Video is the fastest growing investment for Canadian marketers, according to a new report from eMarketer.
Citing data from BrandSpark’s “9th Annual BrandSpark Canadian Marketers Survey,” the data firm reported Tuesday that almost half (48%) of Canadian marketers plan to increase their spending on digital video in the next year. The increase is a jump from last the 2013 report, when just 37% of marketers said they planned to increase digital video investment.
The increase in video investment was matched only marketers plans for social media spending, with 48% of marketers also reporting that they plan to increase spend in social media over the next year. Video investment, however, is growing at a much more rapid pace. In the last year the percentage of marketers who said they plan to increase social spend grew just 3% in 2013.
Other areas that can expect to see increased spend from marketers include mobile marketing (41%, up from 36%), brand websites (35%, down from 38%) and paid search (32%, up from 26%).
According to the study, both online video and social have a relatively high return on investment, with 13% reporting that online video has a strong ROI and 17% reporting social marketing has a high ROI. By contrast, traditional media did not fare well with just 2% of marketers reporting newspapers and radio to have a strong ROI and 3% reporting that of magazines.
Those views were also reflected in intent to spend, with just 4% of marketers reporting they plan to increase their investment in radio and newspapers next year.
With so many marketers setting their sights on digital video, the medium is finally starting to look more like TV and other mass media. In recent weeks several major Canadian brands have released minute-plus videos online, including Tim Hortons (which captured great attention – and 2.6 million views – with its #TimsDark spot), Canadian Tire (which serves up new videos several times a month) and Hudson’s Bay (which created a shoppable video with the help of Elle Canada).
This week Dove Canada also revealed a massive investment in video, releasing 50 digital shorts over 50 days to celebrate 50 years in the Canadian market.
While some of these videos, like Tim Horton’s #TimsDark, are adapted and run on traditional TV, many are web-only plays or tie-ins that work together with PR, social or experiential efforts to maximize marketing dollars.
Such was the case with West Jet’s Christmas Miracle, one of the most popular online videos to come from a Canadian brand. Speaking to eMarketer, Corey Evans, WestJet manager of sponsorship, community and investment, said the video was a marketing hit precisely because it mixed different disciplines.
“You used to do a PR stunt just for the PR. Now you do the PR stunt for the PR, and then you can tell the story through social media, and it can live longer and continue to grow,” Evans said.
