7 Ways To Generate More Leads With Autoplay Video Ads

Top 7 Ways How to Generate Leads With Autoplay Video Ads

With billions of users, YouTube, TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms offer access to the world’s consumers and businesses. For instance, Facebook has over two billion users while YouTube has approximately 2.9 billion.

For you to reach a wider audience through the platforms’ ads services, you need to create compelling and valuable content for your target audience. Autoplay video ads are a game changer in attracting a larger number of online users and an excellent method of attracting and converting more leads into potential customers.

You are missing a lot if you have not introduced video content into your lead generation campaigns. However, the main question for most marketers and companies is, how can you generate leads with autoplay video ads?

What Are Autoplay Video Ads

You may have seen an autoplay video either when browsing through a site, on social media, or YouTube. On Facebook, for instance, they will automatically play when one scrolls through their News Feed, unless a user disables this feature in their account settings.

Autoplay video ads are the ultimate solution to break through the clutter and engage your target audience like never before. These captivating ads are a form of advertising where videos start playing without user interaction. They can appear on various platforms like social media platforms, websites, mobile apps, and affiliate sites. Mostly, autoplay video ads play for a few seconds before the user gets an option to interact, skip, or pause the ad.

For the video ads to capture the viewers’ attention, you should implement them thoughtfully. Consider the placement and frequency of the ads to ensure a positive user experience. This way, advertisers can deliver their brand message in a more dynamic and immersive way compared to traditional static or text-based ads.

In some cases, the video may start playing silently if the user’s device is muted although it will still show captions or subtitles.

Why use autoplay video ads for lead generation?

The fact that users can freely disable the autoplay feature for video ads may leave you questioning the effectiveness of such ads in your lead generation strategies. You will wonder, isn’t a text or image with a catchy caption more effective?

Well, this is not always the case. People love video content, especially when it’s catchy, engaging, or provides value. On Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, users spend more time on video content than on images and static content.

Video ads drive interaction rates ten times more compared to text or images. Whether an advertiser is looking for followers, likes, leads, or comments, the end goal is to push engagement to your end. You can combine video content with a lead generation form.

Previously, video ads have proven to be an effective way for advertising and lead generation by companies of different sizes, target audiences, and industries. Take a case example of Airbnb. After introducing “AirBNB Adventures” to the market, the company used a clever video campaign to engage with adventure-loving travelers.

Airbnb used video content in combination with ad sequencing to produce tailored ads and tell their inspiring stories to the audience on YouTube. The ad started with a non-skippable 15-second teaser, followed by a 6-second bumper. In the end, it had a skippable 15-minute video.

After running the ad campaign, Airbnb saw an increased conversion rate increase of 40 times than the account average. Besides, the video garnered 8M impressions on YouTube and drove significant awareness for the ‘Airbnb Adventures’ product. There was a 22% increase in purchase intent and a 50% increase in ad recall.

When you look at the success of Airbnb and other companies, the value of autoplay video ads is evident. However, to exploit their full effectiveness, you need to consider:

  • Sound control

  • User experience

  • Autoplay policies

  • Loading speed

  • Data usage and bandwidth

You need to strike a perfect balance between user experience and capturing the user’s attention. Your video ads should be engaging, well-optimized, and add value to help you deliver the messages properly.

7 Ways To Generate More Leads With Autoplay Video Ads

Capturing attention has become increasingly challenging. With so much content vying for attention, how can you generate leads and make sure your brand stands out? Autoplay video ads are a powerful tool for generating leads and capturing the attention of your target audience.

Captivating visuals, compelling storytelling, and a call-to-action that leaves viewers craving more. Here are the top ways of generating leads with autoplay video ads.

1. Include a lead gen form

Don’t let ads slip away. If you want to scale up your lead generation strategies, you need to include a lead gen form added to your ad. This way, you eliminate the need to navigate away from the ad or visit an external page linked to the CTA.

To make the strategy more enticing, you can offer an incentive or inclusive content in exchange for information. It can be a free e-book, a downloadable resource, or access to a limited-time offer. In the lead generation form, whether on YouTube, Facebook, or any other platform, you can encourage users to take a particular action like:

  • Request a quote

  • Receive exclusive offers and product deals

  • Schedule an appointment

  • Sign up for a newsletter

Keep the form simple and easy to fill out, asking for only essential information to minimize friction and maximize conversions. The advantage of most platforms like Facebook is that they can pull the account information on behalf of the users. You can include a few questions about your business or a particular product that you offer.

There are different types of questions that you may include like:

  • Short answers to open-ended questions.

  • Multiple choice questions.

  • Short locator questions to help users search for stores close to them

  • Appointment scheduling questions give the users a quicker way to schedule an appointment with you.

  • Conditional ones that contain several multiple-choice questions.

Do not ask too many questions. Customize the questions in your lead form and keep them short and to the point. When you ask for too much information, your leads will drop off and make the process inconvenient.

2. Target the Bulls-Eye and Use storytelling that sticks

One size does not fit all when it comes to autoplay video ads. To maximize lead generation, leverage the targeting options provided by advertising platforms.

Narrow down your audience based on interests, demographics, and behaviors to ensure your ad reaches the right people at the right time.

Humans are hardwired for storytelling. After targeting the bulls-eye, you need to leverage this innate human trait by crafting a compelling narrative within your ad. Tell stories that resonate with your target audience, highlighting their pain points and offering solutions.

