The results of a study was released today that shows that user-generated videos are just as effective for sales as professionally-produced videos. If that is the case, then why do we need to hire a professional to produce a video?
comScore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, and EXPO Communications, Inc., a leading consumer-generated video platform, today announced the results of a study on the marketing potential of user-generated video content.
The results indicate that the highest performing user-generated product reviews contained many of the sales effective elements seen in professionally-produced television commercials. Furthermore, the rates of presence of many of these elements were greater than those typically seen in the rival digital format of banner and rectangle display ads. Videos were scored using comScore ARS’s content assessment methodology, ARS Zipline, which is used in the marketing industry as a means of quantifying the potential of advertising creative to be recalled and to persuade consumers.
User-Generated Video Reviews Exhibit Sales Effective Content
In the research, a sample of twenty-five video product reviews across various categories (including electronics and consumer packaged goods) was selected and evaluated according to their inclusion of content known to be key drivers of persuasiveness and memorability. The product reviews were drawn from the EXPO online product review database in a manner similar to that used by advertisers when searching the database for marketing content. The TV and digital ads were selected from the ARS database, which includes ads that were pre-screened by clients and then submitted for qualification via copy-testing.
To further quantify the results, the videos were scored on a scale of 1-100 based on comScore ARS’s validated elements of video persuasiveness and memorability, such as the presence of rational, emotional and structural attributes. The distribution of scores for the 25 select cases demonstrated that there is potentially much marketing value to be mined from user-generated video content. Among the highest performing videos were reviews for Clairol, Gain, Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, LG Electronics and Apple. (See example videos here: http://corp.expotv.com/comscore-ars-ugc-video-study)
User-Generated Video Reviews Complement Television and Display Advertising
The study also revealed that the user-generated videos displayed their greatest strengths in areas different from other forms of media. When conveying their experiences, the product reviewers were naturally more apt to focus on the product and its attributes. This resulted in a strong branding presence and communication of such elements as product convenience and quality, which are key rational elements in increasing an ad’s persuasiveness to a prospective buyer.