How long is too long for a video?
Do you watch a product video completely through? If not, what time do you find yourself exiting from the video?
edit: I think what it comes down to is that you should be able to pitch your product or message in the time it takes to keep interest of the audience. I think the catch is: a story? I think an animated story captures attention well.
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Mar 6, 2014
If you are talking about an online promotional video, anything more that 90s seconds is too long. Try to stay in the 30-60sec range.
However, if you are producing a webcast, training/instructional material, podcast, documentary or online show, then the format can be anywhere from 10min-1hour.
Mar 3, 2014
I agree with Farzad - the 30 to 90 seconds mark is usually best.
Add some more interaction to the video and you'll be able to extend the length of it.
Feb 19, 2014
Based on our analysis of marketing videos that we have created, somewhere around 45 seconds is ideal. One of the clients had a shorter version ~30 sec and a longer version ~180 sec video with same theme. The shorter videos were watched more number of times and were watched completely. Whereas, most of the viewers watched only ~50% of the longer version, i.e. only for first 90 seconds.
Feb 13, 2014
Hi Catrina,
Here is a quick video that talks about this very subject. In short, the #1 rule is "never make a video longer than it should be" but you have to look at the kind of video.
For example, a lead gen video will be short, but a video about a 7 step process has to talk about each step...or have a video on each step.
Here is the link and hope this helps -
http://www.nyccorporatevideoproduction.com/why-video-production/business-video/1-length-of-the-video.html
Robert
Jan 8, 2014
5 minutes or ore is too long. Shoot between 2-4 minutes. Keep in mind, the video needs to be engaging, fun and tell a story. Keep to the KISS model, which is keep it simple stupid. Videos that run over 5 minutes tend to have people exiting unless it is so engaging that they don't notice.
Dec 31, 2013
It absolutely depends on where in the sales funnel your message is being viewed and how. The success of this really falls on the creator you choose, as content is key.
You could easily have a 30 MINUTE, cinematic experience... if it was well done.
(http://www.thebeautyinsidefilm.com/)
At the very top of the funnel? you might have a pre-roll video advertisement for example... That would be 30 seconds or less. In this phase, people have not decided if they care about you or not. (Too much white-noise online today.)
But an issue you'll come across is that not all film makers have experience with conveying a message clearly and quickly in 30 seconds... So this can introduce an unwanted variable, if you did not pick the right creator.
But a good 30 second piece can "drive" a subject to your website, that means their interest is piqued, so you can then share a longer 1-3 minute video, in relation to their interest level. ** Please know that 3 minutes is a LONG time, unless you have some amazing, high end content... or someone or something incredibly relevant to share.
I don't recommend reading any books on this.... I recommend that you share your goals with a professional to help you decide whether you choose animation or not... Otherwise you're like the patient who self-diagnoses herself on Web MD and then tells a doctor what prescriptions you want.
There are professionals out there who are happy to help you if you're serious about a great end-product and virility.
Jun 23, 2013
Effective video length can depend a lot of things but mainly on the projected attention span of the target audience for the given channel. If you can afford it do some empirical studies. YouTube has some nice and detailed info about watch time in their analytic tools.
Apr 27, 2013
HI, I think anything over 8 minutes is too long, I did have a conversation with a company recently and we thought the ideal time would be a maximum 3 minutes. Google is apparently tracking how long a browser watches a video for, so do they click off after 15 seconds, or do they watch the full video.
RSA do animated videos brilliantly, you will find them on YouTube. I advise clients to have a board in the background with their contact details, logo etc so it is very clear what the message is and how to make contact re call to action.
Hope this helps, Louise Wightman
Jan 2, 2013
If the taget audience is new then between 30sec - 45sec. If this is for current customers then longer. The important part is to catch the attention fast. First impressions are made within 7secs.
Nov 23, 2012
I have heard from forester on their new report, that 3 minutes is the max for an intro video. I attempt to keep them to 2 minutes each, but it is quite a challenge to do. I am starting a video series that will give a tip every other week to my subscribers.
Nov 16, 2012
My old headmaster said "you can talk as long as you like but they'll only listen for five minutes". Almost everywhere you look people are saying keep it short and sweet. I think concise and informative ticks the boxes for me.
Nov 14, 2012
You must capture attention in the first 10 seconds or you will not compel your audience to keep watching. Regardless of the length of the video, if the viewer does not find the video engaging immediately they will most likely click elsewhere.
Nov 14, 2012
A three minute video can be highly effective. It is enough time to introduce, answer key questions and describe desired outcomes from the video.
Nov 14, 2012
It is like a movie. How long can you keep your audience's attention? Better to leave them wanting more than for them to leave not wanting any more.
Nov 13, 2012
Hi Catrina,
A lot of answers already on lengths - one thing we've found very useful at SocialGO is to put up the video in the length we think is right, and then letting YouTube Analytics do the work for you.
What we found is that on average, our case study video was watched for 1:19 - significantly shorter than the time we built it for. So, for our next edit, we'll try making shorter, snappier 'question-time' videos which run for about a minute and succinctly answer one product-related question at a time.
Hope that helps!
Nov 13, 2012
I agree with many of the answers here - 2 minutes seem to be a consensus - we have tried to keep our intro videos to 2 minutes
Great suggestions! Thank you Marie!