Three emerging trends in video advertising

17 December 2020

By Abbas Fazalbhoy
Sr. Product marketing manager, Amazon Ads

Today, consumers have immediate access to more information and shopping options than ever before, and their behaviours and preferences are constantly shifting. This creates a challenge for brands, who need to be present and engaging with their audiences at the right place and time.

Backed by our first-party insights, Amazon Ads can help advertisers connect the dots along the multifaceted, non-linear and fragmented customer journey. This requires a deep understanding of consumer behaviours and how they change over time. And, for video advertisers, we’ve identified three key recent shifts that we can help you navigate.

Customers prefer video ads vs ads in other formats

In a recent study, 66% of consumers said they prefer watching a video compared to reading about a product.1 We see evidence of this at Amazon Ads: aggregated Amazon DSP campaign metrics show that adding video ads to display-only campaigns dramatically improves results. Specifically, campaigns that combine both formats, on average, record a 320% increase in detail page views, and a 150% increase in purchase rate compared to display-only campaigns.2

How can Amazon help?

Our video ads solutions enable advertisers to reach relevant audiences on Amazon sites and apps anywhere they spend their time through our publishing partners and third-party exchanges using Amazon DSP.

Screen-agnostic video consumption is on the rise

Today, customers have access to more content than ever before, and they seamlessly switch between a variety of channels to consume this content. For example, it’s common to use a mobile app to check the weather in the morning, and then stream your favourite TV show in the evening on the largest screen in the home. Shopping journeys have followed this trend, with nearly two-thirds (64%) of customers claiming to use multiple devices to start and complete transactions,3 such as browsing on a phone and then later signing up for an account on a desktop. Video marketers have realized that to reach audiences at the right time with the right message, they need an omnichannel marketing strategy that captivates audiences across screens. As a result, a recent study found that more than 90% of video marketers are either currently executing or planning to execute cross-screen campaigns in 2020.4

How can Amazon help?

Powered by Amazon DSP, Amazon video ads appear on owned and operated sites such as IMDb and across the web in various formats, including streaming video content, articles and banners served on desktop, mobile or tablet. Our video ads allow you to deliver an omni-channel marketing strategy across the web that aligns with the customer experience.

Customers expect tailored communication from brands

Today’s consumer wants advertising to represent their interests. A recent study showed that, on average, 73% of customers expect companies to understand their expectations, while nearly two-thirds of customers expect companies to adapt messaging based on their actions and behaviour.5 Advertisers have acknowledged this shift in customer expectations and are using more sophisticated insights to guide how they reach their audiences.

Advertisers are making an effort to integrate interest-based audience insights in their media spend, rather than executing campaigns simply based on demographics. In a recent report, 68% of advertisers said they now rely more on interest-based audience buying, rather than demographic-based buying.6 Further, when analyzing 28 Amazon Streaming TV ad campaigns, we found that brands leveraging Amazon Ads’ behavioural signals see a 44% increase in consideration compared to those who reach audiences based on demographic attributes alone.7

How can Amazon help?

Amazon first-party insights based on behavioural signals can help you navigate the changes in customer preferences and unlock new opportunities for your brand. Tools such as audience overlap reports show advertisers which Amazon audience segments were most responsive to their ads, anywhere they spend their time. Audience overlap reports can help inform which audiences to include in your next campaign, extend reach within existing campaigns, and refine creatives and messaging to better resonate with potential customers likely to be interested in your brand.

How can you get started?

No creative assets to start using video advertising? No problem. We’ve made it easier for advertisers who don’t have the right video assets to set up their first video advertising campaigns. Placed at the intersection of commerce and creative, Amazon video creative builder (beta) is a self-service, 100% free and easy-to-use tool with which you can build eye-catching and relevant video ads without the need for existing video assets. To learn more about tools like these that help you take advantage of these video marketing trends with Amazon video ads, please contact your Amazon account executive.

1Wyzowl – The State of Video Marketing, Jan 2020
2Amazon internal campaign data, Sep 2020
3State of the Connected Customer Report, Salesforce Research, Dec 2019
4Video Advertising Convergence Report, Advertiser Perceptions, Dec 2019
5Salesforce Research, Dec 2019
6 Video Advertising Convergence Report, Advertiser Perceptions, Dec 2019
7Amazon internal campaign data, Dec 2019