Traffic wars: How much is a video view actually worth?

According to REELSEO research, video promotion is six times more effective than its written counterparts. With this in mind, it’s important to consider the value of viewers when it comes to sending traffic to your content of choice. Does one hit on your website carry the same weight as a view to your video? With online content coming in all manner of formats, businesses are looking to create the most effective online strategy to drive engagement with their brand – and all fingers are pointing towards video as the next big thing.

Traffic data and metrics aside, the very fact that a web visitor is taking the time to sit down and watch your online video speaks volumes. With online attention spans at an all-time low, it’s vital to capture your visitors’ attention. When it comes to video vs. other media formats, video wins hands down. Even if a viewer is only watching a 1 minute video clip, that’s 1 minute of invaluable one-on-one engagement with your brand – which holds much more value than a few seconds of someone scrolling across your website.

In a 2013 study by Axxon research, out of all of the brands utilising video content as part of their marketing strategy, 85 per cent stated that increased engagement was the main reason they chose video over other content formats. With so many brands getting behind the power of video, it’s clear that there are business benefits to reap.

Granted, people may visit many more websites than they view videos per day. But when it comes to the impact of content, Forrester research has shown that just a minute of video content is worth nearly 1.8m words of text – and you can’t put a price on this kind of information retention. Why tell your customers something when you can simply show them? The simplicity of its information delivery makes video the most consumer friendly media format.

Does the value of video outweigh its production costs?

Video traffic may carry more value, but with more value comes higher production costs. Unfortunately, like any online custom, the traffic isn’t just there for the taking.

Effective marketing strategies need to be built into the creation of the video content from the get-go in order to stand a competitive chance. However, the value of video makes up for its larger initial investment – and does so in the areas that matter most. Video has a higher conversion rate than other types of online content – and at the end of the day, new customers are the bottom line for any business.

So how do I make video content work for my business?

Tracking your traffic is key to understanding how your potential customers behave when interacting with your content. By examining their behaviour, you can refine your videos to perfection. Through testing multiple versions, you can tweak your content by

measuring where successes were achieved and take the strongest elements of each to create the ultimate video content. The best video content is engaging from the very start – capturing the attention of the viewer within its first few frames.

Want to get in on the action? Nideo provides the perfect platform for hosting your video content. With advanced tracking and analytics features, you can measure the engagement metrics that count whilst also seeing who has viewed. In addition neat features like invideo calls to action, and email gateways enable you to further boost conversion rates.

James Hakesley, co-founder, Nideo

Tel: +44 (0) 118 932 1943

Email: james@nideo.tv

Web: www.nideo.tv

Twitter: @nideo