The benefits of promo videos

The benefits of promo videos for SEO

7/8/2020

Will your website be ranked better because you embed a promo video?

We're doing some experimenting here at Influx. It well-known that Google ranks video content as quality content, but how does the world's best search engine decide on what is quality video content, and what is not?

It's safe to assume that the algorithm is giving a lot of weight to YouTube data, such as; views, comments, thumbs-up/thumbs-down, repeat viewing etc. But there is more to it than that, and we want to see how much value Google gives to shorter, promotion videos, embedded on websites.

Promotion videos and Google search results

We've developed four short promotional videos. We'll probably use them on Facebook to generate some paid clicks, but we're also embedding them here to see if it helps or hurts our SEO ranking. Yes, we are just that good to our customers, risking our own SEO ranking rather than experimenting with someone else's.

We expect that these video, which we built in less than an hour on a well-know video making app, will either have a positive (although limited) or neutral effect on our SEO ranking. It's unlikely that promo materials of this nature will hurt our SEO ranking.

In general, Google with up-rank video content (and sites containing them) that is informative and relevant to the searches being conducted. Promo videos don't really fit this criteria, but it is content. In theory, Google should recognise promo videos, and the fact that this website is dedicated to explaining and developing website design and digital marketing, and up-rank the site, because the content is relative to our over-all theme.

The real question is this: If you run a gym in Cavan or a gastro-pub in Louth, will a short promo video help your ranking? Honestly, there's just not enough data to say: "yay" or "nay." We do know that if you have really detailed, well-produced video content, for example: a work-out instructional video on your gym's website, or a video of your chef explaining how to prepare his signature dish for your restaurant; on your website, then Google will up-rank over those who don't have such good quality content.

Remember, video content, while great, can't do all the heavy lifting. It must be complimented by being part of a wider-range of relevant content, such as; informative blog articles, good core content, and engaging visual content, like photos and info-graphics.

We'll do some analysis on how our little experiment goes, and update you all in the not too distant future.

Comments

Golden rule

SEO and content creation are more of a fine art than they are an exact science. The goalposts are forever being changed, and keeping up-to-date with them can be exhausting.

Essentially, you should look at algorithm changes more as things to actively avoid falling-foul of, rather than a standard to be constantly chasing and never acheiving.

Businesses need to focus their efforts and resources on creating useful, attractive content, that is timeless and that people actually want to find, as opposed to being constantly trying to hustle the constantly changing Google algorithm.

Google isn't dumb, it recognises when a site is purely designed to win keyword bingo, and it also knows if a website offers no actual useful content for consumers. Your site will be down-ranked if you try to game the system, so, just focus on creating original and engaging content, it pays dividends in the long-run.

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