The future of Facebook advertising
Phil Twigg of Dice London assesses where real-money gaming marketing fits into Facebook’s new video age
According to Facebook, eight billion videos are now viewed on its platform every day. This is double the number of views it was receiving in April and is even more impressive when you consider that YouTube only has around one billion video views daily.
This is an amazing stat but there are a few caveats. First, Facebook counts a view as anyone whoâs watched for more than three seconds. Facebook also prioritises video in news feeds as well as auto-playing them, so that three seconds could easily be someone scrolling over the video in order to move down their newsfeed rather than actually watching.
YouTube itself has tried to move away from the number of views and is instead focusing on the number of minutes or hours spent watching videos on its network. The metrics for YouTube are a lot more deï¬ned because to watch a YouTube video you have to engage/click, whereas with Facebook thereâs no way of determining whether the view was active or passive. The problem Facebook has is that with its newsfeed-style format, its video content is better suited to short-form videos.
Our attention spans are incredibly short now. Indeed a recent study by Microsoft suggests a typical attention span is currently around eight seconds, which is backed up by the top 20 videos on Facebook averaging around one minute in length. Companies have to get a bit more savvy with the videos they produce. Detailed walk-throughs or virtual tours may not be the best option for Facebook.
While the stats suggest short-form videos can work well for Facebook marketers, itâs worth noting that a number of innovative brands, including Johnnie Walker and Canada Goose, have gone against the grain by creating long-form ads which have given them the platform to tell a story. Through this they are far more likely to emotionally connect with their audiences.
Compare the market
YouTube allows you to target users based on what theyâre searching for and their interests. This is great if you want to target those looking for a particular subject or category. However, the beauty of Facebook is that it allows for a huge amount of detail with its targeting which can mean better conversion rates. You could target the fans of other operators or you could target based on demographics such as age and gender or even education or relationship status.
A recent study by Reebok and Fixability, which aimed to compare YouTube and Facebook, found that YouTube had a higher view rate (23.6% of people who scrolled past the video viewed it versus Facebook’s 5.4%), video completion rate (20.4% versus Facebook’s 4.5%) and lower CPV. Facebook had a higher engagement but itâs worth noting that its engagement functionality (Likes, Shares, etc) is very simple and more widely used than YouTubeâs.
By way of comparison, photo-sharing service Instagram’s commercial offering is very much on the increase with banner advertising available as well as app installs and video views. Instagram has seen phenomenal growth over the last few years and has become a truly worldwide channel with 75% of its 400 million active users outside the US. It only takes 13 milliseconds to identify an image â 60,000 times faster than with words â which explains Instagram’s appeal.
Social media channels such as Instagram can be incredibly powerful brand tools, particularly when measuring things like brand recall. Paddy Power uses it to good eï¬ect to post comical images and/or memes that have strong viral potential. This is a useful brand-building tool rather than a direct acquisition driver.
Facebook itself is trying to make advertising on its platforms a great deal more seamless and so many of the targeting capabilities that you have access to on Facebook are becoming available on Instagram. The channel now also supports up to 30 seconds of video on its platform. With Facebookâs takeover of the traditional ad-free channel WhatsApp, there are rumblings that brands could soon be able to target users in order to bring in more revenue rather than its current model of just being a subscription service. This potentially could result in brands being able to message users via WhatsApp and so this would open up huge potential to the gaming industry.
Facebook and RMG
Facebookâs current stance is that ads for real-money gaming sites and apps are only allowed from approved advertisers through a direct sales partnership. This (it says) is to maintain the quality and compliance of real-money gaming-related advertising on Facebook.
Traditionally, partnerships between Facebook and real-money gaming operators havenât always worked out. In 2012 Gamesys launched its Bingo & Slots Friendzy real-money gaming app on Facebook. It was seen at the time as the start of a real-money gaming revolution on social media. This was followed by 888 Holdings and more recently Paddy Power launching their apps. However, all have now been pulled.
Social casino and slot games are hugely popular on Facebook and yet when real-money versions are introduced they seem to fall ï¬at. Of course, these operators donât want to give out too much information as to why their products have failed but the cause appears to be focused on there being a deï¬nite split between social gamers and real-money gamers, with very little crossover potential.
What many people seem to forget with social media channels such as Facebook and Instagram is that they shouldnât be viewed solely as acquisition tools. Yes, they can drive traffic and sign-ups to your site but thatâs not why there were created. People generally donât go on Facebook to shop in the same way and they donât go on there to gamble. Therefore, itâs important that operators take this into account when setting targets for their social media advertising campaigns.
These channels should be used to educate existing and potential customers about what your brand offers as well as giving your brand an identity, rather than a means to drive traffic to your site or pull in a certain number of registrations or depositors. Furthermore, with new features such as Premium Video Ads and Immersive Canvas in the pipeline, itâs important that RMG operators donât just stick to traditional forms of advertising such as displaying a promo code in a banner. There needs to be more of an effort to focus on narrative â something that Facebook is keen to get behind.
One current feature that real-money operators should be utilising more is Premium Video Ads. These are 15-second videos that start playing without sound but then if clicked on will expand to full screen with sound. Create something compelling that works without sound and then people will click for more. But with some brands going the other way and creating 15-minute short ï¬lms, it proves that it doesnât matter how long the ad is, providing itâs compelling enough, people will engage.
Seeing the future
Facebook recently rolled out 360â° videos, which give advertisers the chance to create virtual reality-like videos. Although not available as an ad format yet it’s only a matter of time before marketers are given license to create some compelling ads.
The other big launch coming in 2016 is Immersive Canvas-style ads which are currently being showcased by a few select brands including Mr Porter and Michael Kors. This enables brands to create full-screen interactive experiences within Facebook. While at ï¬rst glance appearing to be just a regular ad, once activated they open the door to photos, videos, text, narrative and various other content.
By developing numerous different new and innovative ad formats, Facebook is moving away from its competitors by oï¬ering a greater ï¬exibility with its targeting options. This is where it excels in comparison to ad solutions such as Googleâs Display Network which, with its targeting and optimisation limitations, puts off many an advertiser.
The future of Facebook advertising is focused on giving advertisers the ability to create truly engaging ads but for the real-money gaming industry this notion of 360 degrees needs to be applied not only to the ads themselves but also to the whole user experience. You could spend a huge amount creating compelling advertising, but render this pointless if the same level of engagement is not applied to every aspect of your brand. Recent advancements will force some brands to move forward or be forgotten entirely.