The more you scroll through social media, the more you are flooded by flashy video content. Recently content creation has taken a turn to eye-catching, short and informative videos. Why? Online users aren’t looking to take the time to read their information anymore, they want it delivered in an even easier way.
Video ads can be a huge asset to your online presence because they diversify your feed as well as engage users on a deeper level. High-quality video content can portray a product/service in a way photos or words can’t. Video becomes an immersive experience showing the audience exactly what you have to offer on a more complex level of detail, you can capture more in a video than you can in a still photo.
While video can be powerful, people often make sizable mistakes when choosing what video content they post.
The Videos are TOO Long!
Most online users will click away from a video in the first ten seconds if it doesn’t grab their attention immediately. While you want to provide your target market with thorough information, videos are best used to reel the potential customer in before you make the big sale. In short, be clear and concise. A good benchmark to remember in digital advertising is your videos should be no longer than 30 seconds when produced for online viewers.
You’re Filming the Wrong Things
If you aren’t doing something in the video, there is no need for a video. Video advertisements should always be capturing a set of actions with the incorporation of words and still shots. A video full of still shots and text is sure to lose your audience’s attention and leave them feeling as if they had missed something important. Choose the subject of your shots wisely and intentionally, ask yourself what does my audience really need to see?
It Needs Variety
An amateur mistake is not including a diverse array of shots. There are three standard types of shots you should always include in your digital advertising video: the close up, the mid-shot, and the wide-shot. In order to draw your audience in you should rely on mostly close up shots and mid-shots; wide shots are often too broad and don’t provide enough detail. While wide-shots are the easiest to get, they make for boring video because it’s hard for the viewer to find the focus.
When filming anything make sure you are capturing a close up, mid-shot and wide-shot before moving onto the next thing you want to shoot. The more variety you have to play with, the more interesting your video will be.
Doing too Much
It’s easy to go overboard when filming and editing. People get caught up trying to add fancy features that do more harm than good. If your video is too extravagant your viewer will miss the overall message you are trying to get across.
Sure, use crazy sounds and transitions, but only when necessary. At the end of the day there is important information you are trying to provide the viewer and that should be the main focus of your video advertisement.
Think about the ads on TV that don’t show what the product is until the end when they reveal the name. Does that make you want to buy it right away? Probably not.
It’s good to keep an air of suspense when creating video for online advertising, but limit that build up to a few seconds. Now you not only have an engaged viewer, but one who is learning about your product or service.
What are the Benefits of Video Advertising?
Once you get past the little bumps here and there, video advertising can be one of the most beneficial forms of digital advertising there is. It allows for a deeper, more immersive experience when depicting what your business has to offer. Not to mention if you create a unique piece of video advertising it has the chance to go viral.
While it may seem like a lot of work to create video ads, the payoff and results show. So try it out, start small with a few video clips on your social media feed then build into creating full scale digital video advertisements.
Looking for more help with digital advertising? Cobalt Media specializes in various forms of digital advertising, including video advertising! Click here to learn more or contact us for a consultation.
