5 Statistically-Proven Ways That Videos on your Product Page Increase Conversions

You’ve managed to get people to your website and browse through your store. That’s step one. Now… how do you get them to hit the ‘Buy Now’ button and complete their purchase? How do you ensure your visitors convert to paying customers?

The answer? Videos. Videos are one of the most effective ways to convince website visitors to buy your products. Yet, it is one of the most under-utilised e-commerce strategies. You can use product videos in your online store to take your business to the next level and stand out from the competition.

Why is video so important for e-commerce businesses?

Whilst online shopping is quickly becoming the norm, customers are still weary of the fact that they cannot physically examine or try a product before buying it. For physical products, customers usually prefer to see what they look and feel like in real life. For services and software technology, potential buyers first want to see how it works to decide whether it is the right fit for them.

Using product videos on your website is one of the most effective ways to do this. Visitors can see the product in action, and better gauge it’s capabilities and functionalities. Videos can significantly increase your conversion rate, turning website visitors into paying customers.

The statistics speak in favour of the power of video for conversion. With over half of online users watching at least one video per day, YouTube receives 4 billion views per day and has grown to be the second largest search engine after Google. Videos are clearly on the rise, and marketers understand that video-based media engages customers significantly more than other content. 93% of marketers use video in their strategies, and 52% agree that video has the highest ROI out of all content options.

So why is video so successful? Viewers retain 95% of what is shown in a video, compared to a 10% retention rate for written text. And the most impressive statistic of them all? After seeing a video, shoppers are 174% more likely to make a purchase. For more statistics, check out the infographic below:

Source

What makes video so effective for Conversion Rates?

1. Video gets You Into Google’s Good Books

Visual content increases your chances of ranking higher in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) so that more customers will come across your e-commerce website. And the more often you are found, the more likely it is that people will make a purchase on your website.

Rank Higher on SERPs

Google uses a complicated algorithm in order to find content that best matches a browser’s search terms. This algorithm includes factors such as keywords, links, images and multimedia. Search Metrics has confirmed that Google checks for videos to determine the quality of content on a webpage. Especially if you publish your videos using YouTube - a platform that is owned by Google - your chances of being discovered increase.

Increase Dwell Time

Dwell time is the duration visitors spend on your website. When you incorporate videos into your product page, visitors are likely to spend more time on each page, as videos are engaging and take more time to watch versus briefly skimming over a production description. Another study by Search Metrics validates the relationship between video content and dwelling time. As Google’s algorithm also takes into account dwell time, this is yet another opportunity to improve your ranking.

Earn Valuable Backlinks

One of the major factors determining Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and therefore ranking success is backlinks. If your content is so great that other websites are referring to your website via links, Google boosts your ranking. Google significantly boosts your ranking.

2. Video is Better Suited For The Age of Social Media

When it comes to social media presence and success, you don’t want people to just ‘like’ your posts. You want them to comment and share your content - and videos are the best way to achieve that goal. The stats prove it:

• Research shows that people are more likely to click on a video thumbnail instead of links without multimedia content
• A study by MBooth and Simply Measured found that people are 12 times more likely to share videos compared to text posts
• Diode Digital concluded that videos are more effective that any other marketing tool - 600% more effective, to be precise.

 3. Videos Grab Attention

Motion pictures, music, storylines - that’s what captivates people. People are drawn to videos not only because they are more entertaining than plain text or images, but they are also a lot easier to digest. It takes less effort to watch a video than to read through lengthy product descriptions. The statistics show that people much prefer to watch video over engaging with a different form of content:

• 60% of visitors prefer watching a video over other website content
• 59% of online shoppers confirm they would watch a video (Reach Engine), and 12% watch videos specifically on ecommerce websites (MediaPost).

4. Videos Help People With Their Buying Decision

Finally, video helps people in their buying decisions, by providing information more quickly and efficiently than any other content tool. By showing a short video of your product, how it’s used and what need it satisfies, customers can get a better understanding of the benefits of your product or service.

Consider an online fashion retailer. Seeing clothes, jewellery or accessories on a 3D, moving person can help people decide whether or not it will suit them, how the item fits, and even provide outfit ideas and inspiration. Finally, using videos for storytelling can help to build emotional rapport with your audience, prompting people to hit the ‘Buy” button. The statistics say it all:

• 96% of shoppers rely on product videos when making a buying decision
• It’s not only conversion rate optimisation that increases: according to research findings by MediaPost, 57% of shoppers will return less and buy in confidence when product videos are available
• Overall, StacksandStacks estimate that visitors are 144% more likely to make a purchase after seeing a product video than those who didn’t
• Similarly, Invodo found that visitors who watch a product video are 1.7 times likelier to convert to paying customers
• Building rapport through videos pays off in terms of trust and loyalty: 58% of consumers trust brands with videos over those who don’t (Retail Touch Point).

5. Video Takes Your Marketing Efforts to The Next Level

No matter what your marketing objective is, video can help you get there. If your goal is to increase sales, product videos on your website make it 85% more likely that customers will hit the ‘Buy’ button. If you want to increase engagement in your email marketing campaigns, including the word ‘video’ in your subject line increases opening rates by up to 13%. If your aim is to incentivise browsers to take a specific action, including a video on your landing page increases conversions by 80%.

Video not only improves the success rate of your marketing campaigns, but also reduces your marketing costs by an average of $22 per lead! Check out the infographic below to understand how video can take your marketing efforts to the next level:

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How businesses have used product videos effectively

There is overwhelming evidence that suggests having a video on your product page drives conversions, and it’s not only the statistics that support this claim. There are many success stories of e-commerce businesses that have used videos to engage their website visitors and convince them to make a purchase.

ASOS

As one of the biggest online clothing retailers, ASOS cannot be overlooked. They are one of the prime examples of business that have incorporated videos into their product pages. In addition to product photos, the product page features a short runway video of a model wearing the item.

The video help customers understand how the product fits. It also gives a better idea of how to wear a particular item, and provides inspiration for outfit ideas.

Ariat

Ariat is an online store for equestrian and related fashion items. They have successfully integrated a video showing off the functionalities and qualities of their products. Compared to the product description, the video is infinitely more engaging and impactful.

Check it out for yourself. This is the product description for one of their cowboy-style riding boots:

It’s quite a mouthful, isn’t it? And now watch the video for the same product. That’s exactly what we’re talking about! 

Zappos

The shoe retailer started to integrate videos into their product pages a while back, and reported a massive increase in their conversion rate. It’s not a dramatic product video showing off the advanced technology they use, nor does it feature a high-end fashion model. Instead, you have your friendly guy next door showing you the product, going through exactly the same things you’d go through in-store. You try on the shoe, check out all the details, see how flexible the sole is - and that’s exactly what Jow from Zappos.com is doing.

Tattly

Tattly is a funky Shopify store that sells ‘Fake Tattoos by Real Artists’. The video on their product page is there to teach viewers how to use their products. As a result, customers can see exactly how the product works, and how the fake tattoos look on your skin. In this case, the video is even better than visiting a brick-and-mortar store. The video helps website visitors ‘try on’ a fake tattoo - without actually trying it on.

 

Check out the video here.

Need help?

Are you ready to begin your video marketing journey? Need some extra guidance on increasing your conversion rate through video? If you’re unsure how to develop, produce and integrate effective product videos into your Shopify store, drop us a line at Elkfox. We’re here to help.

Bonus read: Ultimate Guide to Video Marketing.

* Image via Glossier