Video Marketing Study: What Are the Most Successful Ad Formats?

Video marketing has become a mainstay for brands to create and deliver memorable marketing messages to their audience. Recently, Wibbitz conducted a survey about video consumption and consumer sentiments regarding the ad format, which can certainly provide publishers with some valuable insights. Here’s are some of the most interesting findings the survey found:

Video Marketing Consumption is on the Rise

In the last few years, video consumption has increased. Three interesting findings to note:

26% of people who participated in Wibbitz’s survey said they watched at least one video a day.

Mobile devices have significantly made video streaming more accessible. 55% of those surveys preferred watching videos on smartphone devices.

Facebook is the most popular social platform, with 54% of respondents choosing it as their first social destination for video consumption

Key takeaway: Marketers and publishers need to be where their audience is and paying attention to how often users are consuming video.

Strong Preference on Silent Video Ads

No matter how many videos users watch or what platform they use, 45% of survey respondents said they prefer muted ads over ads with sound or irrelevant messages.

Key takeaway: Marketers may need to consider creative ways to get their message across without the use of sound. This could me adding text in video graphics or adding captions to videos.

The Importance of Targeting

39% of survey participants said that targeting ads are a crucial factor in whether or not an ad is tolerable. With more and more brands creating and distributing video ads, audiences grow impatient and less receptive towards video ads, especially those that are irrelevant to them. Facebook and LinkedIn users especially care even more about the relevance of ads with 41% and 47% of these users preferring targeted ads more than any other ad type.

Key takeaway: Marketers must establish targeting and strategy objectives first before developing the video, or risk consumers ignoring the video altogether.

Keep it Short

The proliferation of video ads have made users’ attention spans shorter. 70% of people won’t watch an ad longer than 10 seconds. Only 51% of those 70% will watch up to the full minute; in most cases, many users will only watch up to the first 30 seconds. The duration of the video coupled with its relevance to the target audience will need to be combined with great content to encourage users to watch beyond the first 30 seconds.

Key takeaway: For more video views, marketers need to keep it short and sweet with relevancy being the big focus.

They’ll Skip But Not Block

Respondents in the mature age group (45-60+) are less likely to skip over video ads than respondents in the 18-29 age group or the 30-44 age group. More than half of those who reported they always skip ads are more likely to appreciate silent ads.

While they are taking action to skip ads whenever they can, consumers have yet to take real action by blocking them altogether. Even though many video platforms will offer paid subscriptions for an ad-free experience, many consumers are not willing to pay for it.

Key takeaway: There’s still hope for video ads as many consumers are not willing to pay for these ad-free paid subscriptions.

Auto Play Mixed Feelings

While 42% of respondents disapproved of auto-play ads on social media, video watchers seem to be more accepting of auto-play ads on mobile devices. Those who chose Twitter as their primary social platform for videos felt neutral towards auto-play videos, and 55% of Snapchat users found them to be intrusive.

Key Takeaway: various video trends (auto play, silent, interactive, targeted) are perceived differently on different social networks and platforms. It’s up to publishers examine and stay informed on best practices for video advertising to make informed decisions. Silent video ads are by far the favorite technique across all the different social platforms.

Summary: What Brands Can Learn

The biggest takeaway for brands, marketers, and video publishers is to pay attention to the golden trifecta: create videos that are targeted, silent, and mobile friendly.

Relevance is key: Video audiences expect to see targeted advertising that fits their interests and browsing habits. This will increase the chance that they will pay attention and watch the video ad in full. Personalization is appreciated and you will not get the results you want when creating a video without knowing your target audience first.

Keep it silent: Viewers prefer watching ads that have been muted. Sending your message without any disruptive sound involved can be beneficial. If there’s an indication that your audience is not receptive to your video’s sound, it’s time reevaluate your visual to make it more appealing while incorporating your brand or marketing message.

Focus on mobile: A majority of viewers watch video via mobile device, which makes it all the more important to ensure that your content is optimized for mobile to create an enjoyable video experience for your viewers.