Keep Things Short And Simple In Video Promotion – Sponsored Video Thumbnail

We’ve written a lot in the past about the importance of writing meaty content with a personal angle if we want to do well in search. Search traffic is 100% passive and the best type of traffic for monetization purposes.

Longer articles do better in search because length is generally correlated with quality. The idea is that a longer article is usually more thorough with much better data points to buttress an argument. There are more keywords and related keywords to help search robots as well, even though Google says keyword density doesn’t matter. Yes, you certainly shouldn’t be stuffing keywords into the article just to increase density. But you will naturally have more relevant keywords the long your article.

When I’m searching for an answer online, I want to land on the most comprehensive post possible that looks at various points of view. If an article can provide an argument and a counterargument, all the better for me to make an informed decision. The same thing goes with instructional videos about how to fix anything.

But what about for marketing purposes? Shorter is better in my opinion.

ZERO ATTENTION SPAN WORLD

For everything other than instructional posts and videos, unless you are an amazing story teller or incredibly good looking, shorter is better. The internet and social media have caused our attention spans to shrink from the size of melons to peas.

Video is a great branding tool if used properly. But video is also highly dangerous in the hands of anybody with a big ego. What we see on TV are people who have been selected not only for their communication skills, but also their attractiveness. If you have a big ego, it is more than likely you will think you are much more attractive, eloquent, or funnier than you really are.

Video is probably perfect for everyone who wants to promote. The main issue is with videos that are just too long. Any video longer than 3 minutes seems like an eternity. With the invention of Vine, now we’ve become programmed to seeing videos in only 7 second clips!

THE SHORTER THE VIDEO, THE MORE EFFECTIVE

When I was approached to manage a Capital One Spark business credit card video campaign, I was pleasantly surprised by the length of their videos. The first video which I thought was the main video lasted only 16 seconds. The video featured a play on words about a female entrepreneur no longer wanting to “break her back” thanks to the help of the Spark business card. Take a look.

What I didn’t realize is that the video script runs on an algorithm that shows the most watched videos first. After three weeks, the most watched Capital One video is of a claymation figure breakdancing. It’s a 7 second Vine video. If you want to watch the other sponsored videos just click the Capital One logo on the top left of the video box to see a drop down menu.

Because these are marketing videos using fun and humor to get the message across, shorter is much more effective than longer. By hosting a series of 7 second videos with the claymation figures, the campaign allows prospective card users to click more at their own leisure. There is no negative association of sitting through a long, boring video and the product.

How many times have we seen a commercial and said to ourselves, “That doesn’t look appealing!” The commercials actually serve to turn off the consumer to the product instead of enhance the association. Negative association can be managed through shorter, more frequent videos at the consumer’s discretion.

By coming away with a positive association, consumers will click through to discover the Spark business card offers an attractive 2% cash back on all business expenditures among other benefits. That’s much better than the standard 1% cash back for personal credit cards. When you’re an entrepreneur, you can use all the help you can get! Take a look at the claymation Vine videos and let me know what you think.

Looking to learn how to start your own profitable website? Check out my step-by-step guide on how to start a blog. It’s one of the best things I did in 2009 to help earn extra money and break free from Corporate America!

Updated for 2017 and beyond.