According to Facebook, between 2013 and 2014 the quantity of videos on News Feeds increased 3.6 times – or – 360%. The vast majority of the time, these aren’t Vine, YouTube or other videos — users upload videos to the site themselves typically from their mobile device. This has an extraoardinary benefit over hosting videos elsewhere – see below:
- The video silently autoplays as a user scrolls through the News Feed.
- The video is larger and much more prominent than a YouTube link.
- The videos work equally well on desktop and mobile.
- And most importantly, you can now run targeted video ads that leverage this increased prominence that Facebook has given to their own videos.
How do I Run a Facebook Video Ad?
Running a video ad on Facebook works in a very similar fashion as advertising anything else on Facebook. You upload the video in your post (and you’re given the option to pre-fill a call to action and a URL at that time), and then you promote or “boost” it later.
Or, you can run what’s called a Video Views ad. These are “dark posts” that are optimized for video views. You upload the video directly to the ad, and this ad won’t appear on your business page — instead, it will be served to the target audience you select.
Video Targeting
Targeting works the same as what you’re used to. It’s even more important that the content of the video ad itself is eye catching and has that all-important call to action. The reason for this is, the typical Facebook user is going to scroll through a ton of video on their News Feed. You want to make sure your video ad is attention getting and makes people stop scrolling — and even replay your video with sound this time.
The 20% Rule
For video ads on Facebook, the 20% Text rule not only applies to the thumbnail image you choose when you upload the video, but also for the first 30 seconds of the ad. Be sure your ad is mostly text free.
Video Content
The content of the video is equally important. Be sure it’s professionally produced and reflects well on your product or service. Make it short and to the point — Facebook doesn’t allow videos larger than 1 GB.
Give video ads a try on Facebook and see how well they leverage your content. One sign that it’s the wave of the future: Twitter will be doing them soon, too.
Contact StrataBlue For More Info
If you’d like the professionals to handle all your video advertising needs, click here contact us today!
