Six video metrics to look out for

The world of marketing is changing rapidly and so are the ways in which videos are consumed. Along with the changing expectations of consumers come changing demands for your marketing work. Consumers rely increasingly on videos of reviews, unboxings and product demonstrations when they journey into your brand. According to research, 66% of consumers watch video content when they want to learn about a brand or a product. This also means that consumers expect brands to post video content that provide them with value – either by learning something new or diving deeper into an interest or passion.

By the way, did you know that we make films at JS? That way, we can help you attract your customers’ attention. But that is another story.

While value of the content might be the most important factor for viewers, the production quality also seems to matter a great deal. 36% of consumers find it “Somewhat important” while 28% find it “Very important”.

So consumers want valuable content with a great production quality. But how much time are they willing to spend on your content? According to Hubspot, videos that are less than 3 minutes long are preferred by 36% of consumers, while 27% find 4-6-minute long videos optimal. Depending on the content and the target audience, however, the optimal length differs.

Imagine this: You produce videos and post them on various social networks, but your leader keeps asking you how you will track the performance and show the result of your hard work.

Do not worry – we got you!

How to Make It Count

First of all, your leader is right – without measuring your video’s success, you are practically working in the dark. So turn on the light, and let us dive into the six most important metrics that tell you about the performance of your video content.

1. View Count

As the term suggests, this metric tells you how many times your video has been seen. Note, however, that the views are measured in different ways, depending on which channel you use. For instance, YouTube counts views after 30 seconds, while Facebook, Instagram and Twitter count views after a mere three seconds. So do not compare apples to oranges!

On its own, view count does not tell you much more than the number of views. Combined with engagement and other metrics, however, it gives you more insights into the ways the consumers respond to your videos.

2. Average View Duration

Do your viewers hang on to the bitter end? Or do they quit halfway through? By keeping an eye on the average view duration, you will get insights into how long your audience watches your videos. By dividing the total watch time of your video by the number of plays (including replays), you get the average view duration for each viewer.

This metric is a pointer to whether you should cut your videos shorter or whether you are providing content that viewers cannot take their eyes off.

3. Engagement

One of the most popular qualitative metrics is that of Engagement. Through likes, shares and comments, consumers let you know what they think about your content. Especially shares are valuable to you, because they work as a sort of word-of-mouth marketing, while comments give you the consumers’ feedback on your content. This helps you understand what is “hot” and what is “definitely not” for your future video content.

4. Follower/Subscribe Growth

This metric shows if your video content attracts or even pushes away followers/subscribers. A growth in the number of subscribers or followers after posting a video tells you that your content has managed to reach new audiences and make more people interested in your brand. Great news!

On the other hand, losing followers is a wake-up call for you to start doing something entirely different with your content. This is one of the more tricky measure points since this could be caused by other factors than your specific video post.

5. Click-Through Rate (CTR)

Is your content doing a good job at persuading consumers to take a desired action? Do they click on your call to action and visit other pages? The Click-through rate is a measure of the percentage of viewers who have clicked on your video’s call to action (CTA) and continued their journey on another page.

If consumers do not act on your CTA placed at the end of your video, you should consider moving it to the beginning or middle instead. Or even more likely, it is a hint that you should tweak the video to make it more engaging, so people are motivated to watch it to the end.

6. Conversion Rate

The conversion rate tells you how good your video content is at turning the viewer into a lead or a customer. If the consumer clicks through from your video and further onto a landing page or an online store and fills out a form or buys your products, the data will show you how the video is linked to the boost in your business. However, if the video is not linked to any further actions, it might be time to mix things up.

With these six metrics, you can measure the success of your video content and set goals for the future. Now that you are no longer working in the dark, keep posting quality content and make adjustments based on your data.

We are rooting for you!

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