Is your video advertising just more spam?

A commercial has one second. In that second the viewer decides whether to keep watching or scroll on. Four filters decide the outcome, and none of them has anything to do with the camera.

1. Contrast: does your film look like everyone else’s?

If it opens with a drone shot of the office, a logo and a line about caring for clients, it has already been categorised as advertising and skipped. Looking different is not a style decision — it is the condition for being seen at all.

2. Emotion: facts do not sell

People react when they laugh, get annoyed, stop to think or feel more capable. A list of specifications produces none of those. The specification can come later, once attention exists.

3. Relevance: your office is lovely, but it is not my problem

A film has to talk about the viewer’s reality, not yours. Fifteen years of experience is a fact about you; what the viewer wants to know is what changes for them.

4. Identity: speak about who the client wants to be

Viewers stay when they recognise themselves — or the person they would like to be. That is why showing a client like them works better than showing your own team.

How advertising differs from spam

The line is simple: spam talks about itself, advertising answers the viewer. If the first three seconds say which problem will be solved, people stay. If they contain only a logo and a slogan, they scroll — and that is not the algorithm’s fault.

The second difference is time. Spam wants to sell immediately. Good advertising lets a person get acquainted: the first film explains, the second shows the result, the third says how to work with you. One film rarely sells anything; a sequence of three usually does.

Check your advertising with three questions

• Do the first three seconds say who this is for? If not, the rest will not be seen.
• Will the message survive without sound? Most people watch without it.
• Is there one action you are asking for? Two requests means none.

And finally: advertising does not start working because you showed it to more people. It starts working when it is said more clearly. Budget multiplies the same result — good or bad.

Frequently asked questions

Why is our video advertising not working?

Usually because of the opening: in the first seconds the viewer gets no answer about who the film is for. The second most common reason is asking for several things at once.

How long should a commercial be?

Fifteen to thirty seconds for social media, up to a minute for a website. Longer only makes sense when the film teaches something useful.

Should we increase the budget if a video is not working?

No. Budget multiplies the same result. Rewrite the opening and the message first, then buy reach.