3 Things You Need To Know About Facebook Mid-roll Video Ads
With so many social media platforms available for marketers reaching your target audience has never been easier but it’s getting harder to keep track of what advertising choices exist on each platform. We love seeing how the offerings of YouTube, Instagram and Snapchat have evolved in the last few years but we’re really excited at what Facebook has coming down the pipeline.
In a move to offer new video ad opportunities which rival those of YouTube, Facebook will soon be adding mid-roll video ads. While mid-roll ads have been seen on Facebook Live videos since last year, adding them to publisher videos will be something new. This option isn’t available yet, and Facebook hasn’t announced exactly when it will be, but let’s take a look at the three critical things we know so far.
The Videos
For publisher videos to be eligible for mid-roll video ads, they will need to be a minimum of 90 seconds long. Publishers will need to dig deep and get creative with their video content to capture a viewer’s attention and hold it for at least 20 seconds before the video ad will be shown. This 20-second threshold should help boost advertisers’ concerns of wasted budgets, particularly in light of Facebook’s much-overstated video view numbers released last September.
The Video Ads
The mid-roll video ads themselves will be capped at a length of 15 seconds as compared to YouTube’s 30-second limit. Marketers and advertisers will be tasked with creating great video ad content that will engage viewers and encourage conversions. With a wealth of metrics available, video ad optimization will be crucial as well as the ability to constantly produce fresh video ad content, so viewers don’t get bored.
Video Ad Targeting Options
When Facebook first launched mid-roll ads on Facebook Live, advertisers didn’t have a lot of control over when their ads were shown and during what types of live broadcasts. It’s understandable that advertisers would not want their ads to be shown when sensitive subjects, such as a media outlet covering a violent news story, are part of the live broadcast. With this in mind and along with all of Facebook’s normal targeting options available, Marketing Land reports that advertisers will be able to choose the video categories for their ads such as sports or humor and choose categories to avoid such as debated social issue and tragedy and conflict. If Facebook follows the same parameters it set for Facebook Live, publishers will also be able to select the advertiser categories that can run on their channels.
Business Insider recently reported some staggering stats including that video ad spending is rising faster than search and display, and that in the US alone, digital video ad revenue will rise by a CAGR of 21.9% through 2020, it’s no surprise that Facebook is focusing on building its video-first approach. If you believe in the phrase ‘strike while the iron is hot,’ video advertising, whether through Facebook mid-roll, Snapchat Stories, or other, is burning up. Brands need to tap into this ad format or risk getting trampled on by the competition.
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