Written vs. Video Content For Your Marketing Strategy
Magazine journalism aficionado, of the Tank content hub. Honed her writing talents on the battlefields of Peterborough’s A&E and beauty counters.
Written vs. video content: Which is best for your content marketing strategy?
For a long time, marketers would pour most of their resources into producing whitepapers, how-to-guides and blogs, all designed to attract leads/traffic and create credibility. Video, on the other hand, was more problematic. Compared to written content, video has traditionally been more time-consuming to produce. It required specialist skills and equipment, and you may not be convinced of its value.
That’s all starting to change now, as video becomes an essential marketing tool – not just a ‘nice to have’.
From reels and TikToks, to vlogs and employee-generated content (EGC), it’s bringing in millions of views – and high engagement – for brands that get it right.
Online videos have an audience reach of 92%, making it one of the most effective ways to connect with your audience and land leads and sales.
Consumers are crying out for video content but only 19% of brands are currently delivering it. Whether you’re B2B or B2C, video should be part of your content marketing strategy, but where does it fit in?
This article will explore written vs. video content, the benefits of each, and why a combined strategy can accelerate your marketing.
The Strengths of Written Content
Does that mean the written word is dead? Absolutely not.
Over three-quarters (77%) of internet users rely on blogs to get information and you’ll find around 600m published online.
From thought-leadership reports, to guides and explainers, written content helps to raise brand awareness and nurture leads through the marketing funnel. High quality on-page content also helps pages to rank on Google. Brands dominating the top spots in search engines have a killer SEO content strategy with tailored keywords and long-tail content to drive organic traffic.
Hubspot’s highly-respected blog attracts 8.2m organic views, every month bringing in the majority of its business. In fact, blogs are the highest quality source of leads for 60% of marketers, with long form content (typically over 1,000 words) achieving the most links.
“Written content such as guides and blogs can be a great way to build authority and visibility for your brand. Take our client Eurocell as an example – we developed a strong SEO content strategy, addressing questions and audience pain points around their core products. These rank highly for thousands of product-specific longtail keywords.
“But to be successful, content needs to be relevant and helpful, and match the intent of the user’s search query. At the same time, it should be enjoyable to read, unique and offer expertise to help you stand out from competitors. That means meeting Google’s E-E-A-T (experience, expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness) guidelines to hit the mark of quality.”
— Jake Cassedy, SEO lead at Tank
With written content, you’re able to simplify complex topics in a way your audience can easily understand. Customers always value handy step-by-step guides, whether it’s explaining how to set up an account, or assemble/maintain a product. Blogs, articles and eBooks also make great evergreen content that can be refreshed to stay relevant.
It’s also quicker to produce written content compared to quality video, which typically requires hours of filming and editing, as well as expensive equipment including microphones, camera or tripod. These costs can be particularly prohibitive for smaller organisations, and charities with limited budgets.
The Power of Video Content
We can’t talk about video without first mentioning TikTok.
The viral social media app is the most downloaded app of all time with around 3.5bn videos posted using the ‘#ForYouPage’ hashtag alone. Short-form video – under 60 seconds – surged in 2023 largely thanks to TikTok where tailored algorithms have led to endless scrolling, while long-form video (over 10 minutes) is rising in popularity, helping brands build meaningful connections with their audience.
But that doesn’t mean you need to post viral dance videos – some of the most popular video content online includes tutorials, educational videos, and product reviews. One area where video is really handy is breaking down challenging concepts like explaining what a new service is or a product demo. In fact, over half of consumers prefer video when it comes to explaining complex topics.
You can post videos to accompany blogs, on social media or your website to engage customers and inform/educate. The best thing is video content is versatile and can be tweaked in line with your channels to maximise engagement and interactions. Clever tricks with lighting, effects and editing can also help to set the scene.
“Video content not only improves engagement, it can help to improve conversion rates by up to 80%. By using a combination of sound, visuals and texts, you can effectively grab audience attention and keep it by sharing real, personal stories. The more authentic, the better. Video can also help brands show their human side, improving relatability and helping them become more approachable.”
— Stuart Tongue, senior social media manager at Tank
Remember that video is more effortless for your audience to consume – and if they can watch it while browsing a blog, website or landing page, it might just convince them to get in touch.
The Value of Video Content In a Post-ChatGPT World
Since ChatGPT’s launch in late 2022, we’ve seen a 8,000% surge in AI content online.
AI can certainly whip up a blog in seconds and optimise it for keywords, but the internet has become saturated with poor-quality content that does little to engage readers.
That’s partly why video is so important. It offers audiences an alternative way to get information that’s more engaging than AI content, and gives brands the opportunity to stand out from the crowd. Putting someone in front of the camera – whether it be a customer or an employee – makes your content more human-centric, compared to AI-generated copy.
Take Hobbycraft’s Wimbledon store. It has a TikTok account led by its employees who regularly post videos bringing in over 1.9m views and collaborations with celebrities like Kylie Minogue and Ella Henderson. Because it puts real people at the centre, the brand demonstrates authenticity and relatability.
Showing off your brand personality and emotions through video helps you stand out in a way that’s not possible with ChatGPT or written content either.
Combining Written and Video Content
So should you prioritise video or written content? The answer is you need both.
A written guide, paired with a video demo, for example, can provide a handy resource that your audience can keep coming back to. Written content provides SEO benefits but it also provides a reference point for users. Video brings the content to life, with first-hand perspectives and engaging visuals.
Video content enhances written content, but it offers value beyond words. Customer case studies are a classic example, where viewers can share in the emotions of the interviewees.
A combination of written and video also helps to maximise reach. Written content works best for search traffic, but videos on YouTube, Instagram or Facebook generate shares/clicks.
Power Up Your Content Marketing: Tank Tips
John Deere’s The Furrow magazine, published in 1985, is an early example of content marketing. The agricultural magazine offered informative content to farmers without hard selling Deere’s business.
But since the internet, social media and age of AI, content marketing has changed (for the better).
It’s more accessible, and with both video and written content, brands have wider reach to make a long-lasting impression and raise much needed visibility. Video also demonstrates authenticity in a world where poor-quality AI content is on the rise.
To help you get started with video, Tank’s senior social media manager, Stuart Tongue, shares his top tips:
- Tools for the job: Adobe Premier Pro offers features/tools for advanced editing but Canva and Capcut are also great for editing short clips for socials or if you’re a beginner (p.s. you don’t need Capcut Pro unless editing dozens of videos in one go)
- EGC: Employee-generated content (EGC) is one of the most effective ways brands drive engagement. Whether this is through their own personal channels where they can become thought-leaders or by stepping in front of the camera to film entertaining or educational videos
- Brand guidelines: While all videos should follow the brand guidelines and be approved by the marketing and social team first, remember that social content thrives when it is authentic and “a little rough,” so don’t get too hung up on small things like having a logo present. Your content can still be aligned with your brand without it looking like a sales message.
Ultimately, nobody should choose written content over video or vice-versa because both are part of a good content marketing strategy. Introducing video doesn’t have to be risky: start small with short explainer videos or demos on social media or embedded into blogs, see what works well, and take it from there.
Get in touch to find out how Tank can support your content marketing strategy.
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