In the video space, a great deal of noise is currently geared toward the growth of programmatic trading and the automated delivery of video advertising to specific audience segments. What’s often lost in this noise is the creation of the ads themselves (although some networks are now promoting creative capabilities),and how devising creative for digital platforms is an important element in the process.

As technology enables greater efficiency and better targeting we can monetise smartly. However, that’s only sustainable if we start engendering creativity.You’ve found the right person to show your ad to, so what are you going to show? A 15sec re-purpose of your TV slot is a wasted opportunity to engage digital users for whom video has a third sense (beyond TV’s sight and sound): ‘touch’. This is where adding interactive elements to a video creative can really bring value to brands.

The value is shown via higher brand recall and propensity to purchase, among other aspects. It doesn’t take a great leap of the imagination to understand that those who spend time engaging with your brand are more likely to remember it, and if you give users the ability to purchase the products shown in the video, driving them straight to basket level, they are more likely to transact.

Measurement

Interactive video also gives brands important intelligence. A standard pre roll is measured via a traditional CTR and completion rate (percentage of users that watched the full video). Interactive video provides more detailed and valuable metrics; using interactive layers allows you to measure how a user is responding to your brand (what made them click?) and what exactly they are responding to (which products are they clicking on or hovering over?). All this data can be measured in real time and right across a campaign.

Across devices

It’s worth noting that even though desktop is the starting point for most interactive video campaigns, mobile is becoming an increasingly important factor.The differing canvas sizes offer challenges when designing and delivering interactive video but this is something to embrace not shy away from - the opportunity is too big to ignore.

Warc recently forecast mobile ad spend to grow 73 per cent to £1.8bn in 2014 and to grow a further 45.4 per cent to £2.6bn by 2015, accounting for a third of all digital ad spend, while the spend on desktop will remain largely static over the same period. Mobile advertising spend is now already set to overtake newspaper ad revenue.

When it comes to devices, tablets are the star of the show; their easy accessibility and screen size lend themselves well to interaction. All the signs point towards mobile being the next growth frontier in advertising and, in particular, video advertising. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) recently reported a 62 per cent year-on-year growth in video advertising since 2012, and now accounts for 18 per cent of all online and mobile display advertising. Six in ten tablet owners say it’s their “go to” home internet device, and more than one in four British consumers now own a tablet.

Opportunity

There is a huge opportunity here for marketers and advertisers to use interactive video in a market that is currently being underserviced. Mobile and specifically tablets may provide the rich canvas space brands need to maximise the potential of the exciting interactive tools out there. It will help them start that crucial two-way conversation with their customers that will build engagement, prompt more frequent purchases and increase ROI.

 

By Jonathan Lewis, Commercial Director at Brainient.

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