As of the 31st of July 2019, Facebook will be terminating all Video View campaigns that are set up with the old 10-second video view optimization in order to make way for ThruPlay – a newer video views optimization option that Facebook believes will benefit you more, whether you’re a business looking to showcase your product or service or a Facebook user scrolling through your Timeline. ThruPlay in a nutshell targets audiences that Facebook believes are more likely to view your entire video, or at least 15-seconds of it if it’s longer. It is very similar to the 10-second video view optimization in the way it targets viewers, however the extra five seconds is supposedly what makes all the difference by filtering out the passive viewers and encouraging better quality views and content. Not only is it an optimization choice but it also means that other than the other option of paying per impression, it gives advertisers the option of paying for the ad if it’s been viewed either in its entirety or for a minimum of 15-seconds, potentially cutting costs on wasted views.
What significance does the extra 5 seconds have?
With the vast amount of data that Facebook produces on a daily basis, it inevitably must change and adapt to what it thinks its users will benefit from the most – whether they are consumers, advertisers or businesses. After experimenting with the 3 to 10-second video view optimizations, it became apparent that it wasn’t enough time for the businesses and/or advertisers to tell their full story to the best of their ability. Unless the content was truly gripping, it was unlikely for the viewers to watch the whole video. For the storytellers, the extra 5 seconds will give a sufficient amount of time to tell their full story and also gives them the incentive to produce 15-seconds of quality content, rather than a longer video of a lesser quality. The increased demand of short-form content paired with the rise of prosumer technologies means that there is a lot of competition when it comes to making great video ads, and Facebook has factored this into their logic behind this change.
ThruPlay is therefore encouraging quality over quantity, challenging advertisers all over Facebook to produce short-form video content that not only reaches their target audience but guarantees that their audience has properly consumed and understood the message behind the advert - hence being more likely to act on it.
Facebook’s purpose and how it reflects in its tactics
Facebook is a social media platform founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerburg with the initial purpose of connecting family, friends and colleagues online. Over a decade later, the commitment to unite individuals remains at its core whilst the technologies continue to advance and countless of updates are made to optimize the billions of users’ experience. With this in mind, Facebook looks to prioritize content that it believes will connect or reconnect you with people you have on your friends list – a connection could be established in many forms, whether it’s a share, a comment or a like. To put it briefly, it means that Facebook will prioritize more eye-catching content such as videos and photos than text posts for example. As a business looking to sell or advertise your product or service, keeping this in mind can be valuable when planning your ad campaigns.
How does ThruPlay fit into this?
Video advertisers in particular have always believed in the 3-second rule: that if your video doesn’t capture your target audience within the first 3 seconds your audience is lost. This is where ThruPlay comes into the picture – as it encourages advertisers to create that gripping content in the first 3 seconds, and make the audience stay for 15 instead. Doesn’t seem like much to ask does it? But it’s certainly a challenge in an age of instant gratification.
Making short-form video content is not only easier to consume, but it’s easier to share and generate views. At a time where web pages take less than a second to load and almost everything is at your fingertips on your mobile phone, it makes sense that shorter videos appeal more to larger audiences. With so many users now moving over to social media platforms like Instagram due to being over-faced with ads on Facebook, this change hopes to reclaim its credibility and quality of content that Facebook is providing to its billions of daily users in an age of online uncertainty and the proliferation of short-form video content.
If you have any ongoing 10-second video view ad campaigns do make sure to change them to ThruPlay before the end of the month or have a browse as to what other campaigns are available to help you achieve your goal.
Finding it difficult to keep up-to-date with the countless optimization algorithms that keep emerging online? Well that’s why we make it our priority to be one step ahead, ensuring that we can provide our clients with the most current strategies in order to optimize their brand’s online presence. Contact us today for a free consultation or check out our website for more information on how we can help you.
