Is Web TV the future of IT buying?

All ICT marketers should sit up and take notice: new research shows buyers in the marketplace are using online TV as part of their assessment of solutions on offer. It makes sense, as the medium enables marketers to provide short, sharp product briefings, interactive web seminars and engaging video case studies. What’s more, the web is naturally becoming one of the key ways such buyers research their options.

The new evidence comes from a piece of research that shows over 60 per cent of ICT (Information & Communication Technology) buyers are viewing online videos weekly – with almost a quarter viewing them daily. Crucially, over half (57 per cent) say the online videos impact their purchase decisions.

The research is based on a survey of 5300 technology buyers around the world and has been put together by KnowledgeStorm – a major search resource on the web for technology solutions and services – along with Universal McCann.

What’s even more interesting perhaps, is that 84 per cent of those who use online videos say product information and research is more compelling when presented in this way. And here’s the Holy Grail: three-quarters say they share online video content either weekly or monthly. They see it as something they can pass along, creating a viral process, which means those who receive the recommendation are more likely to watch.

The research is striking from a UK or European perspective because the fact is, there isn’t that much online video available that is generated here. Much of it comes from the US where they are ahead of us in this field (as so often) and this suggests the research is biased towards North America, where KnowledgeStorm has a major base.

Trendspotting


The key is to spot the trend. This research says that ICT buyers – whom one would expect to be among the early adopters of new content – are keen to be served engaging content in an online video format because it helps them make better purchasing decisions. Among the comments from the respondents is an endorsement of good quality production values – they say this improves the value of the content.

If that is the trend, then ICT vendors and marketers outside of the US need to take note. This survey gives us a snapshot of the very near future and a strong imperative for those in this space to consider what online video content they will be providing for the increasing number of buyers who expect it.

Of course this is part of a wider trend towards richer media content online. Podcasting is becoming commonplace alongside Flash demos and other multimedia content. The contrast is striking between a site that has such content available and one that has only text and photos. This is most important at a stage when buyers are researching the marketplace and willing to invest some time into exploring what’s on offer. Business buyers don’t spend time watching something because it looks interesting, but because it can offer them an engaging way of understanding a product, service, issue or development.

In the UK this expectation of rich media will be hugely increased this year when the BBC launches its online TV player and makes many of its programmes available on demand on the web. Channel Four has already done so and ITV is following suit. In the consumer space, web TV will move into the mainstream in the same way that podcasting went from the preserve of 15 year olds to something your mother knows about.

Take advantage


So, how do you exploit this exciting trend? Firstly, by integrating your thinking about web TV into your existing digital marketing strategy. In other words, make it part of your customers’ existing sales journey, not a channel apart. This goes from market education, through prospect engagement and continues after conversion. Consider how you could develop TV programming in such a targeted way that it is specifically for your important customers, dealing with their issues and the ways in which you can help tackle them.

There are two types of web TV content: live events and video- on-demand. The former includes web seminars in which customers can participate and the webcasting of real world events, enabling a remote audience to view the content. Both of these formats become part of your video on demand resource, which may also include product briefings, video case studies, CEO/ thought leader interviews and other content designed to bring to life your proposition, people and activities.

For 15 year olds, this is already old hat. They combine the use of web TV with other web 2.0 techniques such as wikis, user-generated content and social networks to make their decisions about what is cool, what to buy and what to do. Maybe the grown-ups in B2B will soon follow suit. However, the same research which showed that ICT buyers use web TV so regularly, suggested they’re less likely to contribute to social media. The truth is, they haven’t time and nor do most of our customers. They want to select and view content that helps them in their business, not get involved in chat, and the more senior they are the truer that is. Every encounter is crucial and has to punch hard.

This research relates to those in the ICT space where the web naturally plays an important part. For those not selling technology, there may be more time to introduce web TV. Unless of course, you want to be ahead of the curve, rather than behind it.

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