3 Tips From Facebook on Matching Video Ads With Viewers

Consumers go to different video sites with different goals in mind. Sometimes they want quick information. Sometimes they want to chill out for a couple hours with a pint of Ben and Jerry's. Video ads do best when they match the mindset of the viewer. While that simple wisdom doesn't sound exactly groundbreaking, it's the subject of a Facebook Business blog post, where the social network offers 3 tips on tailoring video ads to viewers.

1. Match the ad's message with viewer's expectations
It's not enough to match the tone of the content. Advertisers also need to understand the mindset of the viewers for each destination. if the platform offers user-generated longer form content, match that with ads showing behind-the-scenes views or other "unfiltered, raw" video. But if the platform offers scannable quick takes, pair that with shorter branding videos.

2. Go short, sometimes really short
Facebook believes that ads should never be longer than 15 seconds (even on TV), as viewers start to click away if they're forced to watch anything more, but that doesn't mean all ads should be 15 seconds. It suggests pairing the length of the ads with the target audience. Young adults respond best to 6-second ads, it suggests, but older adults will sit through 15-second ads.

3. Look for useful ways to compare ads across platforms
When advertisers run ads across video platforms, they need to be careful of the metrics they use to compare results. Facebook says it's misleading to simply look at view length (duration) or completion rates across different platforms serving different audiences. Instead, it suggests looking at business outcomes. How well does each platform lead to online or offline conversions, or create brand lift?

"People's video experiences lie on a spectrum—quick and bite-sized at one end, when they are in discovery mode throughout their day, and deliberate and longer at the other end, when there's time and attention for longer consumption," writes Maria Smith, product management director for Facebook. "What people expect to achieve in these experiences naturally differs."

Look to the blog post for a longer explanation of how Facebook research led to these 3 tips.

Troy Dreier's article first appeared on OnlineVideo.net