outcome: increasingly higher prices and lower engagement.

In 2019, the digital ad spend accounted for roughly half the global ad spend, and the trend continues to unfold. Most brands have acknowledged that it’s a pay to play game on the duopoly of Facebook and Google - especially after organic reached an all time low - 1.2% average in 2018.

Knowing this, how can brands keep up, facing increasing (PPC) prices, ad space scarcity and declining engagement? In short, video is the answer.

Video marketing boosts brand differentiation

The report "Getting Media Right" by Kantar Millward Brown reports that 84% of markteres intent to significantly increase the spend on online video over the next 12 months. The reason is obvious - video has become a differentiator when it comes to engagement and ROI. More than 80% of marketers are satisfied with the return on investment of their video marketing efforts on social media.

Keep it simple stupid (KISS)

Smartphones, apps, wearables. The age of interruptions has left us (humans) with an attention span shorter than a goldfish (From 12 seconds in 2000 to eight seconds in 2018).

As a result, marketers are continuously creating shorter and shorter videos. Likewise, non-skippable video ad formats on Facebook and YouTube, requiring shorter videos, has incited this trend. Arguably it’s a ‘race to zero’ (seconds) at the moment.

Getting your message through requires us to change our approach to storytelling: A long build-up will no longer suffice in many cases (read more: Think with Google). Instead, you need to flip the script so to speak: 

• To the point: Keep it simple - Get your point across early on and spark interest. Tell the audience what they will learn by watching your video. Keep your introduction clear and concise and leave your audience wanting more
• Attention: Build your video for attention - Capture and hold the viewers’ attention 
• Relevance: Make sure to dive into the data and make sure the message is meaningful to the audience
• Context: Think about when and where your potential customers don’t want to hear from you - should you avoid this time / place?

Video Sequencing - Taking control of the narrative

A few seconds into a video (ad) does not necessarily allow you to convey a strong and enticing story. However, utilizing ad sequencing allows you to tell your product or brand story by showing the target audience a series of videos in the order that you define. That way, you’ll be able to tell your stories over the course of several shorter videos.

• Read more about YouTube sequencing here.
• Read more about Facebook sequencing here.

Once the first sequence is up and running it might be time to expand the efforts - tailoring the videos to specific audience segments.

The next steps - Taking control of the journey

Every social media platform is designed to keep users on the platform. While this business model makes sense for the platforms, it’s quite the opposite for brands.

It’s quite crucial that marketers make sure to think of the subsequent steps in the user journey. While the targeting and tailoring features on social media are better than ever, the distractions and competitive ads are increasingly dominating the ‘real estate’.

Instead of relying on YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn for the entirety of the journey, make sure that you take control:

• Take control of the brand universe: Send people to your own branded universe, where you are more in control and can eliminate distractions.
• Follow through: Continue the story introduced in the initial video campaign and build on that momentum. On average 98% of people don’t convert: Ensure they as a minimum are further educated about key aspects of your products and services.

Video marketing done right can be a powerful ally. Work-related video can drive senior executives to take action and according to Forbes 65% of executives have visited a vendor’s website after watching a video. In conclusion, if you want to keep driving engagement and thus revenue, video is the answer!