Publishers, resistance is useless — Facebook once again is dangling temptation before your eyes. The first time it was Instant Articles (IA), remember? This handy feature gives publishers the power to hand-pick articles users see via Facebook mobile app. Viewers get the article, and they get it in a format resembling the website version. A nearly perfect clone.
‘Aha, let’s keep a good thing going.’ reasoned Facebook. So now they’ve given Instant Articles a video boost. This boost enables publishers to display video ads with their articles. Right now, the videos can be had in two formats: click-to-play and animated. But that’s only the tip of the iceberg, brand marketers. In the very near future, publishers will have the option of incorporating auto-play videos with their lineup.
The possibilities for video exposure are mind-boggling. Currently, Facebook boast almost 1 million regular mobile users — many of whom already enjoy the lightning-quick display speeds of Instant Articles. According to Facebook, this feature pulls in content 10 times faster than do the originating sites. With video ads clocking in at the same pace, those on board will devour news, information, and other content in record time. Who could resist?
Not to be stranded at the starting gate, Google recently got into the high-speed content act. As with Instant Articles, Google’s Accelerated Mobile Pages shifts mobile content delivery into high gear. A big differentiator between the two is versatility – Instant Articles limits itself to the Facebook arena, while Accelerated Mobile Pages operates over a broad spectrum of platforms.
If you have any questions or comments about video ads for Instant Articles, or about any other brand-related topic, feel free to send them our way.