Dive Brief:
- Even though Facebook is putting an emphasis on video, marketers have concerns about performance metrics and a loose distribution pipeline.
- Some recent changes from Facebook include making video more prominent in the news feed and testing changes on how advertisers are charged for video ads.
- Even though Facebook allows marketers to choose to be charged for views rather than impressions, its viewing standards are lower than industry norms.
Dive Insight:
While Facebook has introduced a rash of changes that make video an integral part of the user experience -- from emphasizing video on news feeds to adding a “floating” video feature, and even sharing video ad revenue with video partners -- marketers are still skeptical about fully embracing video ads on the social media platform. Another change Facebook implemented was offering an option for advertisers to pay-per-view instead of impression, but its standard for what constitutes a view are more lax than industry standards.
The viewability standard debate is an ongoing and somewhat murky one. Facebook considers a video viewable as soon as it hits the screen, whereas the current industry standard is if half of the video is in view and has played for two seconds. Facebook is charging advertisers after a video plays for 10 seconds, compared to YouTube and other less-known players, which charges after 30 seconds.
Another issue marketers have with video ads on Facebook is inability to use third-party tracking and measurement. Advertisers are essentially forced to just trust the numbers Facebook provides on ad performance.
