How do you Measure Online Video Advertising ?

According to an eMarketer report, digital video advertising is on the rise and ad budgets are likely to triple by 2016.

Metrics For Measuring Video Advertising

It is difficult to measure the ROI of video advertising and there is a lack of standardized metrics.

According to BrightRoll 2013 Video Advertising Report. a survey conducted with 150 advertising executives;

GRPs/TRPs are considered the form of audience measurement that clients value most in video advertising – a 46 percent increase from last year
36 percent of respondents think behavioral is the most valuable form of targeting
Almost 40 percent of respondents say completed views are the most important success metric – a 42 percent increase from last year’s survey

 Significant Metrics of Measurement 

 Click-through rate
 Actual product sales
 Visits to the brand website
 Brand awareness or recall
 Video completion rate
 Reached target audience
 Social engagement (sharing/likes)
 Time spent watching video
 Number of times video was viewed
 Intent to purchase

Popular Metrics that are provided for Video Advertising are

 Video Impressions
 Video Click Through
 50% Midpoint Plays
 100% Complete Plays
 "Skip" button clicks (for skippable ads)

An infographic from Videology explains metrics that can be used across Content Genres and Categories to understand online video advertising performance.

In addition to looking at completion rates, ad length and ad category, Audience Measurement looking at combined digital advertising is an important metric.

It is important to look at Audience Measurement as it provides greater clarity and reach with the Target Audiences:

 Audience metrics are clear, objective and have the same universal
 definition. For example, percentage reach to men, ages 25-54, means
 the same thing to everyone in the industry and is not subjective like
 brand engagement.

 Audience metrics provide a more accurate measure of video ad 
 effectiveness, in comparison to click-through rate (CTR) or completion rate,
 which are not  truly indicative of ad performance because of accidental 
 clicks and auto starts. Audience metrics provide a powerful foundation to enable  true cross-platform  measurement.

Source: eMarketer, US TV vs. Digital Video Ad Spending, 2010-2016, Dec 2012
Videology, Performance At A Glance
BrightRoll, On-Trial, Online Video Metrics, 2013