We’ve got news for you, content marketers: video isn’t going anywhere. By 2016, Cisco predicts that online video traffic will account for 55 percent of total consumer traffic on the Internet. In a landscape where YouTube already boasts 1 billion monthly unique visitors, these two stats alone should be enough for serious content marketers to consider what they might be missing out on.
It’s true that video production is often seen as costly and time-consuming, but we’re sorry: these aren’t justifiable excuses anymore, especially when YouTube videos shot on iPhone and GoPro garner millions of watches and likes — as many likes, in fact, as traditionally produced and edited brand videos. It’s true that content marketing is democratizing, and video is no exception. Examples of authentic, engaging video marketing abound. Here are some favorites from 2014 as given to us from a few of our favorite content marketing influencers.
Tim and Eric’s Corporate Takeover: GE and Totino’s
These are definitely the NewsCred content team favorites of 2014. Tim and Eric take their reliably wacky brand of weirdness, toss in some brand mentions and do their thing in a way that never feels like anything even close to an ad. The Totino’s ad has over a million views on YouTube since going live in November, and Jeff Goldblum’s fake vintage infomercial was a massive hit with major publications and Jurassic Park fans alike. These examples remind us of the potential content marketing has to be niche, hilarious, conversation-starting, and always interesting.
Poo-Pourri, “Girls Don’t Poop“
via @feldmancreative
Products related to the bathroom and the bedroom usually have two choices when it comes to marketing: either avoid the topic, or embrace it. As far as authenticity goes, the latter is apt to strike a chord with consumers. Barry Feldman of Feldman Creative’s pick features an honest, well-written, and well-acted head-on look into lady business, and earns plenty of laughs in the process.
Lego, The Lego Movie, and Ninjago
via @corhospes
Newsflash: content marketing doesn’t have to live on digital channels alone. If your brand is enough of a powerhouse, there’s no reason your content can’t extend to the big and small screens. Dutch guerilla marketing expert Cor Hospes nominated Lego, who made the leap seamlessly. With box office receipts in the hundreds of millions for their full-length feature, video content distributed as honest-to-goodness entertainment is being built at Lego.
Guitar Center, “Guitar Center Sessions“
via @joepulizzi
Want shareable content? Don’t give people what they don’t want. Sounds simple enough, but it’s striking how often content marketers forget to just keep it simple. Content Marketing Institute’s Joe Pulizzi nominated Guitar Center for doing just that. Guitar people like great music, and Guitar Center has capitalized on this with high-quality concerts from the likes of Soundgarden, Snoop Dogg, and Chvrches.
GE, “6 Second Science Fair”
via @corhospes
Much has been made this year of GE’s content, especially on emerging platforms like Instagram. Their Vine and YouTube work, though, makes the American giant accessible to consumers. The “6 Second Science Fair” campaign put the best of user-generated content front and center, and curated end results on YouTube garnered nearly a million views on its own.
As video platforms continue to multiply and cameras such as GoPro make filmmaking even more accessible, it’s more than likely that content marketers will continue to embrace the power of the medium. Join the #ThinkContent conversation on Twitter and let us know which content marketing videos inspire you.