When it comes to making YouTube videos too long, I'm the prime culprit. I'm not at all fastidious with the material. I want everything to be compacted into the video, which isn't necessarily a good effect. Repeatedly I'm picked up on the length of my upload and the unnecessary content I'll include. My resistance to delete anything probably stems from an obstinate and uncompromising personality. That and I'm too egocentric to believe anything I've filmed isn't worth using.
What I need to learn is that my content is more likely to be watched in its entirety if it's a bite-sized and palpable video. I was looking at some statistics, the average attention span in 2012 was just 8 seconds. So in order for a video to gain views, it must be regularly punctuated with something that will grab the viewers attention and regain their interest. Just to point out that the average attention span of a goldfish is apparently 9 seconds, so next time someone tells you that you have the attention span of a goldfish, the correct answer is "thank you". One I can certainly believe is the statistic that office workers on average check their email 30 times an hour. But here's the important one if you're a regular uploader, the average length watched of an internet view was just 2.7 minutes. So if you're producing 30 minute long programmes, the chances are no-one is watching the whole this. Unless it's incredibly gripping, and even then - 30 minutes? Snore! I could be doing more productive things with my time, like checking my emails.
So the basic message is to keep your content short, interesting and relevant. If you find you need to digress or include supplementary material then it might be worth considering multiple videos instead of a longer run time - it means your content will be more finely targeted, more relevant to the viewer watching and therefore longer engagement.
The gist of the video is to effectively respect the viewers time, but it provides some techniques in maintaining your viewers attention as well. Initially you should grab their attention with an introduction. If you're introduction is a dull as a dreary Wednesday, then it doesn't bode well for the rest of the video. Even if the rest of the video is golden, if your opening is not engaging then you'll have instantly lost some valuable viewership.
It takes time to become a skills editor and develop an understanding of what's relevant content and what can be brutally left on the cutting room floor. If at all possible, run it by some test audiences to ensure they continue to watch.
What I need to learn is that my content is more likely to be watched in its entirety if it's a bite-sized and palpable video. I was looking at some statistics, the average attention span in 2012 was just 8 seconds. So in order for a video to gain views, it must be regularly punctuated with something that will grab the viewers attention and regain their interest. Just to point out that the average attention span of a goldfish is apparently 9 seconds, so next time someone tells you that you have the attention span of a goldfish, the correct answer is "thank you". One I can certainly believe is the statistic that office workers on average check their email 30 times an hour. But here's the important one if you're a regular uploader, the average length watched of an internet view was just 2.7 minutes. So if you're producing 30 minute long programmes, the chances are no-one is watching the whole this. Unless it's incredibly gripping, and even then - 30 minutes? Snore! I could be doing more productive things with my time, like checking my emails.
So the basic message is to keep your content short, interesting and relevant. If you find you need to digress or include supplementary material then it might be worth considering multiple videos instead of a longer run time - it means your content will be more finely targeted, more relevant to the viewer watching and therefore longer engagement.
The gist of the video is to effectively respect the viewers time, but it provides some techniques in maintaining your viewers attention as well. Initially you should grab their attention with an introduction. If you're introduction is a dull as a dreary Wednesday, then it doesn't bode well for the rest of the video. Even if the rest of the video is golden, if your opening is not engaging then you'll have instantly lost some valuable viewership.
It takes time to become a skills editor and develop an understanding of what's relevant content and what can be brutally left on the cutting room floor. If at all possible, run it by some test audiences to ensure they continue to watch.
About the Author:
Have a watch of Masters in Public Policy, and Masters in Politics for two great examples of online video durations done right.
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