Does the length of social video ads matter?
One of our most frequently asked questions from our clients at www.morevideoads.com (particularly in eCommerce and also digital marketing agencies) is what the ideal length is for a video ad. While many of our clients understand a video shorter than 30 seconds is the best value, they’re also curious about the broader branding impact of these relatively short videos.
If you haven't got much time to read below, then hear from our founder Mark Cann:
Aside from value, the length of our videos is based on current research about what creates the best brand impact.
PC: Andrew Waber, marketingland.com
According to Marketing Land’s Andrew Waber, videos between 16-20 seconds were correlated with the highest conversion rates between industries as different as video games and e-commerce.
Corroborating this, a study from Vidyard found that 68% of viewers complete business videos if they’re less than 60 seconds, as opposed to 25% completion if they’re over 20 minutes.
These studies correspond to the general observation that, for better or for worse, people are multi-tasking and have shorter attention spans in the current digital environment.
The results likewise applied to social media environments. Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, states that along with the effective 15-20 second video ad length, a length of 6 seconds also competes favorably on her company’s platform.
Vidyard similarly recommends keeping Instagram videos to 30 seconds even if the technical limitations of the platform is 60, and to keep video ads on YouTube to 20 seconds even if the limit is several minutes.
In any case, as video becomes more popular it’s increasingly clear that substantial branding impacts can occur in very short ad exposures.
Youtube
Google has its own Youtube channel "Unskippable" and has found interesting results from testing 15, 30 and longer format ad (this is an oldie 2014 but a goodie!)
The top ads of the year were 3 minutes long (and none were 15 seconds). This can appear confusing and the opposite of Facebook ads which is more of an interruptive ad platform. Youtubers are in the middle of watching a video or series of videos, therefore their propensity for watching longer videos is much higher.
Given this, however, what’s the best way to make your brand’s message high impact in this amount of time? Shorter videos demand higher quality and more concentration. Common questions can include:
1) What’s the best way to hook the viewer into the video (while scrolling down a Facebook feed, for example)?
2) How does one identify their brand’s core message?
3) What’s the best way to create a call to action and to drive conversions?
4) How does one keep their brand’s integrity in general?
This post considers these types of questions in studying eight examples of exemplary, shorter video ads from multiple companies.
At a glance, you’ll notice a few different lengths suited for different platforms and audiences:
? 20-30 second explainer videos: These help to introduce and demonstrate what the product can do for potential customers, and is suitable for any platform including YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, landing pages or even television.
? 10-14 second social media ads: This length works very well with targeted advertising to a niche audience and with positive testimonials from existing customers. Typically these ads are posted on Facebook, Instagram, SnapChat or other consumer-focused platforms.
? 5-second animated videos or GIFs: Often short videos are perfect to simply pique interest and hook the audience into learning more. This length is typically less formal and is best suited for Facebook, Instagram, or SnapChat.
By the end, we’ll end up with a shortlist of themes that are essential to creating video ads so that you’ll have a principled approach to guide your next campaign.
Length: 14 seconds
Who said the tech giants don’t have a sense of humor? This ad from Google is hilarious, human, and indelibly effective.
Notice how much work is in the first three seconds. We immediately see an adorable toddler and, after a moment, this mishap he’s in.
This pain point is resolved moments afterward by showing the product. The baby is in a hair crisis and must open Google maps as the solution.
MoreVideoAds.com
Length: 30 seconds
Shameless plug! Still, we think it’s helpful to practice what you preach, and think our ad helps to highlight:
Simplicity: The stats about video advertising are overwhelmingly positive. By animating these facts, we can let them speak for themselves.
Know our audience: This video can function on YouTube or Facebook and with or without audio. A lot of brands are reaching out through each platform, so we wanted a video with the flexibility for both.
Carpe Drive (by Jaguar Landrover)
Length: 34 Seconds
https://moreinfluence.wistia.com/medias/vmgl6gcbdh
Carpe is a client we’ve had the pleasure of working with. They approached the traditional pain point of car ownership with an innovative new financial model, so it was necessary to demonstrate how the product works while also maintaining:
High Quality: The viewer sees gorgeous, production level shots of cars driving in the forest. The quality of the video and the shots are dynamic and will stick out on any social media feed.
A call to action: After introducing their flexible subscription plan, Carpe ends with the tagline ‘find your perfect car’ and with text that says ‘visit carpedrive.com to learn more or get a quote’. The call to action is specific, actionable, and makes converting a new audience that much easier.
Lyft (credit to Karola Karlson for this find)
Length: 15 seconds
We love videos that keep it simple, and so couldn’t help but envy this ad from Lyft.
Notice how the ad begins with a question or cliff hanger. Even if the graphics appear slowly on the screen, the viewer is immediately left in suspense.
It also shows the product. There’s only so much time to convey your message in video advertising. After keeping the viewer in suspense, Lyft’s app appears simultaneously to the answer to the question posed at the beginning of the ad and concludes with a tagline.
Wayfair
Length: 14 Seconds
Wayfair shows the artistry in advertising in this simple, effective, unique ad. Take note of how they:
Show off their product. If your product is as fascinating as this table-shelf-thing, take a page from WayFair and let it do all the work of hypnotizing your audience.
Include a call to action: WayFair harvests all the fascination from this product with a call to action at the end. Their brand is instantly associated with creativity, novelty, and leaves the viewer wondering what else is in stock.
SAP
Length: 15 seconds
As you may have noticed, showing how paint points are resolved do the most work in the shortest amount of time. SAP shows how simple, cost-effective, and efficient this ultimately is.
Simple: The viewer sees chat bubbles saying ‘Glad I got my vegetarian meal’ and ‘wish I had an aisle seat’ rising from out of an airplane aisle. There are no other shots, only bubbles.
Cost-effective: Videos have become simple. While this ad is highly creative and shows experience, in terms of execution it would’ve required little else besides basic and free animation skills.
Shipt
Length: 15 seconds
[embed]https://www.facebook.com/Shipt/videos/662180747584712/[embed]
In this ad, Shipt shows how cleverly colors can be used to hook the viewer. A burst of primary colors appears just before the ad, allowing them to:
Show their logo: Shipt immediately displays their logo. Time is short in video ads, and creating this association between your brand and the ad early on is vital.
Video & message match: Shipt shows the specific benefit of their service in back to school supplies. This is timely, can be sentimental, and shows a use case that leads well into the call to action.
Call to action: They include a promotion of a four-week free trial! This continues the ad’s positive momentum into a specific, actionable, and immediate CTA viewers can follow through on.
<H2>Closing thoughts</H2>
As you can see, the ability to tell your brand’s story in a relatively short amount of time is only limited by your ingenuity.
Although we’ve covered several routes to success, some of the key takeaways and themes are:
Make the first few seconds count with an opening statement or question to pique curiosity. Whether by video quality, color usage or humor, create content that immediately jumps out at the viewer.
Keep it simple. There’s not enough time to convey a complex plot. When in doubt, show a pain point and how your product resolves it.
Make your brand present: Don’t overdo it, but at the end of the day the viewer must know it’s your company’s ad. Include a call to action, a tagline, or whatever else is appropriate given the context.
Video ads will only continue to be more popular, and along the way will require staying agile and open-minded to adapt to the new environment.
If you'd like to see more Facebook ads, Facebook has an excellent free resource here in their ads library report <a >https://www.facebook.com/ads/library/report/?source=archive-landing-page&country=GB</a>
App Growth Marketing & Startup Advisor for App Entrepreneurs
5 å¹´Great stuff mate!