#SMWNYC: The Evolution of Video & Social Advertising

This week, some of our organic and paid social media analysts took a trip to the Big Apple to attend Social Media Week 2017. As such, we’ll be sharing some of the things we learn along the way — enjoy!

If there’s one point that was continuously hammered home at Social Media Week, it’s the importance of video — and for good reason. It’s no secret that video is a preferred medium for advertisers in the digital space. From Facebook Live to Snapchat Stories, brands continue to look for new ways to reach and engage audiences.

Let’s take a look at some stats:

• Mobile video views account for over 50 percent of all video views — up from just 13 percent in 2013
• 75 percent of all mobile data traffic will be video by 2020
• There are 2 billion smartphones across the world — all of which have high quality cameras
• The growth in video is one of the most important changes in human sharing.

Video communicates ideas fast and effectively. Look at Tasty. Look at Buzzfeed. The content they publish are simple, but they’re entertaining, engaging and extremely shareable. What can advertisers learn from these publishers? Video must be social, personalized, on-demand and empathetic.

Don Wilcox, Vice President of Digital Marketing and Services, of PBS explains that making video content available digitally helps make the network’s content more widely available. Each program leans into social platforms, and each has a direct responsibility to engage its audience.

Moreover, the possibilities in the digital space — from virtual reality to 360 videos — are transforming journalism. Consider this: Until now, all content has been flat and framed. Today, with VR and 360, our images bend and move around us, placing us in the center of the story. A director no longer tells us what we should be paying attention to. Users participate in the experience, making it completely unique. That’s where the story happens. That’s where the story comes to life. We’re moving from an age of information to an age of experience.

Wilcox also praised Facebook Live for its authentic, not-so-scripted nature. For instance, YouTuber Anna Rothschild uses the live video format to explore “bizarre stories from the slimy, smelly, creepy world of science” in “Gross Science,” which is shared Live on Facebook, but also viewable at PBS.org, YouTube, Tumblr and Facebook to name just a few. Video is everywhere, and video is different everywhere.

What does this all mean? Content is a means for communicating an idea better than you can say it, and video only makes it more expressive. And whether your marketing budget is $0 or $1 million, you can make video work for your brand. Today, everybody can be a publisher — and that means endless possibilities for all brands, from mom-and-pop shops to Fortune 500 companies.

To learn more about our Social Media, Facebook Ads or Video Marketing Campaigns, as well as other services that we offer, explore our website.