Miguel Afonso Gonçalves
- Copywriter and Travel Blogger -
Have you always wondered about the instant success of platforms like TikTok? Do you still doubt that the video format has conquered the social media space? Infotainment is increasingly showing itself to be a possible guiding principle for a brand's communication, and it's the public that's dictating the reasons why.
Miguel Afonso Gonçalves
- Copywriter and Travel Blogger -
Have you always wondered about the instant success of platforms like TikTok? Do you still doubt that the video format has conquered the social media space? Infotainment is increasingly showing itself to be a possible guiding principle for a brand's communication, and it's the public that's dictating the reasons why.
Over the last few years, together with the boom in social networks, countless tools have emerged to help brands with their communication strategies.
Communication and marketing are evolving, so are audiences, and brands are forced to adjust their means of reaching their target audience. Over the last few years, together with the boom in social networks, countless tools have emerged to help brands in their communication strategies. And they have one characteristic in common: they boost infotainment.
Today, in the midst of the digital and technological age, some studies - for example, one conducted by Microsoft - have reported, on average, a decreasing attention span of human beings, a dramatic fact for brands that want to win the attention of their audience.
So, as we understand it, infotainment , which results from the fusion of the words information and entertainment, must be taken into account as a relevant pillar for the success of brands' digital communication. Why is this so? What has been done in this direction?
Video: the exponent of infotainment
Video is more susceptible to sharing and interaction and boosts brand awareness.
There is little doubt that good storytelling skills foster greater interaction and rapport with the public, help retain the public for longer and, of course, provide a clear advantage in the effective transmission of messages and information.
Looking at the concept of "storytelling", we know that there are two primary formats through which brands tell stories: text - or copy - and images. As a marketing and communication tool, video combines both formats and is thus the main way of creating infotainment. Unsurprisingly, video is more susceptible to sharing and interaction and boosts brand awareness.
In the Instagram Engagement Report by Mention (a social media monitoring platform), this characteristic of videos is clearly evident, far outstripping the ability of static images to generate engagement.
The video space on social networks
In another article published on the Jelly blog, in which the different functionalities of social networks are described, it is clearly evident that social networks have understood the relevance of video as a means of audience retention and interaction between users. Take the example of Instastories on Instagram - later replicated on Facebook - and the success of platforms such as TikTok and YouTube - both of which "forced" Instagram, for example, to develop new features to stay relevant - Reels and IGTV.
In a Marktest study on "The Portuguese and social networks" in 2020, there are two very interesting conclusions about how video inevitably attracts social media users.
On the one hand, analyzed for the first time in 2020, TikTok not only enters directly into 9th position in penetration, but also rises to 5th position in spontaneous awareness. The success of this platform was instantaneous in Portugal and around the world. On the other hand, YouTube maintains its relevance in this segment. It is the third social network that most users - almost 95% - visit at least once a week, surpassed only by Facebook (96%) and WhatsApp (95.7%).
Paradigm shift... in traditional media
The impact of video on the entertainment industry has not gone unnoticed even in the so-called traditional media.
Radio, already accustomed to having "its end" anticipated by so many, has been one of the clearest examples of adapting to reality and the public. The voice is no longer its only distinctive element and we have come, especially over the last decade, to associate radio with images, people and moments. Without exception, and looking at the Portuguese case, the country's main radio stations have accustomed their audiences to sharing videos, which often go viral on social networks.
Similarly, in the last decade, podcasts have become widely popular, leading to a number of brands, especially in the media sector, betting on this format. However, while the original concept was based solely on audio - just like radio - in recent years they have become increasingly popular in audiovisual format, recognizing the visual dimension as crucial in the conquest of infotainment.
Conclusion
The relevance of video - increasingly referred to as videomarketing - is unequivocal. So far, it seems to be the communication formula of excellence for brands to gain notoriety, develop closer relationships with their audience and take advantage of the best attributes provided by social networks.
Infotainment is a concept born in the sphere of social communication, the premises of which are of great use to the communication and marketing management of any brand: competent and striking storytelling in the dissemination of a message, in the format apparently most capable of winning the increasingly fleeting attention of the public.
