Video ads are now part of search. Most advertisers will be throwing up made for TV commercials and fail to understand or take advantage of this new medium. That will be their loss. Google’s video ads present a huge opportunity for those that take the time to create compelling video specifically for the SERP (Search Engine Results Page).
Like any other creative you need to tailor your messaging to the unique benefits that the medium has to offer. Here are some basic guidelines in understanding how to use this new SERP media to generate qualified traffic and optimize your search spend.
1. Keep it Short: Search is a fast twitch medium. You have only a few seconds to keep my attention. Get to the point, and get me to your landing page.
2. Keep it Big: The size of the video is 160×120. That’s tiny! Words, offers, messages, coupons, whatever copy or offers you have need to be big in order to make an impact.
3. Create a Flow: The end of the video can’t be the end of your ad. If someone clicks your video you have already pushed them two steps down the funnel — step 1 getting their attention, step 2, taking an action. Your video should tee up steps 3 and 4 so don’t spend this valuable time rehashing the same messaging in the ad title and description in video form.
4. Use Images to Your Advantage: The brain processes images much faster than text to generate understanding. Make sure your ads have video images that are helpful to describing your product or service instead of a talking head.
5. Study DRTV: A few years ago I was fortunate enough to partner with Sy Sperling in a DRTV (Direct Response Television) venture after he sold Hair Club, a brand he built through video marketing. He taught me quite a bit about video advertising and much of it is transferable to video ads on the SERP. You can learn quite a bit studying this advertising format. DRTV ads are tested, targeted and backed with tons of analytic data. In fact I’ll leave you with my old buddy Sy talking about creating a compelling video ad.
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