The debate between the efficiency of video vs. text posts has been haunting the internet for many years. While writing text posts is more leisurely, applications like an invitation maker and online editing tools have made video-making more convenient.
The best way to settle the debate is to weight both the options:
Understanding Text Content
Text posts can be anything composed solely from written-content. These can be in the form of blogs, posts, tweets, scripts, and much more. Used more often than we can imagine — even writing a creative caption for a photo is an exercise in writing text content.
These are easy to create, can be done on the fly and provide elementary and straightforward information. Writing long, text-heavy content has been the oldest possible form of content creation.
From e-books to articles, text content has seen a prolonged evolution. They might hold a very niche market and not resonate with most content consumers, but its utility is hard to ignore.
Understanding Video Content
Videos are the new wave of online content. Today more than eight-percent of online content is in the form of videos. As the internet speeds get faster and devices become more conducive to video-viewing, the supply and demand of video have sky-rocketed.
Recent research shows that over seventy-five hours of videos reach platforms like Youtube each minute. And one-third of all online activities comprise video consumption. A website that has a video embedded on them also ranks higher on search results.
The demand for video content has become so high that, after Google, Youtube is considered the most used search engine. Even platforms like Facebook and Instagram have tailor-made changes to allow better video experience. The features like Facebook-Watch and IG-TV are a few examples.
Live streams of video content on social media and dedicated streaming services like Twitch have become very popular. Tools like an online video editor have additionally made it very easy to create content faster.
Advantages of Text Content
It is apparent that videos lead the scorecard in the content game; few benefits of text content which cannot match those of video.
They are as follows:
SEO
Text content, like blogs, is primarily used for better SEO or search engine optimization. SEO is the process of using blogs, keywords-tagging, and meta-data to rank higher on search results. Search engines use a device called online crawlers. These are tools that scan all websites on the internet and place them into categories.
High-quality blogs, rich in relevant keywords, will be scanned by these crawlers and enhance the rank of your website. While videos do help push the SEO rank, they can bring little value without text-content.
Capture Reader Market
Text content has a dedicated market. More than 77% of internet users read blogs each day. Since this form of content takes time to read and process, they also can retain a user on the page for much longer. Blogs can be both short and long and more comfortable to generate when compared to videos.
The other advantage is that the users who read blogs are considered more invested in a particular niche. They are more likely to sign-up for a newsletter or buy a product after reading text-content. Video consumers are likely to tune-out, or more to the next video and possess low attention spans.
Brand Building
It’s close to impossible to build a brand based purely on video. This website would be a clutter of videos, making it hard for people to maneuver through. Pages like “about us,” “contact,” etc. cannot be made into videos as they are impactive and have no click-able options.
Advantages of Video Content
Videos possess a few essential qualities which have made it a favorite of marketers around the world. Here are a few of them:
Better Engagement
Videos are an excellent tool to engage with users as they attract both audio and visual attention. It is easier to obtain actions and explain products with the help of videos. The ability to share more information in less time has made videos the go-to form of content in the last five years.
Since they are such an attractive medium, they also enhance audience retention by holding eyeballs for longer. Videos also can improve the buyer’s intent, as it is easier to build trust and showcase more qualities.
More Widely Consumed
The second and more obvious reason is the demand for videos. When the consumption rate is at an all-time high, not having videos would dent the progress of a brand. The simple logic of supply meets demand has made video content a prerequisite in every marketing plan.
This demand for videos has also given birth to platforms like Invideo. They are simple video-creation platforms that come pre-installed with templates and allow users to create videos in just a few minutes.
Versatility in Content
Lastly, it is much easier to show complex information using videos. Explainer videos have become widely popular for this very reason. For example, if you were to change a flat tire and need to learn the process — you would rather watch a video than read a long user manual.
Platform Dependence
We would be remiss not to mention the problem of platform dependence. That is, both text and videos hold platforms where they shine. For example, Youtube and Instagram are platforms that are driven by video content. But it would make no sense to flood a blog with videos.
Similarly, platforms like LinkedIn and Medium are highly text-driven. They have a user base that loves reading and spends more time on long-text posts. And placing videos on a Medium page bear little-to-no results.
To leverage content, we must understand the crux of the platform. The science behind content reach is more than just about the quality or the type.
The Compromise
In conclusion, While we can debate each platforms’ pros and cons, the real choice boils down to the purpose of online content. Based on the advantages listed above, we can understand that a balanced mix of both types is needed.
While videos are the new generation, they cannot sustain without the conventional practices of text-based content.
