Are you using videos on your ecommerce site? Chances are, you’ve experimented with video content at some point or at least added video to the list of your marketing must-haves for 2017.

It’s not a secret that there’s a lot of pressure in ecommerce to make video successful. We see brands like Sephora and Kate Spade launch shoppable video in attempts to engage consumers who spend a big chunk of their time on social media. Video is not an afterthought anymore, but a medium with substantial data to back up its claims of being effective in stimulating ecommerce sales.

Video drives ecommerce traffic and sales

Video can be a powerful content magnet that helps attract prospective shoppers to ecommerce sites. Data suggests that after consumers watch a video online, they are 46% more likely to research further online products in the video. This leads them to ecommerce sites.

But the effects of video don’t necessarily stop there. According to Goodvidio data, when a video is featured on the pages of an ecommerce store, it drives visitors to engage deeper with the site. They browse on average 127% more pages and stay up to 3.4x longer. Brands who use videos as part of their ecommerce experience report that on-site videos can contribute to 6-30% increase in sales and double-digit boost in conversion rates.

Millennials actively use videos when shopping online

Just like in most businesses, being customer-centric is crucial for ecommerce to grow. When the core segment of online shoppers rely on video to discover, research, and evaluate products, being customer-centric means rising to their expectations. For instance, studies show that 1 in 3 millennial consumers will buy something as a result of watching videos online. What’s more interesting is that 69% will turn to video content again to research complementary products. These consumers not only know where to find videos about products, but expect for videos to be a part of the online shopping experience. For ecommerce marketers this means creating videos to accompany visitors throughout their shopping journey.

Mobile commerce will need video to boost conversion rates

While in 2016 mobile commerce didn’t rise to the expectations in terms of the share of online sales, it’s definitely not going anywhere. According to Demandware data, 60% of visits to ecommerce sites will come from smartphones in 2017.

Given that the average conversion rate for shoppers on smartphones is significantly lower than for those who shop from desktop (at 1.55%), ecommerce marketers will need video to keep visitors engaged and motivated to shop.

Over 50% of consumers who watch video on their mobile phones use videos to guide them in the decision to buy. Those who watch video on mobile are 1.2 times more likely to think more highly of the websites where companies include video content.

This means that video should be part of the mobile commerce strategy. It’s clear that video gives ecommerce marketers better opportunities to engage with online shoppers.

For more evidence of the importance of video for ecommerce growth check out this infographic by Goodvidio.