Video has become a major platform for US marketers, particularly on Facebook. According to a recent survey by Animoto, a cloud-based video creation service, 70.8 percent of respondents said they plan to invest in social video ads, including ads to boost content in the next 12 months. Facebook is most likely to benefit from these plans, as 65.8 percent of those who planned to do social video advertising expressed plans to use the platform. Following as the number two choice for social marketing was YouTube at 42.3 percent.
The study by Animoto was conducted between April and May of 2016 and shows an increase in Facebook interest over a similar study in December 2015. The December study, conducted by Advertiser Perceptions, showed that 72 percent of US marketers anticipated using Google and YouTube campaigns, compared to 46 percent who said Facebook.
Mobile advertising is a natural platform for video marketing, and brands are taking full advantage. Facebook earned 84 percent of its ad revenue from mobile during the last quarter and earlier this year, Google stated that it is now serving more search queries on mobile than on desktop. A new report from Mixpo reveals how popular Facebook’s video has become. The report shows that 50 percent of companies have launched some form of video campaign on the site, a huge jump compared to the 31 percent on YouTube, and even bigger than Twitter (17 percent), Instagram (13 percent) and Snapchat (2 percent).
At Fortune’s Most Powerful Women International Summit in London this year, Nicola Mendelsohn, Facebook’s vice president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, predicted that the social media platform “will be definitely mobile” and “probably all video” in five years. Mendelsohn also said she believes video is a better way to tell stories and predicted that 360-degree video will move beyond its current novelty status.
Facebook is well aware of its popularity among video advertisers, and has made plans accordingly, including the signing of many media partners and celebrities, along with a recent partnership with Blizzard to help connect friends better with the competitive shooting game Overwatch. The medium is just getting started, as more and more marketers are finding the best ways to utilize video, including new formats like 360-degree video—a very friendly format for virtual reality.
