Part of the power of a video that has gone viral is that it typically gets watched in its entirety, thus receiving a “full view” by the viewer.  Think about how powerful that is:  you have a message that you have potentially spent a huge amount of time (and money) working into a video and they watched ALL of it!  Your message was delivered in its entirety!
 
However, most web video is not viewed in its entirety, and, unfortunately, the odds are that this has happened to you.  All that effort gone to waste.  Zoinks!
 
So, how do viral videos accomplish full views?  There are a number of reasons we will explore in future posts but the first viral video secret I want to share today is this:  viral videos are short!  We’re talking less than two minutes, with the best length being at a minute or under!  Viral video viewers are typically “video-snacking;” they’ll click on something else if they see a long duration (over 1:59) in the video player.

The following video about a Mobile Home Dealer in Alabama has had over 1,900,000 views on YouTube (THE destination for all viral videos).  Note the duration of only 1:20!  We'll talk more about this video in future weeks.

 
Get more full views from your current content using VideoBloom!
 
So now you are sitting there with your 7 minute viral video masterpiece and you are really bummed because you now know that it is way too long!  Don’t worry, your VideoBloom platform account can save the day and here’s how:

1. Check your video’s analytics to discover its average viewing time.  Simply log into your VideoBloom Platform account, click on your video and click on “Anaytics.”  This is a great place to find out how your video is performing.  The hits, views, and completed views are already compared for you and you can see the video’s average viewing time.  If the average viewing time is under 90-100% then the odds are that your video could be too long.

2. Break your video into smaller segments. This will require a little editing on your part but the benefits are well worth the work.  Try and find good chapter or break points in your videos and upload those as separate movies to your VideoBloom account.

3. Create a PLAYLIST. Give each separate movie an attractive name, organize them into a Playlist and publish it!  Breaking down your longer videos into bit-size morsels will lead viewers to actually watch more of your video content, increasing full views and increasing your viral opportunity.

So the viral video secret we encourage you to put into practice this week is to keep your videos under 2 minutes in length.  This will help you to deliver your entire message to your audience and encourage full views of your videos.  Don’t forget to use the great VideoBloom Platform tools at your fingertips to help in your viral video quest!  Come back next week for a viral video secret that will turbo charge your content!

Hans
Senior Editor/Producer