6 seconds to save the world: Video Marketing Examples #83

^{Obligatory disclaimer: This isn't an ad or sponsored content. We simply wanted to share this analysis with you as a great, recent example of video marketing.}

We’re fascinated by the 6-second ad.

It’s objectively such a short amount of time - 6 seconds! It’s probably about the same amount of time that’s passed since you opened this email.

But when you actually squeeze every drop out of each of those 6 seconds, it’s legit amazing how much you can say and achieve.

Take this ad from McDonald’s for example.

Keen to underline their environmental achievements - in line with their ‘Change a Little, Change a Lot’ slogan - they demonstrate one single message in 6 seconds: how they’ve recycled old plastic Happy Meal Toys into children’s playgrounds.

The reason short form ads are so good is because they challenge you to carefully separate what really needs to be said, from what would be nice to say.

In a world where audience attention spans are at an all-time low, this is an invaluable exercise. You can try to get across ten different points, but what’s the point if your audience only remembers one of them? With 6 seconds the goal is clear: one message, as impactful as possible.

It’s simple: we’d argue that saying something as quickly and as briefly as you possibly can has become arguably THE most important marketing skill. 

We often find working with clients on short-form video content, that the pressure of condensing a message into a fixed period - whether that’s 6 seconds, up to a minute or two - is a truly priceless exercise in working out what the distilled ‘essence’ of their product really is, and what’s the best way to get their audience excited.

Feeling inspired?

We reckon mixing things up with your video marketing is the way to go.

6 second ads are definitely one string to your bow. Crafting a punchy message in that tiny time period is a great way to plant an initial seed in your viewer’s head.

You can then mix that up - a couple of different 6 second options, covering different parts of your product or, a la McDonalds, some of your social/environmental achievements.

Each of these is brief enough to cause minimal disruption to your viewer, but each one plants another seed. They’re then ready for your longer-form marketing - explainer videos, longer, skippable ads, product/software demos, and more.

Video marketing can be a long-game, with lots of steps along the way. Mixing up your messaging is a surefire key to success.

Keen to talk further about how to do this? Click the button below 👇