Is Video Really Worth It?
If you've started creating video content and you're wondering whether it is worth continuing with there are four points for consideration:
- The increased accessibility of video content over long-form text
- The suitability of the medium for demonstrating product features
- The feedback and input from your audience in the form of comments
- The feedback from your audience as seen through the YouTube analytics interface
Video is a fantastic medium for demonstrating products, and while physical products like ladders or power tools are ideally suited to a video show-and-tell, screen-recording software makes demonstrating apps and software a doddle too. Processes and features are often much more understandable to your audience when they can see them being done in real time, and this demonstrates the real benefits of your products in a very clear manner.
Video is also great from an accessibility standpoint too. People with dyslexia, or who are short on time can find video much clearer to understand, and quicker, than reading the same information in text form. Video can be watched anywhere on a phone, and although we can read the same information on our phone screen, video is much more native to the smartphone experience. Apps like TikTok, and features like Reels and Stories on social media platforms have created an appetite for video content, so it makes sense to use the medium to promote and demonstrate your business.
The feedback from your audience is the real key to knowing whether video is worth continuing with, so by reading comments and getting an idea of whether a video has been positively or negatively received you can refine and tweak your video content going forward.
The analytics tool within YouTube will show you where people are visiting from; this shows you whether you're featuring in Google's video results or whether people are coming from social channels or other routes. Also within the Content tab is the information on average view time, which provides insight into the amount of time people spend watching your videos.
In the Advanced area of the analytics interface you can see this information for each individual video, including data on the most popular moments (indicating rewatches, or shares starting from a particular point).You can also see whether there's a trend of viewers stopping watching at any point, most notable at the start of the video. Poorly performing video from the start can indicate that the subject wasn't introduced well, or that the title doesn't match the content, and therefore the expectations of the viewers.
Back to the basic interface, the Audience tab shows you how many viewers are returning to see your content again, and what else these people are watching. A keyword tool within the Research tab will show you where there are gaps in your keywords, suggesting topics for further videos. This sort of insight is invaluable in developing a content strategy, ensuring you don't waste time creating video no-one wants to watch, instead focusing resources on topics that are in demand.
Is video worth continuing with? Look at the four areas for consideration, and you'll soon see the right answer for your business.
