It’s surprising and a little sad, but it’s true. We humans have an Attention Span that’s shorter than that of a goldfish. It makes sense, then, that social media dominates the marketing world these days, because it’s all about instant gratification. Users want their content, news updates, and latest trends all at once, and delivered in the blink of an eye. And that’s why it’s more important than ever to create content that captures the attention of and engages your viewers before they lose interest. Here’s how.

Shorter Videos

The average Facebook video view is only 10 seconds—which means you’ll need to trim your content if you’re going to keep your viewers engaged. Regardless of whether you’re a B2B or B2C Brand, it’s important to cut down unnecessary information and give only what’s most relevant—otherwise, your viewers will get bored and move on. Try appealing to your viewer’s emotions—is your product or service something they need to ensure their safety, comfort, health, or convenience, for example? Play into these needs—which ultimately affect customer buying patterns—and follow the message with a quick stamp of your brand. You start losing the attention span of 33% of your audience once you pass the mark of a 30-second video, so this is a good benchmark for length.

Live Video

Live video offers your viewers the chance to engage–and this will set you apart from other brands, by giving your audience a voice and drawing them to you. There’s no need to worry that the live aspect will detract from the professionalism of your content—in fact, users spend three times as long watching a live video than one that was pre-recorded. That’s because live video shows viewers that you’re ahead of the curve, and shows your authentic side. It’s a very ‘real’ experience, which makes your brand instantly more trustworthy and approachable—and this gives your viewers a better overall first impression. Incorporate live video for announcements like product launches or business updates, event sessions and webinars, or even just a weekly video update to interview members of your team for a behind-the-scenes look at your brand.

One on one

Building on the success of live video, one-on-one video is the next step in personalizing your marketing efforts like never before. On a wide scale, this approach is valuable in nurturing leads, because it shows your company as an authentic face rather than a money-hungry lead form. It’s also a successful alternative to traditional marketing communications like email and newsletter for the same reason—a friendly face thanking a customer for a recent purchase is much more satisfying than a crop of spammy emails. Use one-one-one video to follow up on—or even encourage—customer questions, offer support, and even to offer new content or products. Most importantly, encourage feedback here—you’ll be drawing in new users, strengthening your relationships, and increasing business opportunities in a personalized and effective way.

Because viewers retain 95% of content via video, but only 10% of what they read, it makes sense that video is the most effective marketing communication strategy for metrics-driven companies. For customers, it’s easier to retain information and stay engaged, and for brands like you, it means more successful engagement metrics—which translates into more conversions. By designing your videos to be digestible, informative, and entertaining, you’ll be increasing not only your wins, but—more importantly—your following of loyal and return customers.

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Brianna Barcena is a Content Specialist at TrustRadius. When she’s not in the office, she enjoys reading, watching a good historical drama, doing yoga, and going on adventures with her dog, Deeks.

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