Everyone in marketing is anticipating a new wave of online video advertising, but a new report warns that in order for the excitement not to be short-lived, the video ads better be short.
Research from Podzinger indicates that although consumers will tolerate both online audio and video advertisements and have little problem if they are 10 to 15 seconds in length, longer ads — such as the standard 30-second television commercial — are not as well received.
In fact, consumers like even their online video and audio content shorter. Podzinger found that consumers typically play only 15% of an entire online video or audio, and the average online run time for video is 7.5 minutes and audio is 22 minutes.
A high percentage of the respondents actually appreciated targeted advertisements that were relevant to their online search, but many were concerned about the frequency of video ads and considered them "annoying" if repeated too often.
It is in its early days, and online video advertising is still emerging. There are many questions still to be answered. One thing is certain, however: As the new channel develops, the importance of streamlined, targeted and non-intrusive video ads cannot be overstressed.
Advertisers should be careful not to feed users too much of a good thing.