Video Ads are coming to Facebook Messenger!
Just when you thought you had finally gotten ahead of digital marketing and could take a little mental vacation, BOOM! Facebook hits you with a new ad feature.
We’ve made it pretty clear how much we love Messenger and if you’ve been keeping up, you know that it’s soon going to be THE platform. So we’re going to do our best to keep you ahead of the game.
Last week, The Social Network confirmed that the same autoplay video ads that you see on News Feed and Instagram are now available on Messenger for all advertisers. The first ads began appearing on Monday, June 25th.
And whether or not the consumer is thrilled about it, these new ads are going to show up in the sponsored section of the apps main feed. Right now, Facebook is reportedly keeping a close eye on this roll out, and how it will affect user experience, reiterating that user experience is their top priority. Facebook has admitted that they’re running out of ad space on the original platform and are looking for other places to place ads. They’ve also admitted that they’re still testing it, and features may change, but for now, this opens even more doors to those working on behalf of clients trying to keep up with new ad units.
Users of Messenger will be able to manage their targeting preferences and hide ads, even report them, but they won’t be able to opt out of seeing them completely. So this puts marketers in a unique position to target and deliver clever, relevant content that engages people who go to messenger to simply talk to family and friends.
Keep in mind that, right now, Facebook’s top priority is delivering this feature to only the most active users on Messenger, and they’ll be continuing to roll this out thoughtfully and slowly, but with all this uncertainty surrounding video ads in Messenger, we know two things for sure. One, people would rather watch video than see static ads, and two, video ads convert.
With higher click through rates and the ability to keep users on a page for longer, video ads in Messenger will change the game for marketers and users alike. And let’s not forget that not too long ago, Messenger enabled things like Rideshare apps and restaurant reservations to be booked right in the platform. So, just imagine what video ads will be capable of a year from now. To stay relevant and start converting on Messenger, get in touch with Fetch & Funnel today on where other than Messenger.
