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Shoppable Videos: What They Are and Does Your Business Need Them?

Shoppable video is the future! Except that it’s already happening, so it’s more like the now. But what is it, and can your business make use of it?

Shoppable videos mix shopping and entertainment to create interactive videos with embedded links to buy products. This differs from previous video selling efforts that put the link in the text description of the video. And it seems to be here to stay, as people are calling it the future of shopping. 

New trend for 2021

This new way to buy things is being used by several companies, including Foot Locker, As a way to sell products, videos make complete sense. Compared to still images, video gives a better look at a product, and can show it off in a way that other formats can’t. Plus, videos on product pages have been proven to increase sales. Although not brand new – it’s been around for a few years now – interactive shoppable videos are just coming into the spotlight, with no signs of going away soon. A full 40% of marketers are reporting the use of shoppable videos in their work. It’s not just marketers getting in on the trend – YouTube announced in 2020 that they were introducing shoppable videos on their platform.

Higher engagement rates than display videos

Interactive videos engage viewers in a way that regular videos can’t, leading to a conversion rate three to four times higher than standard display videos. Interactive visual content is by far the most popular format, with 86% of buyers naming it their favorite way to consume content. 

Should you use shoppable video?

Consider that half of all shoppers use video to help them make a purchase decision. Then consider that video is the most popular media format online and the higher conversion rates of interactive videos. Not to mention that your customers are already watching videos to help them make purchases. It makes sense, then, to consider shoppable videos as part of your marketing strategy. Retailers, fashion brands, and ecommerce shops are all good candidates for shoppable video. 

Making shoppable video

There are several ways to create a shoppable video, including custom ecommerce solutions. But that’s a bit too complicated for something you might not even want to use in the long run. For getting your feet wet, YouTube and other out of the box solutions are much simpler. A shoppable video is an interactive video focused on ecommerce. And because YouTube offers several interactive options, we’re going to start there. On paid videos (meaning ads) YouTube offers the option to place a call to action overlay on the video to create a link to, say, your product page. 

Instagram has been offering interactive shoppable videos for a few years now. You’ll need to have Instagram Shopping setup on your account then you can get started tagging and linking products in your videos. 

Facebook has an option to combine live videos with a shopping experience to help you connect with your audience. 

There are also several other apps and sites that make it easy to create shoppable videos. 

As more brands experiment with shoppable video, or fully embrace it to make it a part of their customer experience, we can look forward to seeing interesting new ways to use video for shopping. And with platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Amazon and YouTube all offering interactive video, we can expect this new way of shopping to continue growing in popularity. For brands looking for a way to reach customers where they are most comfortable, it’s worth taking a look at incorporating shoppable video into the marketing mix. 

At DreamItReel, we’re excited about interactive video and can help you get started today. Get in touch to find out how. 

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