How Long Should a Corporate Video Be? Best Practices for Keeping Viewers Engaged
- Angela Wolf Video
- Jul 31
- 3 min read
When planning video content for your small business, it's important to start by considering the project's length and pacing. A myriad of factors come into play, so you'll need to know what to look out for. Keep reading for our tips on how to determine the ideal video length for your marketing videos.
1) What is the Purpose of the Video?
Video is incredibly versatile and can be used in many ways to cover all types of content.
It's crucial, however, that each of your videos only focuses on one goal. Are you trying to make sales? Recruiting new talent? Simply trying to stay top of mind? Determine the objective first, then build your corporate video from there. Keep in mind that varying content goals will change the ideal video length. For instance, information-heavy videos need to be longer. Things like training modules, continuing education workshops, and how-to videos can be up to an hour long (bear in mind, they're best to present in 5-10 minute segments that each cover a single topic). On the other hand, any marketing video that is targeted towards the general public needs to be short-form. About videos should hit the sweet spot of being short enough for people to watch through to the end, but long enough to tell your company's story (we suggest 2-3 minutes). Social media videos need to be even shorter. Viewers find your videos by scrolling. If they're not engaged within the first few seconds, they'll keep scrolling onto the next post. So not only do you need a captivating hook, but the full video should be no more than 15-60 seconds. Regardless of the objective of your video, we highly recommend including a corresponding call to action to boost engagement. To promote brand awareness, tell viewers to "like, share, follow/subscribe for more!" For sales, include a link to your online store or inquiry form.
2) Where Will the Video be Shared?
Different platforms often have different video guidelines and tech specs. YouTube can host videos up to 10 hours long, while TikTok caps videos at 10 minutes. Instagram has an even shorter cut-off still, at just 3 minutes. As you plan your video, keep the platform's guidelines in mind to ensure you stay within the uploading, hosting, and sharing parameters. In addition to the technical stuff, different platforms carry different sets of expectations for users. Most Instagram and TikTok check their apps just to kill time while waiting for something else (like waiting in line for a coffee). As mentioned above, these need to be short-form videos that catch a viewer's attention within seconds. On the other hand, YouTube is a video platform that is used much like Hulu or Netflix--people visit the site to watch specific video content. Maybe the user needs a tutorial or walkthrough, wants commentary or talk shows, or is doing a deep-dive on a topic of interest. Whatever the reason, they're typically there for long-form content. YouTube even has an app to stream on your TV, so viewers can get settled in to watch. Regardless of where you share your videos, be sure to use a hook that works best with that specific platform. Click here to check out our blog post on the best social media video hooks..
3) When in Doubt: Shorter is Better
Typically, the shorter the video, the easier to digest and more appealing to click on or stop scrolling for. You could chalk it up entirely to short attention spans and social media "brain rot," but let's give ourselves some more credit. In reality, the average person just isn't dedicating mass amounts of their time to watching branded video content--and you can't expect them to. Respect your audience's time by giving them the information they need in a quick, entertaining way. Though it may not seem like much, 30 seconds is almost never too short for a video. No matter the video length, your first shot is the most important! That’s the shot viewers use to determine if they're going to watch or move on. We recommend jumping in right away; skip establishing shots, skip logos, skip titles. Jump right into the most visually engaging shot you have and start your story from there.
Angela Wolf Video offers corporate video production services near Philadelphia, PA. Do you have a specific video question? Schedule a free video analysis call at bit.ly/callawv
