Mobile Video is the gold standard
Mobile video is becoming the future of advertising. These videos create mass revenue streams and allow for companies to expand their target audience with very little effort. The most viral of these is TikTok, a social media platform. On TikTok, a lot of small businesses have been able to stay afloat and even thrive in today’s rough economy. They have also benefitted from the likes of influencer marketing. One of the most famous is Keith Lee.
Keith does impromptu and unannounced food reviews of local businesses all around the U.S. He keeps his ‘identity’/likeness a secret so that he gets the authentic food just as everyone else gets. He tries the food and rates it on a scale of one to ten. He has become so popular, that if he gives a restaurant a good review, they will have a line out the door the next day. This use of mobile video isn’t directly done by the companies themselves, but they do benefit from it. They will also utilize the comment section to spread their name. This is an effort to have him review their restaurant.
YouTube also allows for a mass audience of mobile ad viewers. This can hold many forms, whether it be a pre-video ad, a mid-roll ad, an ad break while live streaming, or an ad embedded in the video upload (partnership with content creator). Brands also have the ability to create their own channel and post their ads to that. YouTube has accounted for roughly $22.2 billion of ad revenue through three quarters of 2023 alone. (https://www.statista.com/statistics/289657/youtube-global-quarterly-advertising-revenues/)
Another big use of mobile video is collaboration projects and ad partnerships. The age of the social media influencer is here. Brands shell out a lot of money to have their product endorsed by popular media personalities. This could be in a form of the influencer incorporating this product into one of their normal videos. Similarly, it might be them making a separate ad only video for the product itself and publishing that to their channel. This relationship has made the vitality of the app and company partnership a popular career choice for many young people.
We have even seen careers start and skyrocket due to random mobile video posts on TikTok. Superstar The Kid Laroi blew up when he posted a song about a prominent content creator Addison Rae. This jump-started his career, and he’s been able to grow and continue this success.
“Ad spending in the Video Advertising market is projected to reach US$191.3bn in 2024” (Statista)
Nathalie Nahai says in her book “Webs of Influence: The Psychology of Online Persuasion” that, “as a process, persuasion allows us to influence and be influenced by human attitudes, beliefs, motivations, intentions and behaviors” (60) All of these attributes come through heavily in the form of mobile video. Attitudes and beliefs are are especially prevalent in these videos. One of the most glaring examples of this is the Buffalo Bills TikTok page. They use memes and popular culture to make new fans and capitalize on their star power.
When they do this, it appeals to the people. It isn’t a run of the mill corporate business professional branch of marketing. It’s a direct representation of what we enjoy. Seeing a prominent franchise in the most popular sports league of all time posting videos like this makes us all root for them a little. (Not me, though) It is genius because it allows for new fans to not only the team, but also to the league/sport.
In summation, the upper echelon of marketing and advertisement has and will always be mobile video. It has direct access to consumers and is easily accessible. It’s also where most people spend a majority of their day. The average phone screen time in the United States is 3 hours and 30 minutes per exploding topics. That allows for constant flow of advertisement and consumption of said advertisement. Companies have recognized this and are dumping billions of dollars into it.