Commentary

New Metrics For Success In Video Marketing

Video marketing is a big field encompassing many kinds of video presentation, including branded videos, pre-roll and interstitial advertisements, and product demonstrations. Increasingly, budgets are shifting to this (relatively) new category. In part, this is due to a growing recognition among media planners that video marketing can deliver cost-effective and high-bar results. But what are these results, and how are they best measured?

 

Recently, there has been a greater push to define video engagement metrics in a more concrete manner. In order to compare and contrast the ROI of different video-based and non-video-based marketing tactics, the industry needs a new and better definition for video engagement, sensitive to the new ways in which people behave and interact online. This definition can be used to set the expectations of what one can expect from any video marketing effort.

We can't use old definitions  to flesh out new engagement metrics.

In the domain of video marketing, formats like interruptive ads in contextually relevant placements (e.g., interstitials played during episodic content) typically offer higher value than regular in-page video ads. This value, in turn, is most accurately described using metrics other than click-through rate -- metrics like reach and frequency.

Even this, though, provides an incomplete picture. Reach, frequency, click-through rate, and other traditional metrics can't capture, for instance, the value of someone sharing your branded video content with their friends and other networks. As a result, more and more marketers are moving forward on defining clearer video engagement metrics.

As a start, they've been focusing on two key objectives: 1) incorporating more granular measurements of user behavior, and 2) tying patterns of user behavior to bottom-line results like increased brand awareness or sales. In turn, the convergence of these two areas informs a higher-level understanding of total video engagement. Granular stats like viewer drop-off rates among demographics exemplify this new understanding; a brand could use this metric to verify that its videos are resonating with the same demographic that represents its traditional audience.

While there's still a long way to go, marketers and service providers are iterating quickly in order to refine these new video engagement metrics. It's very likely that these formulas will continue to be tweaked and improved as marketers continue to run and measure their video campaigns online.

9 comments about "New Metrics For Success In Video Marketing".
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  1. Tyler Lecompte from MeHype.com, February 18, 2009 at 2:58 p.m.

    Well written piece about the changes needed for Video Metrics Tyler. This topic is something of daily conversation for myself, and our prospects/clients at MeHype.com. As we have approached this topic, we have consistently run into video engagement being measured against antiquated models that apply to more traditional marketing mediums such as print, radio or even TV. But as you state above, we need to be measuring "total video engagement" objectives such as user behavior, increased brand awareness and video sharing. This viewpoint will be helpful in the coming months as continue to define, tweak and improve these formulas for our clients at MeHype.com. Thanks again.

  2. Tyler Willis from Involver, February 18, 2009 at 3:18 p.m.

    Thanks Mr. LeCompte,

    It is indeed a challenge to educate clients about newer metrics of tracking engagement, but I find that by working with clients on their first few campaigns by tracking both metrics, and explaining what each data point is telling them, it's often a lot easier to make believers out of them.

    On a sidenote, Mehype.com looks like neat idea, would love to chat more with you about it offline. Drop me an email at tyler@involver.com

  3. Scott Broomfield from Veeple, Inc., February 18, 2009 at 4:37 p.m.

    Tyler - Dittos! The ability to measure the actual results, down to the time of day, CTR%, geocode, etc., is critical to knowing (unlike thinking) that one's message is being heard and accepted. That the video is being embedded into other sites and blogs. In other words, that one's message is enhanced and that the user/viewer is truly engaged. Chat offline with me if you would like at scott@veeple.com or on Twitter @veeple.

    All the best!

  4. Peter Contardo from Endavo Media, February 18, 2009 at 7:38 p.m.

    As a marketer and a platform provider, I think it's important to match these new metrics to the marketing objectives of the client. What they don’t want are metrics for metrics sake. It’s already a struggle for many marketers to quantify their new media initiatives, so we need to ensure that video is part of the solution to their ROI challenge. If they are not relevant to measuring the success (as they define it) of their campaigns and overall business objectives, then it's just adding to their confusion.

  5. Guy Powell from ProRelevant Marketing Solutions, February 19, 2009 at 10:10 a.m.

    The reason to measure video (or any other media) falls in to areas: One to diagnose what is going right/wrong and the other to drive incremental revenue, profit, share or brand. Many times when I see these articles, they are relatively unconcise because they talk about measurement as the goal, when measurement is only a means to achieve a goal in a more optimal way.

    Once we have this in mind and since there is always a cost to measurement we can now set our priorities in where we want to measure and how we want to do it and what we might be able to improve based on the improvements we may be able to achieve. for more thoughts on this, go to www.Marketing-calculator.com.

    Thanks for starting the discussion.

  6. Alyssa Dver from Mint Green Marketing, February 19, 2009 at 11:40 a.m.

    Tyler, I could hug you for your observations as I have been saying much of the same to brick minds for over 2 years now. I created an experiment of sorts, a WebTV show (Mom Matters, www.mom-matters.com) with mid-roll contextual ads. The viewership is highly targeted not just in the coveted mom market but per webisode depending on the topic and thus the ads (we only do one topic per show). This default segmentation together with the advantage of video gives us very high viewership and seemingly high retention rates (over 75%). While we can't control the ad content (which also affects retention and impact), we do know that people watch the shows through the ads. As such, I explain to potential advertisers the benefits of having such a quality audience and low drop off rate but they just aren't there yet. They are still caught up in eyeballs, even if those eyeballs aren't committed viewers to an entire show or ad. I liken it to a billboard for condoms that is viewed by a busload of kindergartners that can't read or use the product...who cares?! Anyway, quality of the viewer and the "view" is what matters and until we have the tools and accountability to the advertisers, I think its an unfortunately long road to get people to understand that quality trumps quantity every time - especially in video land.

  7. Sam Vasisht from Independent, February 19, 2009 at 2:10 p.m.

    Nice article. More than before, I am noticing a shift measurement of online advertising (note: I don't use the term metrics), not just for video, but brand advertising in general. This is a rich topic that will gain more momentum, esp. with the current advertising environment. Bottom line, there seems to be a trending (or shall I say reversal) towards online advertising being considered part art and part science, esp when it comes to brand advertising (which most online video advertising is).

    I cover some of it here: www.techmediatalk.com (Whose Watching Online Video, Part 1 and 2) and (Brand Advertising on the Internet - Is Old New Again?).

    This is another interesting read from Randall Rothernberg of IAB: http://www.randallrothenberg.com/2009/02/heartbeats-and-mouseclicks-manifesto-on.html

  8. Martin Russ from Freelance Technical Author, February 20, 2009 at 6:57 a.m.

    At Real Time Content we have found that being able to provide detailed granular measurements of user interaction with video has hugely enhanced the ability of marketers to refine the structure and content of their ads to match user behaviour. Because we create online videos where each frame can be personalized, the granularity is very fine - and so there is enormous scope for reactive control by rapidly exploiting the extra detail this provides to marketers. This has resulted in high ROI, CTR, engagement...

  9. brian o'connell, April 27, 2009 at 5:24 p.m.

    video marketing is today where newspaper advertising was a 100 years ago, advertisers know it reached customers but unsure how to measure it.

    Think we are missing the point when we talk about video ads v video advertising, the market for video ads will outstrip video advertisers by a factor of 4;1, why because lower cost and wide availability of channels will allow small and medium business owners to use video ads if not video advertising

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