After casting 5,000+ YouTube and Instagram videos and driving more than $500M in sales for our retail partners over the past year, MagicLinks has learned a thing…or four…about creating success in online video.
Here are our top suggestions for the next 12 weeks:
1) Social Commerce Peaks on Thanksgiving Day
We’ve seen this trend for the past two years and expect it to accelerate in 2019. After Thanksgiving dinner, kids (and adults) are kicking back and swiping heavy on social. You’ll want to make sure you are in front of those tryptophan-induced shopping moments.
2) Plan Ahead of Key Holidays and Shipping Dates
Online video brings two unique dimensions to planning ahead: (1) YouTube content has significant search discovery, meaning early publication of videos see more views leading up to key dates like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and (2) coordinating, creating, and publishing a video is significantly(!) more involved than an Instagram post, for example. We recommend targeting video publish dates around November 15 for Black Friday/Cyber Monday (excluding deal-specific content) and December 10 for Christmas.
3) Cast Early because Prices Rise
With only 4 weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, this Holiday season is the shortest one yet.
Most video influencers post 1-2 times per week and only 1 of 2 is generally available for sponsorships. This means real estate is tight with at most 12 open slots for sponsored videos, and peak competition from hundreds of brands. Planning and casting early is key to success, as last-minute calls will either be sorry not available or very expensive.
4) Dedicated Videos are Hard to Get
One way that influencers manage limited video supply is by offering integration opportunities. Our data suggest that these integrations are actually more effective in driving sales — let’s keep it real, people prefer to shop at multiple brands and find recommendations more authentic when this reality is reflected. Gift guides and participation in Vlogmas videos are a great way to engage while increasing your likelihood for high ROAS.
Need help? We are here. Reach out to schedule a time with our campaign strategists and let us help you capture sales in Q4.
