Hurray! Online video marketing is here to stay. Yes, video as an advertising medium is not new to us; it’s never a new means of business marketing but social video platforms for video marketing are new.
We have all seen videos being used to advertise products or services on our televisions. No doubt about it, video has been the best form of advertising ever since the invention of television and TV channels.
But as the population of TV viewers or audiences continues to decline, marketers and advertisers alike have been looking for new possibilities – new ways to market their business to potential customers.
This is where online video marketing becomes a major asset. And fortunately, the popularity of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and others makes video marketing as essentially relevant as the air we breathe in this internet-centric era.
Social video platforms for video marketing
Does your small business have really dynamic, visual product? Do you think your business can also cash in on the popularity of social media as one of the best means of internet marketing?
Simply put, is this kind of business marketing right for you and why should you promote your business through online video marketing?
Actually, there are a number of reasons to use video to promote your business on social media, but how do you know where to post your stuff? The fact is that it’s not just about posting your stuff online, it’s more about using a platform where your customers are.
So, how do you determine which of the social video platforms will best display your message? Below are some of the best social video platforms for video marketing we think your business should be using and the reasons why you should be using them. Explore them and see which one is right for your small business.
#1]. YouTube
No doubt about it, YouTube is the video giant of the Internet. It’s the number one destination when it comes to watching video clips online and a great choice for marketers or advertisers with longer messages or wanting better social sharing ability.
YouTube is not just a website; it’s a platform and an online community for video enthusiasts. It’s a medium to entertain, educate, discover and learn new things.
YouTube is one of the world’s most visited websites today and it’s capable of creating a solid video presence for your brand online.
Video is the future of content marketing and with more than 1 billion monthly users, YouTube advertising is at the forefront – head and shoulders above others. This is why no serious business owner wouldn’t want to look into the possibility of using this platform for business marketing and brand promotion.
#2]. TikTok
TikTok is probably a new baby when it comes to social video platforms businesses can use for marketing. However, the platform has grown to become, arguably, the best video platform for brands marketing and viral videos.
As a content creator, TikTok is a fantastic place to showcase your unique talents to people across the globe. Also, it has become an excellent tool for marketers to improve their business with a strong marketing strategy.
If your target audiences are millennials (people between the age of 24 to 35), then it becomes easy for you to attract audiences to your page and get growth on TikTok. If your content is interesting, there is no doubt in people engaging with your account and making you grow faster on TikTok.
#3]. Vine
Unlike YouTube where people can upload videos in longer minutes, Vine is a short-form video sharing service where users can share six-second-long looping video clips. Vine is another online marketing tool entrepreneurs and businesses can use to promote their brands.
Since Vine was launched, entrepreneurs, marketers, and the media have considered it as a new way of marketing. But are you ready to experiment with this awesome mobile service?
Ready to create and share six-second videos with your social media fans and grow Vine followers? Create quick, six-second videos for your followers which is great, especially, if you have humorous content that people wouldn’t mind watching over and over since the video will automatically play on a loop.
If you’re marketing to millennials and young people, Vine is worth exploring. Make sure your content is clever, as this is the route to getting people to watch and share your video. Learn how your business can use Vine for brand marketing. Keep it fun, and let Vine help you boost your product recognition.
#4]. Instagram
No doubt about it, Instagram appeals to a younger generation even though it is traditionally a photo-sharing social networking site. The platform now allows users to upload video as long as it’s not more than 3 to 15 seconds long. Instagram’s popularity means a big opportunity for business!
It works well for brands that have strong visuals and it offers better results when it comes to brand marketing and users engagement.
It recently started allowing marketers to include links to their own products and websites from posts. With over 300 million monthly active users, your business stands a better chance to reach millions of users on Instagram within a short period of time.
#5]. Snapchat
Snapchat is one of the best social video platforms and it’s extremely popular amongst young people. The social networking site allows users to create short photos and videos that will all be gone (they are deleted from the platform) after they are viewed.
Snapchat users are highly engaged and need to actively press a button to view a story, so advertisers can be sure attention is not wavering.
The “Stories” feature allows the videos to be viewed for 24 hours, allowing businesses to keep their brands top of mind for more than a few seconds.
Snapchat’s Discover paved the way for exciting new developments in social and mobile advertising. Discovery is a unique media distribution platform where publishers such as the Daily Mail, Vice, Yahoo, CNN, and ESPN display stories.
#6]. Periscope
Periscope is a live video streaming app for iOS and Android that allows users to stream live video from their smartphones. Periscope’s live feeds can be shot with mobile devices and watched through smartphones, desktops, or laptops either through the app or on Twitter’s site.
Before you begin broadcasting, you can choose to limit the audience of what you’re about to stream by pressing the people button on the bottom right of the screen.
You then tap the shoot icon, enter the title of what you’re about to stream, and press the Twitter icon to promote the stream via your account.
The video streaming app lets you see through someone else’s eyes. This makes it ideal for large, but distant events, and your business can also benefit from using it for such events as product launches, end-of-the-year events, and others.
Discontinued video platforms
#1]. Meerkat but now known as Houseparty
Meerkat was another live streaming video app that used to be available on iOS and Android just like Periscope.
Once signed up, Meerkat users had the option of connecting their Facebook and Twitter accounts, and streaming directly to their followers as soon as they go live. Followers can tune in to your stream to see what you’re doing in real-time.
The app also allowed you to engage with viewers and discover other streams to watch. You can engage with everybody watching your live stream by tapping the chat icon as you broadcast and write comments.
#2]. Riff
Riff was a video platform from Facebook that allowed users to create collaborative videos with friends. The riff was available on iPhone and Android and it allowed collaborative looping video creation.
The app allowed a user to record a short clip similar to a Vine or Instagram video and publish it within the app or Facebook. Other users can then find and add to that clip with their own short clip, building a longer video that loops through. The idea is that a collaborative story can be told across multiple viewpoints and clips based on a topic.
