As an ecommerce store owner, you want to find ways to showcase your products that make customers excited to buy them. And in today‘s world of high-quality video content, product videos are an extremely effective way to highlight your items‘ features and increase conversions.
In fact, according to Animoto, 64% of customers are more likely to buy a product online after watching a video about it.
Additionally, product videos on ecommerce product pages have been found to boost conversions by 144% according to ComScore.
Clearly, video is a powerful selling tool that can take your WooCommerce store to the next level.
In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll explore:
- The benefits of having product videos on your WooCommerce store
- Two step-by-step methods to add videos to your product galleries
- Extra tips and recommendations from my 15 years of experience as a webmaster
- Technical considerations for optimal video encoding and loading
Let‘s get started.
Contents
Why You Should Add Product Videos to Your WooCommerce Store
As an ecommerce business owner, you need to convince customers that your products are worth purchasing. Well-made product videos can make the decision much easier for shoppers by demonstrating your items in an engaging way.
Here are some of the key reasons why you should invest in product videos for your online store:
1. Showcases Product Benefits Visually
Rather than just describing what a product does in text, you can actually show how it works in a product video. Viewers get to see the item in action and can better evaluate its features and quality.
For example, if you sell smartphone cases, a video can showcase the case‘s durability by dropping the phone with the case on.
According to a Social Media Today survey, 43% of consumers wanted to see more video content from brands rather than static images or text.
2. Builds Trust and Credibility
When potential customers get to see your product in a video, it builds trust and makes them more likely to buy from your store. Videos add a human touch and transparency that images lack.
In fact, 97% of consumers said that product videos gave them more confidence to purchase according to Invidio.
3. Improves SEO Rankings
Having videos on product pages also helps search engine optimization. Google values pages that have multimedia content like videos.
As you add and optimize more product videos, your pages‘ rankings in the search results can improve over time. This leads to increased organic traffic to your online store.
According to Wyzowl, 96% of consumers searching for a product or service watch videos to inform their decision. So videos help tap into that demand.
4. Higher Conversions and Sales
The most significant benefit of product videos is that they directly impact your main goal as a business – driving conversions and sales.
As mentioned earlier, product videos have been found to increase conversion rates by 144% based on research by ComScore. Another report by Wideo shows that 95% of site visitors watched videos posted on ecommerce product pages.
Clearly, videos compel visitors to buy, which translates to higher revenues for your store.
So in summary, investing in quality product videos for your WooCommerce store has multiple advantages for both customers and your business. Let‘s now see how to actually implement videos in your product galleries.
Method 1: Adding WooCommerce Product Videos with YITH Plugin (Premium)
YITH WooCommerce Featured Audio & Video Content is a premium plugin that gives you robust options to add product videos from YouTube, Vimeo, etc. to your WooCommerce galleries.
The key benefits of using this plugin are:
- Videos can be added from both self-hosted files or external platforms like YouTube.
- Detailed configuration options for video display, modal popup, colors, etc.
- Responsive video scaling across devices.
- Support for both video and audio files.
- Ability to show videos in product galleries, modal popups, related products section, etc. based on placement settings.
While the free version of the plugin is limited, the premium plugin costs $79 and gives you access to all features.
Step-by-Step Guide to Using YITH Plugin
Here is an step-by-step walkthrough of setting up product videos using the YITH WooCommerce Featured Audio & Video Content plugin:
1. Install and Activate the Plugin
First, you need to install and activate the YITH WooCommerce Featured Audio & Video Content premium plugin in your WordPress dashboard:
Plugins > Add New > Search for "YITH WooCommerce Featured Audio/Video Content" > Install & Activate
2. Configure Video Settings
Go to YITH > Featured Audio & Video Content in your dashboard.
Under the Video Settings tab:
- Choose an aspect ratio like 16:9 for the videos.
- Enable autoplay if you want videos to start playing automatically.
- Set player volume and toggle for stoppable videos.
3. Customize YouTube and Vimeo Options
Under YouTube Settings:
- Pick a YouTube player theme color like red.
- Enable related videos to be shown after your product video ends.
For Vimeo Settings:
- Select a playback control color like blue.
- Show the video titles in the player.
4. Configure Modal and Gallery Options
In the Modal Settings tab:
- Enable video modal popup to show videos in a lightbox.
