Video vs. Pics: Marketing Myth or Math?

The Huntington Library

The Huntington Library

Now here's a simple question that we're certain you have the answer to. Which keeps you on a website longer: pictures or video? If your answer was video, you are one of the 88.6 million people who watch online video per day (you know you are!). Don't get us wrong, pictures may speak a thousand words, but videos have the ability to engage the viewer in a way that most pictures simply don't.  And not only is video being used for pure entertainment but it's also used for marketing and advertising purposes on business and commerces' websites and their social media sites such as Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn; and that's just the tip of the iceberg! 

So why are so many companies choosing to use video instead of just pictures and text for their website content? (stay with us - it'll pay off!). Well, websites that contain videos will rank higher on search engines than those without video as stated by Bruce Clay of SMX, an SEO company. Why is this you ask? (there you go asking more good questions). One reason is that search engines such as Google look for those websites that have 'long clicks' (the length of time a user clicks and stays on your website) and users will tend to stay on a website longer if they are viewing a video; thus making the page more 'sticky' (are you getting pumped up yet?). In addition, Google tends to rank websites with videos higher because it's believed that video provides more highly engaging content than pure text or pictures and will therefore rank those sites with video first. 

Of course, Google has other motivations too  - keep reading...

This being said, we may be able to deduce this little mathematical equation:

Google (#1 SEARCH ENGINE ON THE PLANET) + Youtube ( #1 LARGEST VIDEO SITE ON THE INTERNET & OWNED BY GOOGLE) = Websites (WITH YOUTUBE VIDEOS & LINKS) that may get rated higher on Google.

So, if you or your company are ready to hop aboard the video train, contact MDF! We'll help you enrich your online presence and ultimately increase your sales; and hopefully your smiles, too!