Lots of experts claim your business videos shouldn’t be any longer than 2 minutes. Is it true? What I’m about to share with you may surprise you.

So, why do all the experts claim your video shouldn’t be any longer than 2 minutes? Well, the truth? Our attention spans as human beings has gotten really short. So much vias for our attention it’s easy to get distracted. We want information short and concise. People love watching videos. And videos are no exception. So, the experts have it partially right. Yet, there’s something important they’re failing to share with you. The real truth is in the analytics, meaning people’s watch time. Analytics tell us a whole lot about video watching behavior. When you watch a video on Youtube, analytics track how long you watch and gather behavior data. And here’s what’s been learned.

1. Videos should only be as long as they need to be, no longer than that. What does that mean? Cut the fat and get to the chase. Let people know what they need to with your message or story and wrap it up. Any longer than that and your audience jumps to something else. If you have a process you’re trying to show in a video you can’t shorten that process, but you can be concise in your presentation, telling them the things they need to know like what it is, how it will help them and how to get it.
2. People actually watch longer videos all the time. The more they’re engaged or interested in the topic you’re teaching or sharing, the longer they’ll watch. In a buyer’s journey or sales process, prospects watching longer videos means they’re further down the sales process and more qualified.
3. Depending on where people are in your buyers journey should most often times determine the length of video you want to make and present to them. Shorter videos should be at the beginning of the buyers journey or your sales funnel. Here you introduce and educate them with shorter videos. This helps them decide if they want more information.  Longer videos are better positioned for those with more interest who want more details about your offering.

   To sum it up. While certain experts claim videos shouldn’t be any longer than 2 minutes, the real data, the best marketing analytics say something different. Keep your videos concise, not any longer than the need to be. People will watch longer videos if they’re interested in what you’re sharing. Use the video length strategically in your sales and marketing process.