When It Comes To Paid Ads, Are Image or Video Ads Better?

There are many components that make up a successful Digital Marketing campaign. In order to generate results, user experience, audience targeting, messaging, and other elements must all come together to create a cohesive campaign.

While each piece of your campaign plays an important role in driving outcomes, your ad creative serves as a vital first impression on a potential customer. The right ad creative will capture your customers’ attention, educate them about your company, and inspire them to take action. So which is better, images or video?

Video content has become increasingly popular with digital consumers, but does that mean a video ad will generate more results than a static image ad? Here are some tips for choosing the right creative strategy for your next ad campaign.

Tip 1 | Consider Your Goal

Rather than diving into creating a new campaign with a preconceived notion of how your ad creative is going to look, it’s important to start by setting your goals and then planning your ad creative accordingly. Once you know what you want to accomplish through your campaign, you can develop a plan for your content and choose which format will be most effective at spreading your message.

While there are a variety of factors that impact an ad’s performance, different types of creative are generally suited for different types of advertising goals. If your primary goal is to drive traffic to your site at the lowest cost per click, you may find that static images perform better for you. However, if you are trying to engage with and inform your audience, a video ad will probably be much more effective.

Tip 2 | Focus On Quality

The demand for video content is increasing every day, so it can be tempting to jump on the trend and hastily start creating video ad campaigns. However, it’s not enough just to create video – the content needs to be both strategic and of high quality. Chances are a high-quality image that is optimized for your campaign will perform better than a poorly-planned video.

So how do you produce quality video content? For starters, it requires more than just using the latest equipment. In fact, while you don’t need to have expensive equipment to create an effective video, you do need to have a compelling message that is relevant and appealing to your target audience.

If you don’t have the resources to create high-quality video content, it doesn’t mean you’re totally out of options. You may want to consider partnering with a professional videographer who can create video content that is aligned with your goals, appealing to your audience, and optimized for each platform where it will be shared.

Tip 3 | Mix Things Up

In some cases you may not need to choose between image or video content, and instead find the right combination of both. If you’re trying to connect with people who have never heard of your business, or if your customers take some time before making a purchase decision, you may want to plan a series of ads that are designed to guide them along the path toward making a purchase.

It can take time to build brand recognition and persuade users to take action. Fortunately, social media platforms such as Facebook make it easy to target users who have previously engaged with your video content. You can start by sharing a video that serves as a highly-effective icebreaker, introducing prospects to your brand and sharing key messages. For example, if you want to reach new prospects who have never heard of your business, you might launch a video ad campaign that showcases what makes your company unique. From there, you can then reconnect with past video viewers using an image ad that’s designed to drive action.

Finding the perfect balance with your campaign content will require a bit of experimenting. As you plan out your campaign strategy and creative, you’ll want to plan ahead for some time to test new creative, measure outcomes, and make adjustments as needed to achieve the best possible result.

By taking the time to develop a focused digital advertising strategy and being willing to experiment with different creative formats, you can discover what works best for your business. If you need help creating a digital marketing strategy for your business, we can help! Contact our team today for your free Digital Marketing Plan.