The Business Case for Online Video Has Been Officially Accepted

Chris Crum over at WebProNews reports on a TurnHere research survey that analyzes “current and future trends in online video.” Amongst the many findings, one figure stuck out to me: “83.5% of respondents are already using online video in their marketing efforts in one form or another.”

That figure was particularly surprising to me (although only because I remember what seems like not that long ago I was evangelizing the business usages of online video to a largely un-receptive mainstream crowd).

In fact, I remember writing back in 2006 on my personal blog (and a mailing list for my consulting clients I maintained) as well as repeatedly throughout 2007 at Mashable on the topic of online video in business uses. 

I would often write long flowery prose supported by study after study filled with hard facts, and be greeted in the comments with jeers (or even more likely, crickets).

Despite the fact that studies showed (and continue to show) that response to online video ads are often more likely to elicit a response by an astronomical magnitude as compared to other forms of traditional online advertising, the general public was generally not moved.

One study I liked to quote often throughout 2006-7 were figures from the Online Publishers Association regarding the effect of online video ads on viewer behavior.

The study found that online video advertising leads to highly measurable results. Of the 80% of viewers that have watched a video ad online, 52% have taken some sort of action. As to that engagement factor that rich media proponents are always wailing on about? Visitors to media sites such as magazine, newspaper, cable, and broadcast all demonstrated they were more inclined to take action upon viewing a video ad than visitors to portals and user generated content sites.

Of course at this point in our stage of maturity in online video ads, that number may have dropped some due to certain varieties of video ad blindness.

It’s nice, once in a while, to see what was viewed as lunatic ranting validated by the marketplace. What was once bleeding edge advice is now considered conventional wisdom.