Video is continuing to grow in popularity and importance, which means it's vital to stay on top of the latest advances and statistics in order to create a strong digital video marketing strategy

Video is a highly effective form of content and its popularity has gone hand-in-hand with the rise of social media. Despite the fact that so many of us consume online videos on a daily basis, many marketers still aren’t using video as part of their digital marketing strategy or aren’t seeing the best results. In order to inform your marketing strategy and help you get the best possible ROI from campaigns, we’ve compiled some video marketing statistics that could help you get to grips with video.

92% of marketers say it’s an important part of their marketing strategy

In 2020, 92%…

Stay on top of the latest advancements in paid search by taking a look at the big PPC trends for 2020 that are set to take the digital marketing industry by storm.

As the world of Pay-Per-Click (PPC) becomes increasingly competitive, it has never been more important to ensure you are spending your budget efficiently and maximizing your Return On Investment (ROI). But with new PPC strategies and opportunities emerging all the time, which ones should you pay attention to? Take a look at what we at Smart Insights and industry experts believe are the top PPC trends to pay attention to, as we cut through the noise and give our top five trends you definitely need to add to your PPC strategy for 2020. [si_guide_block id="79626" title="Download our Free Resource – 10 costly Google Ads mistakes" description="The guide covers mistakes that many people make when using paid search advertising, for example, Google…

Video marketing has been steadily growing over the past few years and is showing no signs of slowing down

The latest social media report from Smart Insights found that 90% of shared posts on social media today are video clips. Plus, the fact that many sites are adding more features for video streaming (such as Instagram’s IGTV and Periscope for Twitter) shows that video marketing is the way to reach audiences. Experts even predict that by 2020, about 80% of consumer traffic in the US will be driven by video. [si_guide_block id="23343" title="Download our Premium Resource – Video and YouTube marketing guide" description="Our guide shows you how to review the full opportunities from video marketing whether you are a company looking to integrate video marketing more into your campaigns or a marketing agency looking to improve your video marketing services."/] Consumers are also starting to prefer videos over blog posts and other more…

Facebook rolling out 'Clear History' tool, Twitter blocks Chinese state-backed accounts, YouTube removing chat function, New LinkedIn Live guide, Twitter's new video ad bid and Facebook's new movie ad tools

This week has seen Facebook finally announce the rollout of its 'Clear History' tool, which will enable users to have more control over their off-site data. While it is only available in select locations, for now, the tool will soon be available to all Facebook users - but what impact will this have on advertisers? Twitter has announced that it has blocked a number of accounts that were found to be backed by the Chinese state in the wake of growing tensions between protestors and police in Hong Kong, with Facebook following suit. YouTube has announced that its chat function will no longer be available from next month, with more focus being put on public comments and YouTube stories. LinkedIn has released a new…

Google changes search results, Instagram has fastest growing brand value, video is most engaging in-app ad format, Facebook meeting with anti-censorship groups, YouTube cracks down on white supremacist content, TikTok testing new ad targeting tools

One of the biggest updates recently - besides Google's algorithm update - is the news that the search engine will be changing how search results are displayed, which could drastically affect traffic numbers. Other stories have seen Instagram be announced at the fastest growing brand in terms of value, topping Amazon. When it comes to in-app ads, video has been found to be the most engaging in a new study. Facebook has faced more protests about its censorship of female nipples but the platform has now agreed to meet anti-censorship groups to discuss the issue. YouTube has followed in Facebook's steps to take a harsher stance on white supremacist and Holocaust denier content. Finally, TikTok is reportedly testing new tools that…

Nearly 43% of all e-commerce traffic is organic, while just 26% of traffic comes from ads

"We don't need SEO. We use Adwords. It works better for us." I’ve heard this phrase countless times over in the e-commerce space, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. Nearly 43% of all e-commerce traffic is organic, while just 26% of traffic comes from ads. If you are focusing on PPC over SEO, you are missing out on a massive chunk of traffic. Plus, as sites at the top of Google get 36.4% of search traffic, your e-commerce SEO strategy needs to be top notch. [si_guide_block id="5750" title="Download our Individual Member Resource – Successful SEO guide" description="Our comprehensive guide to Search Engine Optimisation best practices isn't just for SEOs, the clear explanations mean that it can be used by marketers to ask the right questions to…

YouTube stops ads on anti-vaxxer videos, Facebook to launch new premium ad service, consumer confidence still negative in face of uncertain Brexit, Oreo announces partnership with Game of Thrones, ACCC asks advertisers in Australia for feedback and TikTok fined for collecting children's data

Take a look at some of the news affecting marketers this week including YouTube's decision to stop adverts running on anti-vaccination videos and to update its 'Up Next' algorithm so these videos are not promoted. On top of this, Facebook has announced a new premium ad service, that allows advertisers to book in slots up to a year in advance. This week has also seen the latest Consumer Confidence Index from GfK get released, revealing that the uncertainty of Brexit is still taking its toll. In lighter news, it seems that Oreo is ready to play the Game of Thrones with its latest partnership, which could be the biggest partnership for…

Chart of the Week: More than 1.12 billion accounts spread across Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp now watch or create Stories every day

When it comes to social media marketing trends, Stories is the big one you need to watch. More than 1.12 billion accounts spread across Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp now watch or create Stories every day, representing a 987% increase since the start of 2016. It isn’t just individual users that are causing Stories to grow hugely in popularity, more brands, companies and marketers are making the most of them. Buffer’s State of Social 2019 report has found that 57% of brands have found that Stories have been an "effective" part of their social media strategy.

The effectiveness of…

Video content is one of the most popular forms of content consumed on the internet, so here are some great tools to create videos

Have you ever wondered what you did on the internet before videos became popular? It doesn’t matter - nothing can overtake videos now. According to the latest stats, video content is one of the most popular forms of content consumed on the internet. There is a splurge of 63% in the entire video content consumption skyrocketing it to 81% in 2018. Yes, you read that right, I likened ‘video’ to ‘content’ for it has now become an integral part of content marketing. In its State of Inbound Report, HubSpot maintains that video marketing is gaining momentum rapidly. In fact, Cisco maintains that by 2020, online videos will make up for over 80% of all consumer internet traffic! Still not convinced?…

Disney is moving it's digital brands to Google Ads, Facebook is testing 'Today In', Uber receives data breach fine, Australia's SVoD subscriptions are due to outstrip Pay-TV and TfL has banned junk food advertisements

The last week has seen some interesting announcements, not least the fact that Disney will now be using Google Ads as its only ad-technology platform, meaning Google is replacing Comcast's FreeWheel. Facebook is testing yet another new feature, this time aimed at bringing local communities together by keeping them more informed. But what does 'Today In' mean for the platform's attempts to police fake news? On top of these big stories, this week has seen Uber get fined again for its 2016 data breach, the rise of subscription video on demand in Australia and junk food advertising being banned on any part of London's public transport system. Find out more about five big digital and marketing stories this week. …