Social Media and Media Production
Social media has had a tremendous impact on media production and, more specifically, the distribution of content. What was once considered a novelty is now an essential part of any effective marketing strategy.
Videos, in particular, are considered to be the future of content marketing. It is a lot more convenient to watch a video than to read an article. The information is simply much easier to digest. In an age where we are constantly looking for easier and quicker methods to get things done, the value of videos cannot be overstated. In fact videos currently make up the largest percentage of consumer internet traffic. It is therefore important that you incorporate this medium into your marketing strategy. However choosing the form of your content is only step one.
The fact that there is such a vast amount of videos and other content available means that there is a lot more competition in the marketplace. In order to get noticed you will have to make sure that what you are distributing amounts to original and top-quality content. Anything less is likely to go unnoticed, since viewers simply filter out the content that they find boring or irrelevant.
Once you have successfully made a sensational marketing video you need to consider distribution methods. It won’t add much value to your marketing strategies unless your content is seen not only by a vast amount of people, but also by the right people. This is where social media comes in. You will first need to know who your target market is and with which social media platforms they are familiar. Choosing the right distribution channels is vital in ensuring that you attract the traffic you want. The most obvious option is YouTube. Many businesses have set up their own channel to create brand awareness. Setting up your own channel gives you the advantage of only including the videos that you want to be seen, namely those related to your business, thus eliminating the chances of the viewer straying off to videos of babies tasting lemons for the first time. YouTube also has the special feature of allowing you to monitor the number of views and likes your video receives. The possibility of comments is also a useful method of accumulating feedback from your target market.
Whatever success your business may enjoy from its YouTube channel, it is important to expand your horizons. There are many platforms on which to distribute your videos. In order to make the most of social media, you should take advantage of as many of them as makes sense to your business and target market. For example, Vimeo, Daily Motion and VideoJug are a few that are popular amongst certain population. The role of social media in this instance is creating brand awareness. If you simply post your video to your company website, you are merely making content available to those people who are already aware of your brand.
Due to the significant decrease in production costs in the last couple of years, there is no reason for you or your business to be left behind in this significant shift towards content sharing on a global scale. Indeed, businesses who fail to keep up with the times do so at their peril.
