5 Digital Video Strategies to Boost E-Commerce Engagement This Holiday Season

It’s the most wonderful time of year to be in e-commerce. According to Deloitte, U.S. consumers are forecasted to spend a total of $933.3 billion on e-commerce by the year’s end — a 17.9 percent increase from 2020, representing over 15 percent of total retail sales. Whether it’s fear of the Delta variant or the allure of free shipping that’s behind the imbalance, the takeaway is clear: opportunity is online.

If you’re looking to capitalize on some of that opportunity yourself this season, make sure video plays a central role in your strategy. Below are a few digital video tips to help enhance your online marketing efforts and boost your e-commerce sales.

Product Videos

We’re all familiar with the power of first impressions. And when it comes to e-commerce, there’s no better way to put your product’s best foot forward than with video. Tag Heuer, the Swiss luxury watch brand, recently experienced the power of first impressions firsthand after doing a complete redesign of its e-commerce website around premium video content. With sleek, high-definition product videos now taking center stage, Tag Heuer’s website has seen an impressive 600 percent year-over-year increase in total conversions.

How-To Videos

People love to learn, and what better subject of study than your product? “How to” videos are the most popular content type on YouTube in terms of both total views and search terms. Not relevant to retail you say? Think again. In its annual State of Video Marketing report, Wyzowl reported that 72 percent of consumers prefer to learn about a product or service through video. Tap into your audience’s innate curiosity with informational content that encourages engagement .

Behind-the-Brand Exclusives

Offering “behind-the-scenes” exclusives or other types of premium content gives you unprecedented access to a unique, self-selected demographic of ultra-engaged viewers. With an audience of fans, you're free to reinforce strong connections with your brand and gain valuable insights into customer preferences. With a more receptive, dedicated audience, you can test drive new product ideas, experiment with brand concepts, or shift your sales focus to premium-tier products.

Customized Consumer Experiences

With an owned-and-operated video platform, retailers can gain real-time insights on their customers to help optimize their experiences. Retailers can leverage analytics to build better products and services, as well as identify critical drop-off points in the shopper's journey to inform targeted re-engagement efforts, such as customer service chat dialogues and strategic promotional offers. Even abandoned cart emails, the simplest of all customer re-engagement techniques, have been shown to motivate over 10 percent of recipients to return to the site and complete a purchase.

Livestream Shopping and Sales Events

Livestream shopping is one of the fastest growing market segments in global retail. According to Coresight Research, America’s annual livestream sales are expected to reach $11 billion by the end of 2021, then skyrocket to $25 billion by 2023. In addition to the massive potential for revenue growth, livestream shopping also lets consumers from all over the world access and engage with your brand and team members. To drive extra engagement, consider special livestream sales, influencer appearances, and other unique, one-off opportunities.

Whatever You Do, Don’t Skip Video

Video is, by far and away, the preferred medium for content online. And that isn’t likely to change anytime soon. Digital video consumption has increased by more than 28 percent since the start of 2021. It should come as no surprise, then, that marketers that incorporate video into their campaigns perform significantly better than those that do not, enjoying 34 percent higher conversion rates and 49 percent faster revenue growth than those who pass on the format. Therefore, no matter what your content strategy may be this holiday season, even if you decide to ignore every item on this list, skipping video altogether is downright negligent. Unless you want coal under the Christmas tree, the time to embrace video arrived long ago.

Dave Otten is the CEO and co-founder of JW Player, a powerful and flexible video platform powered by the fastest, most-used HTML5 online video player.