You’ve likely heard it all before – attention spans are dwindling, goldfish are now surpassing humans when it comes to how many seconds we can focus on something (well, you probably didn’t hear that, yet). The folks over at Microsoft recently found that the human attention span is down a meager 8 seconds. You still with me? Just checking… 🙂 (source: Cision).
Okay, so what?
We know you’re burnt out on bad news too, so might as well add it to the heap of depressing statistics that we hear all day, every day, right?
Well, before you chuck this information to the back of your memory bank, remember that the main goal of marketing your business is, well, to capture attention. These darting thoughts (let’s admit it, mostly caused by our handheld devices) can be toxic to your digital marketing strategy, but only if you let them.
Let’s face it – the marketing landscape is only going to continue to change at lightning speed, and marketers and business owners alike will continually need to learn how to adapt. That’s why it’s essential to tackle the attention span challenge head-on, flip it, and use it as an opportunity to improve your digital marketing strategy.
After all, at the end of the day, your marketing plan is all about going after return-on-investment (ROI). The thing is, that’s the goal of everyone else’s marketing plan, too. To get the best bang for your buck and stick out in what seems to be a never-ending sea of online content, we’re going to clue you in on some of the simple things you can do to boost your digital marketing campaign to rake in potential customers and showcase whatever product or service you’re promoting.
Keep it Short. Keep it Obvious. Keep it Engaging.
We’re going to come right out and say it – with the exception of a good Dan Brown novel here and there, long-form content is otherwise dead. At least, really reading it is a dead concept. Yes, a bit ironic, considering you’re reading (or should we say browsing) this right now. 😉 But seriously, if it ain’t engaging, people aren’t going to take the time out of their busy, chaotic days to read through it. Even studies from Nielsen back this up, finding that people don’t really READ webpage content but scan it.
Okay, sounds easier for the marketer, right? Shorter copy, clearer sentences…
Well, it is, as long as you know HOW to make your copy easy-to-digest yet engaging.
Some basics on dumbing-down your copy:
- Bullet points are your friend! Or hyphens, asterisks, arrows – we don’t judge! Just space out that copy! (See what we did there?)
- Use subheads! It’s a little thing that can make a big difference. Tiny titles throughout your content improve readability and give readers an insight into what topic they’re about to dig in to. Remember, it’s hard enough to get people to engage with written content – don’t keep them in the dark about what they’re about to read.
- Repeat it. If you want someone to remember your offer, write it again and again. The old marketing adage says it’ll take 7 times before someone remembers your offer, but dependent on what social media platform you’re working from, it could be more. Just remember to use repetition in your social media marketing strategy.
- Employ motion graphics and/or video marketing. This tip is going to take us straight into our next topic, but here’s a stat to kick things off – the average consumer is going to retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video, compared to 10% when reading it in text. Either way, a little bit of motion or animation is eye-catching and bound to draw consumers in.
Why Video?
Actually, the question is more like, why not video? As you might have guessed, a lot of it comes back to our increased use of mobile phones. In case you’re not convinced, we’ll throw a couple more facts about the growth of video your way.
- Users view more than 1 billion hours of video each day on YouTube.
- 72% of customers prefer to learn about a product or service via explainer videos.
- Mobile video consumption rises by 100% every year.
- Social video generates 1200% more shares than text and images combined.
You already know this stuff, though. Yes, trust us, you do. Or at least you can draw the same conclusions just from looking around. Chances are you don’t watch cable TV nearly as much as you did 10 years ago, you see people on their smartphones at all times, and you yourself are even a lot more likely to send a video to a friend on Facebook or Instagram rather than a plain photo post.
Making Video Work For You
So, how do you take this video craze and make it work for your business? Especially if you don’t have somebody in-house who specializes in video editing, the entire idea of video for business can feel cringe-inducing.
A simple testimonial video, or a video done to be included in email marketing, can still carry more stopping power than text and graphic design alone. But, mixed media videos tend to go the extra mile in terms of professionalism and the WOW factor. Instead of trying to cram years’ worth of Adobe Premiere Pro training (or another video editing tool) into one week to make a company video, give the brandbliss team a call.
Our top-notch art directors, animators, and videographers have a range of video editing capabilities available to create something that will hone in your messaging and create masterpieces that will spike your video views. From the ideation to the production to the promotion, your video marketing strategy starts with us.
