Video ads drive sales

VidMob studied more 8,000 ads from 429 campaigns for 35 retail and e-commerce brands. The study was analysed and published by Mobile Marketer on 29. Sept.

Length and key words

The length of video ads is a key consideration for marketers, with 10- to 15-second spots having a purchase rate that was 19% higher than average, and 184% greater than the lowest-performing one- to five-second spots and 12% more than videos longer than 16 seconds, VidMob found.

As for video creative, ads that showed text in the first frame or within the first three seconds of running boosted online purchases by 46% more than ads that didn’t lead with text. Ads showing the word “shop” as a call to action (CTA) had an average purchase rate that was fives times greater than ads with “get” or “find,” according to VidMob.

VidMob’s study follows other reports about the effects of video ad creative. Most recently, it found that video ads showing “surprised” emotions in the first three seconds led to a 360% jump in performance during the pandemic. Happy emotions saw a 64% decline in conversions, showing how those ads were out of step with the public mood. Calm videos and ones showing outdoor settings also performed well. The holiday season is likely to bring back more traditional, uplifting themes as consumers get into the holiday spirit and are more likely to seek out the comforts of family and friends despite concerns about social distancing.

Mobile promotions generate purchases

As more shopping takes place online, ad spending across e-commerce platforms is also on the rise, with a recent WARC forecasting an 18.3% global increase for e-commerce ads this year even as overall ad spending drops 8.1%. While digital advertising overall is likely to play a crucial part of the promotional efforts by brands and retailers this holiday season, VidMob’s study provides some tips on how to optimize video advertising, including an emphasis on spots that aren’t too short and have enough time to tell a brand story.

The study indicates that shorter ads are less convincing in driving online sales, though they still may be useful for awareness campaigns on social media platforms like Facebook.

E-commerce retail sales surged 32% to $211.5 billion in Q2 from the prior quarter, making up 16% of total retail sales, according to the Census Bureau. It remains to be seen how willing shoppers will be to open their wallets, given that joblessness is at an eight-year high, though many people may shift their spending to gifts instead of paying for holiday-related travel amid concerns about the pandemic. Either way, the holiday period is likely to be heavily promotional on digital platforms as marketers seek to reach online shoppers.