Weaving a narrative that sparks curiosity creates an emotional connection that drives leads. It should be used in combination with stunning visuals. This creates an immersive experience that grabs attention and leaves a lasting impression.

3. Mix and match the video formats

Mixing and matching video formats in your autoplay video ads can be a highly effective strategy for generating more leads. On Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and other websites, you can use a variety of video ad options like:

  • GIFs

  • Vertical videos to tell stories better.

  • Canvas, is an openable video that gives an entire screen experience.

  • Carousel where users can scroll through a collection of related videos.

  • Collection. The video ad features a grid of product images with related links.

  • Live, is a strategy that can be used to advertise live events in real time.

  • 360, where users can open the video from multiple angles and perspectives.

  • Instream. Video an displayed while the user is watching other content.

These formats can be very useful for your marketing campaign. If you’re targeting people looking into products, you might use carousel ads to highlight kitchen cabinetry.

Your autoplay video ad should have a captivating storytelling format that creates an emotional connection with the viewers. Besides, there should seamless transition of visuals to showcase product features and the value that it adds. If you are using animated explainer videos, they should be edited in a way that simplifies complex concepts and adds an element of excitement and energy.

4. Limit ads to 15 seconds

47% of an ad’s value can be seen in the first few seconds. Viewers can quickly become fatigued or annoyed by long autoplay videos that disrupt their browsing experiences. The average attention span of internet users is around 8 seconds. Keeping your video ads concise and limited to 15 seconds increases the chances of capturing and maintaining viewer attention.

Taking a case example of Finish, a dishwashing brand, they wanted to re-use one of their television advertisement on Facebook.

When this happened, the views in the first three seconds increased by 65 percent and by 135 percent in the first 10 seconds.

From this example, you should bring the best out of the product you are advertising in the first 15 seconds. The viewers should know what you are offering and, the offers you have, and be hooked to the ad. Also, your ad should include a CTA in the message to keep the audience eager to take action. In the process, this move increases lead generation and scales up conversion rates.

5. Add Subtitles and Text

Sometimes, users may watch videos without sound or have difficulty understanding the spoken language. Subtitles and text in your video factor in users who mute your videos or have the sound off on their devices.

They improve clarity and comprehension, convey key information, increase engagement and retention, and enhance SEO. Search engines can crawl and index the text, which increases the discoverability of your ad content.

With subtitles and text in place, your viewers can understand the message regardless of the environment they are in. This inclusivity boosts the likelihood of capturing attention and engaging potential leads. You can use apps like Quik to add text and subtitles on videos to give your content a professional look.

A marketing agency can also assist you in this step.

6. Use Automatic Bidding

Although there is an option for manual bids, automatic bidding takes the guesswork out of setting bid amounts in the ads. Algorithms automatically optimizes bids based on real-time data and performance metrics, helping you maximize your lead generation efforts.

On Facebook, for instance, the algorithm analyzes factors such as ad relevance, audience targeting, and historical performance. This data helps determine the optimal bid amount required to reach a wider audience.

To optimize bids for better results more easily, you should consider an automatic bidding method. It takes into account factors like audience behavior, device type, time of day, and ad placement.

Facebook suggests starting with a smaller budget, balancing between cost-effectiveness and lead generation. With automatic bidding, you can use valuable data in the platforms that our video is running to refine the lead’s value.

7. Mobile-friendly ads

Over 75 percent of Americans own a smartphone. Most likely, they will use it for browsing or accessing YouTube, Facebook, and other social media platforms.

Mobile-friendly, vertical video ads provide a seamless user experience by adapting to smaller and larger screens. They should be designed to load quickly, fit within the screen dimensions, and offer easy interaction. Such ads have higher click-through rates (CTR), longer viewing times, and improved conversion rates due to their enhanced user experience on mobile devices. And what does that translate to? A higher return on investment (ROI) and more effective lead generation from your ad campaigns.

7. Call Your Viewers To Action

No autoplay video is complete without a clear call-to-action (CTA). Although people may spend hours on online videos per week, it’s hard to persuade them to watch your entire video.

After captivating your audience with visuals and storytelling, you should include a clear and persuasive CTA to guide them toward the next step.

Whether it’s signing up for a newsletter, buying a product, subscribing to premium content, downloading an ebook, or visiting your website, a strong CTA ensures that viewers take action and become potential leads. It can also be to request a meeting or visit a specific landing page.

You don’t have to wait until the end of the video ad to place a CTA. It can be placed at any part of the video, either early, in the middle, or at the end without being forced. This way, you can hook those who don’t watch the full video on time and enable them to take the desired action before skipping your ad.

Grammarly autoplay video ad, for instance, uses a CTA at the beginning of the video ad, with a caption, “Wait, did you download Grammarly?”

Discover more ways to optimize your Facebook ads

It’s pretty frustrating when marketing materials fail to drive the desired outcome or sell the UPSs of your product.

Do you want to learn how you can level up your lead generation strategy with autoplay video ads? Sign up for our newsletter and join thousands of marketers and business owners receiving valuable tips to scale up their marketing strategies.

Explore our rich library of resources that will help you produce exceptional autoplay video ads and make content that:

  • Calls viewers to action

  • Clearly outlines the problem that your product solves

  • Creates engagement with the target audience.

Let WebFX be your guide and create lead generation-focused video content. Learn how to ignite engagement, captivate your audience, and convert viewers into leads. Sign up today to WebFX and transform your sales pipeline!

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