Your Video Success Formula 2022.
How to skyrocket your video strategy.

We have already learned in my last Forbes articles how we can “hack” the algorithm of social media platforms with video live streaming. Another learning from the second pandemic year: It’s time to shift your marketing strategy. What was a trend years ago is now a fact. Mobile is number one when it comes to media usage. Mobile market share has increased by 222% in the last five years. By 2025, global mobile data usage will quadruple. And another impressive number is 66% of marketers expect global content marketing budgets to increase this year.

It’s time to shift your marketing strategy. Mobile market share has increased by 222% in the last five years.

Be the signal, not the noise.

Create an emotional high – emotionalize and more importantly, surprise – create WOW moments to remember. The formula for video content success in 2022 is “be the signal, not the noise”.

Video is everywhere – on all screens, all the time. Consumers are exposed up to 10,000 advertising messages (ads, sponsored posts, influencer posts) every day, all vying for their attention. For this reason, most content goes unnoticed or disappears from memory as quickly as the Instagram Story lasted.  The most important factors for a successful video strategy in 2022 are relevance – empathy – reliability – personalization – interaction and analysis.

The big reset.

Stop the autopilot, break your habits, disrupt yourself and rethink video. I know this may hurt, but take everything you think you know, all your preconceptions and everything you have been doing and forget it. 

Most companies either don’t have a video strategy, have a poor one, or don’t have a holistic one. There are only a few exceptions, a very good example is “Nike”. And it may sound almost ironic, but during the Corona pandemic, the beer brand “Corona” developed a really very good video content strategy. Together with brilliant filmmakers such as Matias De Rada or Cory S. Martin, they not only produce well-crafted videos. The films also deal with relevant topics and the zeitgeist. Users today are increasingly looking for depth, values and authenticity.

Create an emotional high – emotionalize and more importantly surprise – create WOW moments to remember.

Better no ads, than bad ads.

Moving images must move people. And don’t forget, no impact – no effect. Instead of posting random videos, just so that you post videos, rather post nothing. Don’t waste time and money – focus on videos that trigger something. Discussions, emotions or inspiration.

Advertise smart, not hard.

One size fits all is definitely out of style. Clearly define your target groups. My tip is to focus on customer retention and loyalty instead of endless expansion. The new currency is not short-term clicks, the new gold standard is customer lifetime value.

Make it count. Make it personal!

If marketing is silver and branding is gold, then individualization is platinum?

Individualization and personalization are essential for a future-proof content strategy. The GAMFAs of this world are showing the way. What may sound creepy to many emotion-driven marketers and video executives is becoming increasingly important. Don’t trust your gut. Data is everything. The new challenge is called data & fact-driven personalized storytelling. And hyper-personalization goes deeper than just addressing a customer by name. It taps into individual preferences, wants and needs. Data, analytics, artificial intelligence and automation are used to create unique interactions with each individual customer.

Looking for blind spots.

Do you have the right approach for each target group (new, existing, loyal or interested customers) on each channel and in each campaign period? Have you developed different messages that fit the DNA of each platform? Are they consistent? Have you defined a clear vision? What are your firmly established brand values and are they consistently and credibly communicated? And the most important question: Would you watch your videos yourself? Would you be surprised, amused, informed or touched yourself?

5 quick tips.

• Be fast & clear

The average viewing time of video ads is 8 seconds. That means you need to make it very clear what your video is about in the first 3 seconds. Create a WOW moment. Don’t wait until the end.

• Sound off!

Users watch videos everywhere. Users watch videos everywhere. At home, on the subway or bus, in the office, or in the doctor’s waiting room. It’s no surprise that 80% of users feel negatively influenced by sound (autoplay) in videos. Conversely, a Meta Studio shows 41% of all video ads are virtually worthless without sound. So watch your videos without sound. Are they working? Does the message reach the viewer even without sound? Do motion graphics perhaps help to make sense of the video even on mute?

• Oldie but goldie

Since the dotcom bubble, we’ve been talking about UGC (user-generated content) but in fact an overwhelming majority of 85% of viewers trust user-generated content more and almost 70% find it more authentic and engaging. Take advantage of that! Collaborate with your customers. Let them act as role models for your brand. There are Instagram profiles that make millions of followers with up to 90% UGC and make a lot of money with it e.g. Beautiful Destinations. And with that, you kill two birds with one stone. You have very good, targeted content, and you engage your followers and best of all, the content costs you $0.00 USD.

• Mirco vs Marco

Do you trust Kim Kardashian or Cristiano Ronaldo when they try to sell you their own cosmetics line? Probably not. Sure, you may be curious and might watch their videos, and yes, it might stick in your subconscious, but if a girl next door with skin problems tells you about her experience and impact with a new cream and lets you share it for weeks in her little bathroom, it’s going to be much more authentic, not only for you but also for your customers. Studies show that big influencers with hundreds of thousands or even millions of followers lose credibility.

Micro-Influencers with up to 20,000 followers, however, have the great advantage of appearing much more authentic and credible to users.  This is mainly because they have built up their reach with the help of family, acquaintances, and friends – with whom they have a close relationship of trust.

By working with Mirco-Influencers, you as a brand can benefit from this trust, as these recommendations are often worth much more than those from big influencers.

• Do your homework

Analyze your target group in a data-driven way. Clearly stand up for your values. Create WOW moments and powerful messages. Listen to your target audience. Develop your own brand content universe. Learn from the statistics of each post. Instead of infinite growth, focus on continuous customer loyalty. 

If you keep all this in mind, videos can become the turbo of your marketing and communication in 2022.

It’s all there, it’s just put together wrong. Think about it!