Women and Video + How to Get Into the Game

Women inspire me.

Seeing women using video and sharing their stories inspires me even more. Just recently I was moved by a video of Nepalese women who were learning video production in order to share how climate change has impacted their lives.

I was touched by their curiosity, desire to learn, and hopes for the future. All of this brought about through video.

Women using video can bring about powerful change.

Recently, Total Beauty Media Group published a research study titled What Women Watch: How Women Engage with Video Content. The study reports statistics on the hows and whys of women and video. The article describes the habits of two groups: Millenials and Boomers.

The article mainly touches upon how women watch videos. However, looking a bit further, you can gain insight into how you can jump into the video game and start making them to share your story.

So, what information can we gain about women and video?

Here are a few highlights from the report with some take-aways for adding videos to your blog mix:

1. Nearly All Women are Watching Video

That’s a whole lotta women consuming video content. It’s not a surprise that video is fast becoming the most popular way to consume content. Video is a fantastic way to differentiate your blog and gain the attention of additional readers. And since nearly all women are watching videos, you can bet a pretty penny that your readers are watching videos, too. Why not give them what they want?

What has been preventing you from kicking out your first (or next) video?

2. Nearly Half of Women are Doing It Daily. It being viewing videos. (Mind out of gutter.)

For this point, I’d like to clarify ‘video’ because when reports like these come out, many people automatically assume YouTube-like videos. But, videos cover a mix from YouTube videos to Netflix to Hulu to news reports on video to so much more. So, since half of women are doing it daily, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are plopped down in front of YouTube all day. They could be curled up on the couch watching the latest episode of Scandal on the ABC website.

Do you know what shows and current events your audience devours? Find ways to incorporate that into your videos.

3. Women are Predominantly Watching Short Form Videos

Attention spans are short and there’s beaucoup information floating around the Net vying for your attention. Although you don’t need to have super short videos, it’s a good practice to be succinct. Also, you’ll need to consider the type of information you’re presenting. A super difficult crocheting tutorial will be longer than a quick ‘look what I did this weekend’ video. If your content is too long, consider breaking it up into smaller videos that are part of a series. In short, mix it up!

What content have you already created that you can turn into video?

4. Viewing Happens at All Hours of the Day on Many Different Types of Devices

The beauty of video is that unlike Twitter and Facebook, video doesn’t get pushed down a timeline, instead it remains available for your viewers to access on their schedule and with the device that fits their needs. In the study, Millenials preferred smartphones while Boomers favored Desktop viewing.

Do you know your audience’s preferences? Take this into consideration when creating your videos (e.g., small font may be difficult to view on a smartphone.)

5. How-To & Instructional Videos are Super Popular

People are searching the Internet for answers & entertainment. Much of the women’s viewership consisted of instructional videos with Fashion & Beauty and Cooking leading the pack.

Looking to get into video, but don’t know what to do? Try a quick How To video that teaches your readers something new.
What questions do your readers often ask that you can answer in video format?

6. YouTube is the Most Popular Viewing Spot

YouTube is where it’s at if you want to share your content and grow your audience.

Have you browsed videos in your niche to see what others are producing?  This may inspire your creative juices!

7. Video Ads are Annoying

Umm…yeah, they are. When you’re creating video you’ll need to be aware of how your viewers will react, especially if you want to make money from your videos. (Or, you can just suggest they do squats while the ad plays. Come summer, they’ll thank you for that.)

What plans do you have for your videos?

How well does this report describe your viewing habits? And, I would be curious to know, have you started adding video to your blog mix?