Digital Broadcasting Group (DBG), one of the leading creators of long form branded entertainment for the Web, released their 2009 Long Form Video Benchmarks report while I was at NATPE (so rude!). The report focuses on two key metrics: Interaction Rate and Video View Time.
DBG’s study concluded that:
– Long form content generated a 9.3% interaction rate compared to 3.1% average for short form video units (according to DoubleClick Video Benchmark Study).
- Long form content averaged 63.04 seconds compared to 34.57 seconds of short form video units cited in the same DCLK study.
Now, the nitpicking.
The average video length of DBG long form branded content was 3:29 per video. Using some fuzzy math, users on average only watched about one-third of the branded entertainment. As far as the brand is concerned, that may not be a winning formula. When factoring in all the production expenses and media costs to push the content out, the benefit to the brands may not beat the 80-85% completion rates for pre-roll in front of premium content.
Assuming the short form content referenced by the DoubleClick report is essentially a repurposed :15 or :30 second spot, at least proportionally, the short form is getting better bang for the buck in the exposure department. However, I’d be extremely hesitant to compare the ad experiences between the two.
We’re digging deeper, though, to see how those average view times (and hopefully completion rates) compare to similar length webisodic content that isn’t produced by brands. I haven’t seen any specific data on that yet, but am actively in the hunt.
The interaction rate data is also questionable upon digging deeper. They don’t break out “positive” vs “negative” interactions. A “pause” or “stop” shouldn’t be counted the same as turning on the sound or replaying a video. The study also does not make mention of any interactivity from Flash overlays or other interactive opportunities outside of the player controls. A few more specifics would have been very helpful in analyzing the data.
Overall, however, DBG’s report is good news in my opinion. First, using similar fuzzy math, if 1/3 of the audience got all the way through the branded content, I’m betting that brands would be pretty damn happy with that. Second, I see room for a lot of other brand metrics that could have been included that – IMHO – would also look good to the brands, including metrics like brand awareness and favorability. I know for a fact that many advertisers don’t want to pay the high fees to execute brand studies that have yet to prove effective for this type of marketing, so I’m willing to give DBG and the rest of the branded entertainment world the benefit of the doubt. With all of the branded content being created today, surely the stuff works to some degree.