One of the things I love about being a ChicagoAMA sponsor is getting to meet the amazing professionals who share their time and knowledge with the members. T60 produces preview videos for many of the organization’s events. That means I get to meet the keynote speakers weeks before their presentations, and that one-on-one time has been priceless to learn about their video strategy.

Basically, I get to pick their brains. A lot it centers on the topic they’ll be covering, but no surprise I also ask them questions about how they’re using video. You can imagine how excited I was when I met with the cars.com Chief Marketing Officer,Linda Bartman, and saw a sheet hanging above her desk entitled, The Video Factor.

It was an infographic the company produced in 2011 to highlight how many people are watching online videos. You don’t need me to tell you… it’s like a gazillion. Here’s what I love though… it’s terrific justification for producing video content.

What’s coming at the event

Which leads me into the upcoming event (SEE VIDEO BELOW | REGISTER). Linda will be speaking about some of the challenges they face that might sound familiar to many marketers. One of them is having to explain some of their content decisions. In the case of cars.com, they have to explain it to their clients… the companies and dealerships that advertise with them.

The case for video

The info-graphic does a great job of explaining the reason for producing video content. 178-million Americans watching online video… 30% watching on mobile devices… and then the nitty-gritty for them.

• 68% of people watching online automotive videos found them important
• 55% of car buyers watch an online video before making their purchase
• Shoppers who watch dealer videos on cars.com spend nearly twice as much time on the site as people who don’t watch videos

Good stuff. That’s coming from a company that crunches the numbers and understands the power of video.

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.

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