In today’s digital world, it’s not enough to simply reach an audience. You have to connect and engage with them. The rapid rise of Content Marketing shows the emphasis brands are placing on storytelling.

Video takes that connection to the next level. It’s currently the most effective content tool to both engage with an audience and humanize your brand.

It’s also where the audience is already consuming content. According to YouTube, mobile video consumption grows by 100% every year and video is projected to claim more than 80% of all web traffic by 2019.

Facebook remains, by far, the most popular social network with 1.13 billion daily active users. Its CEO Mark Zuckerberg made a very public declaration that the company, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, is “putting video first across our apps.”

You don’t have to break your marketing budget to produce relevant and engaging videos. Most research points to shorter videos being more effective. And the more personal you make the message, the more it will resonate.

Here are five statistics on five key areas of your digital footprint where video can boost your business:

SEO
You are 53x more likely show up on page 1 of Google if you have a video embedded on your website.  (source: Moovly)

Social Media
76% of users say they would share a branded video with their friends if it was entertaining. (source: Wyzowl)

Business Development
59% of company decision makers would rather watch a video than read an article or blog post. (source: Hubspot)

E-Marketing
By embedding a video in your email, it increases the open rates by 5.6% and increases the click through rates by 96% (source: Insivia)

Converstions
Embedding videos in landing pages can increase conversion rates by 80%. (source: Forbes)

Photo courtesy of Seth Doyle, Upsplash