If you were to compare the process of creating video content in 2018 against the rigorous, time-consuming and error-ridden system that was followed some 30 years ago, you’d gain a real appreciation of the technological advancement that divides the two.
In a welcomed move, the era of the cutting room has been firmly banished to the history books. Its replacement takes the form of advanced editing suites, fronted by intuitive dashboards, capable of turning raw footage into box-office productions at a rapid speed.
Technology providers have been quick to seize upon the opportunity created by formats like online video, whose viewing now consumes 67 minutes of the average person’s day. That growth in audience might explain why 72% of businesses invest in video content marketing, outscoring the uptake for blogs (69%), research (60%) and infographics (56%) among others.
It’s true that the race for users has led to video content marketing technology standing in a more advanced position compared to a decade ago. Yet, as we assess the market’s latest offerings, we have to wonder if every little feature is conducive to the end goal of creating better content.
We’re constantly informed that new trends will revolutionize the way video is produced and distributed. Whether each and every one adds genuine value is up for debate.
In fact, due to the sheer breadth of “must-have” solutions entering today’s market, choosing the right technology has never been more difficult. With the aim of shedding some light on the situation, and based on Wildmoka we’ve decided to present our two cents on what really matters when it comes to choosing a video marketing platform:
1. Usability
We’ll start with the fundamental of a great piece of technology, which is how easily it can be learned and used by people of varying skill levels.
Usability is important across just about every product category - from cars to clothing - and video marketing technology is no different. Here’s what we mean in this specific instance:
- Quick to function: Speed is everything when it comes to utilizing video from live events. Simple tasks like the clipping and sharing of footage should be confined to the space of seconds rather than minutes.
- Seamless link-up with raw footage: The technology should enable speedy uploading of video or, in the case of broadcasters repurposing live footage, integrated directly with their live feeds and content management systems.
- Accessible to all: Unless you’re making the next Star Wars, there is an argument to avoid anything that’s too complex. With a view to empowering non-technical teams and alleviating some of the strain on editors, the dashboard must be clean and key functions made obvious.
2. A comprehensive offering
Good video content marketing technology should offer the kind of tools that make it easy for an editor to conduct several different tasks in the same place. Consider the inclusion of a graphic-building feature, or social-sharing buttons that allow a clip to be distributed across multiple channels.
Not only does this simplify the process of getting raw footage ready for the desired channel, it can also result in huge savings of time along the way. Some of the additional things to watch out for include:
- Buttons for instant sharing across social networks and other platforms
- Graphic-building capabilities
- Content protection via DRM (digital rights management) to prevent unauthorized playback
We’re essentially after something that lives up to the billing of an end-to-end solution; capable of centralizing many of the parts of video production that were formerly entrusted with different teams, never mind applications.
3. Automation
Not all of the upcoming trends within video content marketing will enjoy a long future. However, we can bank on automation being more than a passing fad.
The concept is revolutionizing entire industries by wiping hours off the time it takes to carry out basic tasks. Businesses across manufacturing, transport, healthcare, finance, logistics, and advertising are utilizing automation to do more with less, and video content creation is one of the lucky beneficiaries.
Broadcasters are now able to leverage the concept in detecting key events within a live stream and automatically clipping the moment for use on a separate channel. This is done through the technology’s connection to data-gathering services that provide the initial signal that something has happened.
The use of automation and machine learning within content marketing is expected to grow exponentially in the next few years, but it is a very real consideration for the present.
4. A platform that knows you
Any experienced content producer will appreciate the use of tools which can adapt to their unique and ever-changing requirements. Good technology can develop a pattern of use and aim to lay out something of a trail to assist in the creation of similar assets, saving plenty of time in the process.
Features like template storing for logos, pre-roll and post-roll graphics are useful to anyone that needs to produce video at speed, or hates the arduous task of uploading media they’ve used a dozen times before.
Let’s say you have an event sponsored by Coca-Cola and need to push their brand out to viewers of your content. You can set up a special template, comprised of a logo, pre-roll and post-roll assets, clip your video and click “apply template” for it to appear at the top of your content.
On a broader level, any user should be able to browse a library of graphical assets they have previously applied to other clips and add the relevant piece to their new production. They should be afforded the option of instantly sharing their content with any connected social platforms and without the need to log in. Adaptable and scalable are the big words here.
5. Editing features
Last but not least are the added controls that help an editor get exactly what they want out of their content. Things have moved very quickly on this front; beyond the cut, copy and paste, modern tools are now equipped with features like speed controllers for adjusting the pace of a clip, 3D or 360 editing capabilities and much more.
Of course, if you just want to repurpose your existing content assets, it might be wise to examine some of the more basic but necessary options. For instance, many tools now leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to extract audio from a clip and use it to serve subtitles and translations to audiences that have requested as much.
What do I really need from my video platform?
Overall, the priority should be on using a comprehensive and versatile solution that can offer a range of different options across the stages of sourcing, editing and distributing content.
Many technologies will have a service that, for example, offers advanced editing capabilities but nothing in the way of tools for getting that content onto multiple platforms. In these cases it’s important to assess what really feeds into the strategy at hand.
As another consideration, you should look to invest in something that offers the kind of functionality you need but without the complexity that often comes with it. If you can find an intuitive, easy-to-use solution which enables people from different backgrounds to operate it, you can free up more hours for your editors to be creative.
Through these movements, you’re also in with a better chance of making video a more business-wide consideration, allowing it spread out from the realms of specialist control and into exciting new areas.
References
https://www.zenithmedia.com/online-video-viewing-to-exceed-an-hour-a-day-in-2018/
https://smallbiztrends.com/2018/04/content-marketing-statistics.html
https://blog.wildmoka.com/future-of-video-content-marketing
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/08/how-automation-will-change-the-way-we-live-and-work1/
https://www.pcworld.com/article/221631/editing_sharing_3D_video.html
https://www.backlight.co/blog/streaming/why-social-video-automation-is-the-holy-grail-for-video-publishers