With the increasing popularity of online video, series marketing has become a viable option for brands. But what exactly is series marketing and how can you use it to engage and retain customers? We will discuss the various forms of series marketing and how you can put into practice the different strategies to grow your business.

Video Case Study: Reebok

One of the pioneers of series marketing is Reebok, whose Run. Repeat. Kill. video campaign is a perfect example of using online video to drive engagement and customer loyalty. Launching a video campaign isn’t a new concept, but what Reebok did was take that strategy one step further by integrating videos into their entire website concept. They used short-form videos (between three and six minutes) to explore each part of their brand ethos – from running to repeating – while also connecting with their customers on a more emotional level. As a result of this integration, the brand saw an increase in loyalty and retention, as well as sales across all their platforms.

The Difference In Strategy

The success of Reebok’s video campaign points to the importance of strategy when it comes to incorporating videos into your marketing strategy. While many brands might turn to YouTube for content, Jeeves Marlowe, digital marketing manager at Wunderman, explains that “form and function are inseparable” in an IoT world, meaning that your video strategy needs to match up with your business goals and the unique style of your brand.

Formats & Genres

Thanks to the increasing popularity of mobile devices and the cord cutting phenomenon, consumers have more options when it comes to watching video content. While many still prefer watching videos on a big screen TV, mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets have made short-form videos popular. These videos are easily viewed on mobile devices and tend to boom in shareability and resonance when used correctly.

As a result, most brands will lean into this evolution and produce videos for mobile devices. What makes these videos uniquely valuable is that they can be relevant to anyone with a mobile device and are quick to view and engage with consumers. With fewer consumers spending more time in front of the TV, videos on mobile devices allow for instantaneous engagement.

What Platforms

When it comes to finding an audience and engaging with customers through video, it’s imperative to consider the platforms you’ll use to reach your audience. While it’s always advantageous to reach as many potential customers as possible, you need to consider where your audience is and how you’ll engage with them.

The best video platforms to reach millennials are YouTube and Vimeo, according to HubSpot Blogs research. While YouTube is the world’s largest video platform, with over 1.7 billion active monthly users, Vimeo offers a free and private option to users, making it a favourite of creators, photographers, and designers.

Content & Engagement

Another important factor to consider when developing your video strategy is the type of content you’ll use to engage with your audience. You need to look at the demographics of your entire audience to decide which content is the best fit.

For example, if you’re targeting older adults with a wealth of experience, you might want to avoid using kid-focused content or heavy humor in your videos as it may not be appropriate. Instead, you could use animals or nature scenes to engage and attract consumers who are more interested in the greater good of nature.

Video Content Ideas

With so much focus on video, it’s no surprise that brands have created an explosion of video content ideas – from product unboxing segments to first-person viewpoint videos of consumers using the product or service you market.

As a brand maker, you couldn’t ask for a better visionary than Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook. He gave a commencement address at Harvard University in which he said:

“A new kind of platform — and it’s a platform for meaningful connections among individuals with shared interests — has emerged and it’s called the internet.”

Zuckerberg went on to predict that “in the next few years, people will use video more frequently and more actively than they do today.” So while Facebook may well have dominated the news cycle for the last few years, they are leaping into the future of broadcasting with this video strategy.

Cord Cutting

As the TV cable packaging numbers drop, more and more people are cutting the cord. According to statistiknotik, a video platform for smartphones, 54.2 million U.S. households now get their video content from streaming services like Netflix and HBO — as opposed to over-the-air TV broadcasting.

While cord cutting is a welcome change for consumers, it can pose a challenge for brands. After all, how do you engage with your audience when you don’t have a dedicated TV cable channel?

The Rise Of Cinema-Style Video

With the rise of cinema-style video, montages and cut-scenes are just short form videos — a genre defined by quick videos edited to form a compelling story.

Video Metrics

The optimal size for a video is between three and six minutes, based on the research of Oberlo — but metrics vary. For instance, a 2017 TikTok study found that videos under three minutes had a 74% engagement rate, compared to 18% for videos over six minutes.

The greatest video platform is YouTube, according to Hootsuite research, with a global reach and audience of over 1.7 billion users. While YouTube is an integral part of Google’s SEO strategy, it’s more than just a video hosting platform; it’s an entire ecosystem for content and community building.