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Outstream videos: Why are they so popular and how do they differ from native ads?

By Rashmi Sharma on September 21, 2022

Video ads are everywhere. Their abundance is hardly surprising, considering that 96% of marketers view video ads as an important part of their overall strategy. The fact is, videos work. According to Idea Rocket, posting video to social media increases views by 48%.

This article will look at one of the most effective video ad units in the industry: outstream video. Here are a few guidelines to help guide the discussion:

What are outstream videos and why are they so popular?

Outstream video ads are typically placed within a publisher's inventory, frequently between paragraphs of text. Outstream ads are so named because the video lives independently of the publisher's normal video content – if they have any at all. Not all publishers offer video content but with outstream videos, that's not a problem. Publishers can incorporate outstream right into their existing written content.

Based on placement, there are three types of outstream videos:

  • In article
  • In banner
  • In feed

People will typically only see an in-feed or in-line ad when they reach a specified point in the text. The video will begin to auto-play and will pause if the user is not interested and scrolls through. If the user is intrigued, he or she can interact by tapping on the ad to watch it and expand to a video player.

Outstream ads are completely skippable and play silently. They are, nonetheless, still more intriguing and effective than banners.

The Popularity Factor

Outstream videos are steadily gaining popularity since they attempt to provide a less disruptive experience for the viewer. Integration, not interruption, is the name of the game. Because these advertisements are so well-integrated, they do not cause ad blindness, ad blocking or general frustration. If users are not interested, they can simply scroll past.

What are the differences between native ads and outstream videos?

The primary distinction between native video ads and outstream video ads is that the former offers additional wrapper information. They include a logo, a title, a description and a CTA. Native advertisements also blend in and resemble the environment to the point that they appear organically placed and in tune with the rest of the content. This may or may not be true for outstream advertisements, where blending does not always occur. 

If a publisher has a large video library and wants to launch an advertisement-on-demand (AVOD) service, profiting through native ads is its best choice. Expect greater Cost per Mille (CPM), incredible completion rates, and a mimic of the TV experience in this format.

If, as a publisher, you wish to increase your ad revenue without using video content or a website, outstream ads will provide you with an uninterrupted user experience and more interesting advertisements. These advertisements provide a surprising degree of adaptability and precision in targeting.

In fact, it is always advisable for publishers to make use of both of these formats in order to maximise engagement and revenue growth while getting the most out of their advertising inventory.

Pros and Cons

What pros and cons you can expect as a publisher if you choose native or outstream ads or both:

Pros:

  • They are compatible with any device, including computers and mobile phones.
    Managing them is easy. Marketers may easily pick a campaign, target audience, content, and logo.
  • These ads aren't distracting. People are more likely to watch these adverts to the end. This increases engagement and conversions.
  • Brand recognition increases. The ads receive more attention than other formats.
  • These are engaging ads that are relevant to the users' needs and preferences.
    Consumer costs are based on Viewable Cost Per Mille (VCPM). This provides a significantly higher value.
  • Outstream videos pause when the user scrolls through, so every video completion indicates that the user has completely watched the video.
  • Unlike the brief 30-second ads that were previously employed, these ads allow marketers to create long-form videos. However, videos that are less than three minutes tend to perform better than longer ones. 

Cons:

  • There could be some technical issues. For example, if customers try to watch it on a slow or inconsistent network connection, they will have trouble loading the video, and the user experience may not be as fluid as it was supposed to be. These are situations that neither marketers nor publishers can predict or control.
  • Some parts of the released video may become unnecessary or irrelevant over time and need to be edited or cropped. This can be difficult at times because it is not as simple as just modifying and deleting sections of a text.

In a nutshell

Native and outstream videos both provide effective means of reaching the intended audience and significantly increasing revenue.

If a video ad is built-in and placed properly in a digital platform, it will attract a customer's eye, enhance engagement and lead him or her to play the full video, which boosts click-through rates (CTR). Video marketing's growth rate is high and stable. It enhances the market with solid ads. Publishers choose native ads or outstream videos based on their marketing goals.

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