Hi, Lauren Kaye, here, with this week’s Content & Coffee with Brafton. We all know the internet has made people’s attention spans abysmal. Some proof – 47 percent of people expect sites to load in two seconds or less. If they take just a second longer, 40 percent will leave and go somewhere else. Click play to watch the full video below and learn why this is crucial for effective video marketing, or read the text version below. 

So why am I talking about this? Because a recent Wistia study says only 80 percent of the people who start watching a 30-second clip will finish it. Have I lost 20 percent of you yet? And of those who haven’t navigated away, I might have simply lost your attention. Even if I had your full attention at the start of this video – say you were excited for some industry stats or news about video marketing – you might only be half as engaged by now.

And it gets even worse from there. On average, 75 percent of viewers make it through a 60-second clip, and it dips below 70 percent for anything that runs longer than a minute. Which means that right about … now, 30 percent of you will give up on me.

Does this mean you can’t produce effective videos that are longer than a minute? Does it mean you have to underestimate your audience? Maybe. But not always. Take low attention spans as a challenge to produce video content that’s entertaining, interesting and informative. And it’s not just a challenge for consumer-facing companies.

75 percent of viewers make it through a 60-second clip, and it dips below 70 percent for anything that runs longer than a minute.

I know what you’re thinking – videos are only effective for B2Cs. But that’s not the case. In a past video, we talked about how B2B tech buyers are especially interested in videos and are more likely to buy after watching them.

Still here? You’ve made it into the top tier of viewer engagement because only 60 percent of people make it here. I don’t have much time to close because, you know, you might give up by then.

So, thanks for sticking around! Catch you next week, and happy content marketing!

Lauren Kaye is a Marketing Editor at Brafton Inc. She studied creative and technical writing at Virginia Tech before pursuing the digital frontier and finding content marketing was the best place to put her passions to work. Lauren also writes creative short fiction, hikes in New England and appreciates a good book recommendation.