ONLINE VIDEO TRENDS: I’M NOT CRAZY AFTER ALL!
OK, so the good news is, I’m not crazy after all! Well, at least not when it comes to the amount of time people spend watching video online.
For years I’ve heard people say that people have an extremely short attention span when it comes to watching video online. While that may be true in some cases, we now have proof that that’s not the case when they are watching something that’s worth watching!
eMarketer, a business information service that provides unbiased research and trend analysis on digital marketing and media, just released an article entitled, “Online Video Viewing Shifts to Long-Form Content” http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007745 . Granted the major point of the article is that more and more people are watching full length movies and TV shows online. I get that. But the bigger point, and I think the bigger opportunity for Einstein Dental clients is this: Give the viewers who are looking for professional video content on “all things dental” for example, and they will watch.
Time and time again I have heard people say that people just won’t watch any video past a few seconds. While that may be the case in many instances, I firmly believe that, especially in the dental industry, people who are wondering about veneers, dental implants, crowns or bridges, will watch videos on all of those subjects and more, if only it is presented interestingly and well.
The whole idea behind the Einstein Video Network, is to produce TV-Style reports and clips on every service and topic our clients cover. There are many reasons why this works, but chief among them, is that people are accustomed to watching TV, whether it’s on the boob tube or online.
We believe too many video production companies forget that simple concept, and therefore they “swing and miss” on their gigantic online opportunity with their clients.
Here are a couple of the statistics that this eMarketer article produced that I found most relevant to those concerned wondering about viewership and online video:
* The number of US online video viewers has risen steadily for the past few years and is expected to continue climbing in through 2014.
*eMarketer estimates the highest penetration of online video viewing is among 18- to 24-year-olds, with 25- to 34-year-olds and teens not far behind. By the middle of this decade, those age groups will be at saturation points of above 90% penetration.
I’ve also read article after article about how those in their 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s are more interested than ever in understanding how to do the basics on the web. Having professionally produced video is one way to catch anyone’s attention.
The fact that people of all ages are getting more and more comfortable with watching online video (whether they are TV shows or not) is great news for any dentist looking to highlight what they do. If they make their videos watchable—and professional—patients of all ages will tune in.
I’ll leave you with my favorite quote from the article that really sums up how far we’ve come from the days of just :15 stupid pet tricks online:
“If the first iteration of online video was about silly pet tricks on YouTube, the next wave will be about professionally produced full-length content. This shift will be propelled by a combination of technology integration, demographics and a growing comfort level with the idea of watching video hosted on Websites.”
So, no offense to all the cats whose tongues can move faster than dog chasing its tail (see this YoTube video and you’ll see what I mean: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oe5tzhEaNAk
But this video thing appears to have more than 9 lives!
Thanks for reading and we’ll talk to you next time!
Greg McKinney
Director
Einstein Video Network
Greg