- Select modal animation like "fade".
In Gallery Settings:
- Choose WooCommerce Gallery to show videos in product galleries.
- You can also show videos in sidebars.
5. Add Videos to Product Pages
Go to Products > All Products and edit a product.
Under the Video tab:
- Select By URL option.
- Enter a name for the video.
- Paste the YouTube or Vimeo video URL.
- Click Add Video.
The video will now be shown in the product gallery for that page.
This is how you can use the YITH WooCommerce Featured Audio & Video Content premium plugin to add videos to your product pages. The powerful customization options give you flexibility in displaying videos effectively.
Next, let‘s look at a straightforward free plugin for adding WooCommerce product videos.
Method 2: Adding Videos with Really Simple Featured Video Plugin (Free)
If you are looking for a simple, free way to add product videos to your WooCommerce store, check out the Really Simple Featured Video plugin.
Some benefits of this plugin include:
- Lightweight and easy to set up.
- Embed videos from YouTube, Vimeo, etc.
- Responsive sizing and autoplay options.
- Basic controls for self-hosted and embedded videos.
- Automatically adds videos to WooCommerce galleries.
While it lacks the detailed settings of premium plugins, the free Really Simple Featured Video plugin is great for quickly embedding videos to your product pages.
Step-by-Step Guide to Using Really Simple Featured Video
Here is how you can use this plugin to add videos to your WooCommerce products:
1. Install and Activate the Plugin
Search for "Really Simple Featured Video" in your WordPress dashboard under Plugins > Add New.
Install and activate the plugin.
2. Enable WooCommerce Video Support
Go to Settings > Really Simple Featured Video
Toggle the switch for Products to enable video support.
3. Embed Video to Product Page
Go to Products > All Products and edit a product.
Scroll down to Featured Video and select Embed.
Paste the full YouTube or Vimeo video URL in the field.
4. View Video in Product Gallery
Click Update or Publish and view your live site.
The embedded video will automatically show up in the product gallery.
That‘s all you need to do to add product videos using this straightforward free plugin.
Tips for Creating Product Videos
Now that you know how to add videos to your WooCommerce store, let‘s go over some tips for making compelling product videos:
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Focus on visually demonstrating the most important features and capabilities of the product. Don‘t just talk about it – show it in action!
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Keep videos short and impactful. Aim for 30-90 seconds long for product videos. You can always link to a longer video for more details.
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High-quality visuals are key. Invest in professional video equipment and lighting to showcase products attractively on camera.
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Make it fun and engaging. Clever visuals, graphics, animations, and even humor can capture viewer attention in product videos.
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Encourage calls-to-action to purchase at the end of videos to drive conversions. For example, "Get this product today with our discount!"
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Optimize videos for mobile viewing as 60% of online traffic now comes from mobile devices according to Statista. Use vertical video formats.
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Add interactivity to videos, like clickable stores or product links for easy purchasing. Interactive elements boost engagement.
Using these tips and best practices, you can create product videos that captivate customers and get them excited to buy from your WooCommerce store!
Technical Considerations for Product Videos
To ensure your product videos load quickly and play smoothly for visitors, keep these technical factors in mind:
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Use optimized video encodes like h.264 or HEVC codec for smaller file sizes without compromising quality.
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The mp4 video format offers the best compatibility across devices. Avoid proprietary formats.
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Add both 720p and 1080p resolution versions for responsive scaling on mobiles vs desktops.
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Host videos on a fast CDN like Amazon CloudFront instead of your own servers for faster video delivery.
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Enable HTTP/2 on your web server for more efficient streaming of videos.
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Lazy load below-the-fold videos to avoid loading all videos on the page initially.
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Use lightbox popups for large hero videos to avoid slow page loads. Embed smaller preview videos on product galleries.
Optimizing your product videos both in encoding and delivery ensures the viewing experience is seamless for visitors.
Final Thoughts
Adding engaging product videos to your ecommerce store pages is a proven way to showcase your items better and drive higher conversions.
In this guide, you learned two different methods to implement product videos using the premium YITH plugin or straightforward Really Simple Featured Video plugin.
The key is finding a solution that fits your budget, customization needs, and ease of use.
I hope these step-by-step walkthroughs and tips give you clarity on getting started with product videos for your WooCommerce store. Feel free to reach out in the comments if you have any questions!
