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Social Video Ad Spend Rises

Even though Facebook video ads play automatically, marketers still plan to increase their spend on the social media giant in this arena. Many also plan to invest more dollars in social video across other platforms as well, according to a just-released report from eMarketer surveying the state of social video advertising.

While the major objection against Facebook video is the autoplay nature of the ads, since that raises questions as to whether consumers truly view them, marketers are nonetheless beginning to embrace the platform.

The eMarketer report found that as of early 2016, about 12% of brands had already bought autoplay video ads on Facebook, and another 57% said they were likely to in the next six months. Only 7% said they no plans to buy autoplay video ads.

Marketers may be looking to this medium because so many young consumers watch videos on social sites. About 53% of teen and young adult Internet users watch video on Facebook, while 37% do so on Instagram, and 33% watch on Snapchat, the report said. Marketers are eager to monetize that consumer behavior.

Knowing how to connect with consumers across the various social platforms is critical to marketers, but especially so given some of the unique challenges in reaching younger audiences. A recent study from video ad tech firm Unruly reported that millennials are 112% more likely to share ads than the average viewer. But that hinges on whether they actually see the ads. The research also found that 93% of millennials are considering ad blockers, while 59% believe they already see too many ads. In addition, 84% usually mute video ads.

That’s why increasingly savvy marketers are creating their social video ads so that they are compelling with the sound off. Using clever captions, visuals, and text printed on top of the video are some of the tricks of the trade.

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