Did you know 50% of all mobile traffic relates to video content?

Video content has become a huge catalyst for e-commerce in the hospitality space, and, if you need more evidence the future of content marketing is video, an Invodo study suggests that 74% of all web traffic will be video by 2017.

Facebook continues to be the big kid on the social media block, and they continue to reveal numerous updates and emphasis with regard to their embracing of video.

In August 2015, a study conveyed Facebook’s shift toward video as it was revealed Facebook posts containing videos garner greater organic reach than any other post type.

Facebook also unveiled a 360-degree video format which allows viewers to endure experiential videos from their newsfeed.

This is perfectly suited for users being able to intimately follow friends’ vacations – you’ll be able to look around and experience the video as though you were there.

With these details in mind, it has become critical to develop a plan for optimizing videos specifically on/for Facebook, even if you may already be posting regularly to YouTube or Vimeo as well.

Autoplay, Anyone?

As an example of a hotel brand utilizing Facebook’s autoplay functionality, Hotels.com created a video ad campaign that has some fun with the silence of autoplay.

In one of their videos, Hotels.com spokes officer Captain Obvious is playing the piano, though he’s only randomly pounding keys and the audience gets to enjoy subtitles of the story making fun of themselves.

This is a great way to make people laugh and want to share the video. It showcases the personality of the brand while also reaching its core customer.

Like hotels and restaurants, amusement parks and sporting events also have customer service at the core of their business and are utilizing Facebook video in authentic ways.

An Element of Surprise

Walt Disney World recently posted a video with Disney characters surprising mall shoppers.

Boasting the caption, “One year, millions of smiles,” the #TBT (Throwback Thursday) video was viewed over 21 million times in 24 hours.

By posting this video on Facebook rather than YouTube, Walt Disney World’s Facebook audience can more seamlessly engage with the video and share with their friends.

Keep it Simple

Don’t have a big budget and resources like Disney does? Don’t fret! Videos can be simpler, too.

Check out the Los Angeles Angels’ Facebook videos promoting items they’ll be giving away at games this season.

They could share each of these items as photos to Facebook; however, by placing the goodies atop a box then revealing them behind a red curtain, they’re able to garner so many more views.

Need ideas?

There are a variety of ways hotels, restaurants, and entertainment venues can integrate video into their Facebook marketing strategy:

• Guest interviews. Talk to guests and find out what they think of your business. That first-hand, live review would likely speak louder than one written on Yelp or TripAdvisor.
• Interviews with staff. For restaurants, interview your Chef about a seasonal dish, wine pairing, or unique ingredients.
• Special events. This can range from simple things like holidays to more exclusive parties distinct to the venue.
• Highlight what you offer. You already have an amazing product – show it in a way that’s never been done before, and let your audience truly experience what it’s like to be there.
• Wacky holidays. Did you know there’s a day dedicated to cupcakes? There are a variety if illegitimate holidays that tend to be really fun, and a lot tend to be food and beverage related. National Drink Wine Day is this month that’d be the perfect excuse to record a conversation with your sommelier about his current top picks.

Furthermore, earlier this month Facebook introduced enhanced video metrics for page owners.

The new metrics available include:

Minutes Viewed [NEW]: The total minutes of watch time spent on the video. This is one of the most requested video metrics from publishers, and we’re excited to make it available today.

10-Second Views [NEW]: The number of times the video was viewed to 10 seconds. If the video is shorter than 10 seconds, this metric refers to the number of times people viewed at least 97 percent of the video.

Sound-on vs. Sound-off [NEW]: A breakdown between views with sound and views without sound is available for both Views and 10-Second Views.

In addition to the previously-available metrics, hospitality marketers can now easily take their video marketing strategy to the next level!