Woman watching a video download program on her tablet.
How can you best promote video download to your OTT users? Adding download capabilities to your video streaming app is an important way to let your users watch your content wherever they go, even when their connectivity is limited. But incorporating download technology is just the first step. You need to let your users know they can download your video content—and craft a user experience that makes downloading intuitive and easy to use.
You need to promote your video download capability when you want viewers to take advantage of it. To that end, we’ve assembled ten simple and effective strategies to let viewers know they can and should download your OTT content. Embrace these tips, and you’ll see video downloads explode!
Key Takeaways
Viewers want to download content to their mobile devices—so you have to let them know that downloading is available
You need to put download front and center in your app and make downloadable content easy to find
You can push bingeable programs as a single download and use push notifications to let viewers know what downloads are available
You can also enlist social media influencers to promote your downloads and advertise on your own AVOD service
1. Let Your Viewers Know You Offer Video Download
The first thing you need to do is make sure your viewers know they can download your content. Viewers want downloadable programming, as shown in Penthera’s U.S. Mobile Streaming Behavior Survey. According to this survey, 59% of participants said they expect video providers to offer mobile video downloads, and 34% said they are more likely to watch programming from a service that offers downloadable content. This shows just how important it is to let your users know they can download your content and watch it wherever they go.
How do you let viewers know about video download? In every way, you can imagine! You can do any or all of the following:
Mention download in your newsletters
Talk about download on social media
Push notifications about download to users’ phones
Promote download on your home screen
When you tell users about your download options, they’ll start using it—and stay engaged with your content, even when offline.
2. Put Download Front and Center In Your App
If you make video download a prominent part of an easy-to-navigate user experience, users will be much more likely to download your content. Be sure to incorporate clear icons to initiate downloading and feature strong CTAs throughout your app. Get in your users’ faces so they know where and how they can download.
While you’re working on your user interface, be sure to include a download progress bar in the download feature. This will let users know how much longer each download may take, improving their experience.
The Downloads screen in the Hulu app.
3. Make Downloadable Personal
Users don’t always know what they want to download. Help them decide by using their prior viewing history to assemble personalized download recommendations. Netflix does this with its Downloads for You feature, automatically downloading a personalized selection of movies and TV shows based on viewers’ past viewing habits. Users always go for a personalized experience.
Netflix’s Downloads for Your personalized download feature.
4. Package Bingeable Downloads
Bingeable programs are like potato chips—you can’t stop with just one. Get on the bingeing bandwagon by packaging multiple episodes of bingeable programs as a single-button download. Users get all the episodes at the touch of a button and don’t have to keep going back to download the next episode manually.
5. Use Push Notifications
One effective way to get the word out about your video download feature is to use push notifications. Push text notifications to users’ phones to let them know the latest content available for download. Include links to the downloads themselves to make it even easier. You can even tap into viewer preferences to push content specific to individual users.
6. Use Download In Your SEO/SEM Strategy
Your SEO/SEM strategy should help people who want to view your content find your app. You can also use SEO/SEM to draw viewers interested in downloading to your service. Create a list of download-related keywords (perhaps matched with your most popular content titles) to extend your search presence. Here are some examples:
Download SHOW NAME
Watch SHOW NAME anywhere
Watch SHOW NAME on demand
7. Enlist Social Influencers for Social Marketing
Many viewers find their way to your service via social media. You can establish your social media presence by regularly posting to Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, and other services. You can also enlist top social influencers to promote your download service in their posts. Just make sure you target the right social networks for the content you offer.
Introduction to social influencers
8. Advertise—On Your Own Platform!
Sometimes the best way to turn consumers onto a service is by advertising. If you have an AVOD service, you can run ads within your programming to promote your download capabilities. Pixelate says that AVOD advertising reaches 72% of U.S. households, so why not use some of that commercial time to advertise your download functionality?
9. Anticipate and Answer the FAQs
Even though 63% of viewers watch videos on mobile devices, not all users are familiar with the downloading process. Some newer users may have questions about how downloading it works and how they can use it. Add a section to your app’s “frequently asked questions” page that anticipates and answers some common questions users might have, such as:
Is there a limit to how many videos I can download?
How do I delete downloads from my device?
Why can’t I download certain videos?
10. Take Advantage of the App Store
Many streaming video apps consider download a premium feature. Be sure to let potential customers know you feature downloading in your app by showcasing it on your App Store page. Having premium features like download will also lead to better app store reviews—which, in turn, drive more app downloads.
Bottom Line: You Can Make Video Download Successful
Your streaming app’s video download success is directly tied to whether users know you offer the feature. Viewers are excited about the ability to download, so optimizing your marketing activities to show off that functionality will let users know that downloading is available and beneficial. It helps keep users engaged with your content whenever and wherever they go.
It also helps to offer an easy-to-use, high-quality download experience, which is why many OTT services utilize Penthera Download. This first-in-class solution seamlessly integrates with your existing app and player and offers the fastest download speeds for users on all devices. It’s the best way to provide reliable downloading for your viewers.
Contact Penthera today to learn more about Penthera Download and other useful services.
