We’ve all encountered them: Online videos that are so annoying that you can’t click away fast enough. Sometimes the cause is the blast of horrible music that shocks you from the very beginning. Sometimes it’s a boring speaker that keeps throwing out words like “synergy.” Sometimes, it’s just not the video you thought it would be.
Online video marketing is one of the fastest growing marketing tactics, and you can gain major SEO value and a loyal audience through well-produced videos that retain viewers. So it’s important to avoid creating annoying videos that drive viewers away — and that means avoiding these ten common mistakes.
They are Pointless
Want to lose your audience in no time? Make a video just for the sake of making a video. To attract and keep an audience, your videos needs to entertain, inform or inspire your audience. Studies show that most people decide within 15 seconds whether they will watch a whole video, so take care to avoid pointless clutter.
They Aren’t Geared to Your Audience
The first step to video success is determining your audience. You must understand who your audience is and what it wants, or risk alienating them from the start. For example, hobbyists want to see videos demonstrating the steps to completing a project, while entrepreneurs want dynamic personalities and actionable ideas. If you’re making a video for an event like the ConnectCast.tv promotional video contest, understand what appeals to the voters. You’ll get more views, more likes and more results if you target the right audience.
They Include Bad Music
What constitutes “bad” music is subjective, but consider your audience when choosing music for your video. Avoid music that detracts from your message: If viewers are paying more attention to the tune playing in the background than your message, then you haven’t chosen the right music.
They Are Filled With Jargon
Jargon is a way that people fill space when they cannot think of anything else to say, or when they want to sound like they know what they are talking about. Unfortunately, many of the so-called buzzwords are rather meaningless, and detract from your message. If your video is peppered with overused clichés that add nothing to your audience’s understanding, they will click away to find someone who actually has something new to add to the conversation.
They Are Poor Quality
If viewers can’t hear what you’re saying or the video quality stinks, they aren’t going to stick around. Invest in the best equipment you can get, and if necessary, do multiple takes to get the best possible quality.
There Is Too Much Going On at Once
How much is happening on the screen during your videos? A constant barrage of annotations — the text boxes that you can place over your video with links, additional information or hotspots — will only drive viewers away. A few well-placed annotations can help improve engagement, but too many will detract from your message and confuse viewers.
They Are Insensitive or Offensive
Everyone wants to push the envelope, since controversy gets attention. Going too far, though, will drive viewers away — possibly permanently. An unpopular or controversial opinion is okay — in fact, it might get you more attention—– but express it without being offensive or insensitive. Avoid profanity or other language that could send viewers running in the other direction.
They Try Too Hard To Be “Viral”
It happens every time: A video of a sneezing kitten or laughing baby goes viral, and suddenly, everyone is posting videos of sneezing kittens and laughing babies. There are plenty of videos that contain ridiculous stunts, staged pratfalls and scripted conversations that are blatant attempts at creating a viral video — and no one likes them. Don’t jump on every trend or set out to go viral, because few videos ever really hit the big time. Instead, create an authentic, entertaining, informative video that speaks to your audience, and put some effort toward promotion.
They Have Too Many Ads
Keeping advertisements from taking over your videos is often a matter of choosing the right hosting platform. Choose a platform that keeps advertising to a minimum to avoid inundating your audience with unwanted ads or distracting from your message.
They Are Too Long
The ideal length for online videos varies — you might be able to explain an idea or best practice in a few minutes, or it could take up to 20 minutes to demonstrate a how-to. To keep your viewers’ attention, though, you need to stay on point and cut out the fluff, and make your video as short as possible while still covering your topic completely.
Producing quality online videos requires time and effort. If you focus on sharing your message as effectively as possible, and creating a quality product, you’ll avoid the dreaded label of “annoying.”
