Shares in media group Future (FUTR) rose by 4.3% to £34.22 on Wednesday. This followed positive feedback from analysts an investor webinar held yesterday, in which it presented its plans to make money from video.
Future, which owns a portfolio of specialist publications distributed both as physical magazines and websites, acquired Barcroft Studios in November 2019 for £23.5 million.
Subsequently the asset has been renamed Future Studios, and has added video creation to Future’s production capabilities. Video accounted for 5% of Future’s group revenue in 2021.
VIDEO IS HIGHLY LUCRATIVE
Video advertising generates four times the yield of display advertisements. Future uses data to ensure relevant videos are created and placed on its own websites.
This involves monitoring search terms and audience traffic. The percentage of webpage views that resulted in a video being viewed rose by 6% (between October 2020 and January 2022).
Future’s digital advertising yields jumped by 9% from the first to the second half of 2021.
This was due to an increase in the proportion of direct marketing campaigns, coupled with an increase in video advertising which now accounts for 12% of all digital advertising.
INVESTMENT IN VIDEO REFLECTIVE OF GROWTH POTENTIAL
Future has made considerable investment in Future Studios. Moreover it intends to create a content hub in Atlanta.
There are also plans to create more videos in the Women’s Lifestyle and Home and Living categories.
Future intends to boost the resonance of the Future brand on social media with the aim of increasing video advertising.
The company publishes its video content on all major social media sites including YouTube, Facebook and Snapchat.
Peel Hunt analyst Jessica Pok argues that ‘Future’s investment in video capabilities over the past two years and continued investment this year means we believe it is well placed to capture growth within this highly-expanding advertising medium’.
