There can be many products on Amazon but it doesn’t mean that your product can’t stand out and make an impression. Videos can be a way of driving up e-commerce product sales. The impact this could have on your brand is huge as customers find videos helpful in making buying decisions. In a competitive market, including a product video on your listing can give you an advantage.
Why sellers should use videos in Amazon listing?
Videos allow you to develop a relationship with a potential consumer. One of the most effective strategies to enhance your Amazon listing is to include a product video. Good videos can help sellers highlight product features and show their uses, these videos dig deeper into what a product can do. Shoppers can receive a large amount of information quickly while also informing these videos allow you to concentrate on product features without being distracted, demonstrating to the consumer that they are getting exactly what they desire.
Who is eligible to include video in their Amazon listings?
The Enhanced Brand Content known as EBC, allows sellers to add a video to Amazon listings. Video for sellers is available through A+ Content within seller central. In order to use video, you must have an active Amazon Seller account and be a Professional seller registered with Amazon’s Brand Registry.
How do sellers add a product video to Amazon listing?
Seller video options depend on the Amazon selling program and if they are brand registered they upload it in Seller Central and it is also available to vendors through Vendor Central.
How to create videos or hire professionals?
Choosing this option ultimately depends on the seller’s budget considering time constraints and expertise. A seller should be involved to maintain the authentic nature of the brand ensure the greatest possible quality of the video.
What to consider when planning for video pre-production?
- Tailor to your brand
- Using high-quality images
- Focusing on features and benefits
- Keeping it short
Different types of Amazon Product video
- Products highlight video
- Customer experience video
- Explainer video
- Brand story video
- Comparison video
Video script
Considering the objectives established during pre-production, and then select the format that best aids in communicating the correct information to the target customers. The ideal script should be able to get the attention with every word and image count. A seller should be able to introduce, the benefits while keeping them engaging and in sync with images. Hiring a professional scriptwriter or a copywriter to help simplify messages and convey them in a visually and narratively captivating manner. A video without narration will need the story to be told through images, captions, and graphics.
Technical requirements for product video
When it comes to the technical parts of product videos, Amazon has extremely stringent guidelines.
The acceptable file formats are 3GP, AAC, AVI, FLV, MOV, MP4, and MPEG-2. Avoiding Apple ProRes file format. Thumbnail images should be in a JPEG or PNG file format.
Amazon video tips for sellers
First things first, you’ll want to make sure you have a good understanding of Amazon’s Video Content Policy and Creative Acceptance Policies. They’ve outlined rules around eligibility, as well as what your videos can and cannot contain.
Here are a few notes from Amazon’s policy to keep in mind:
- Videos should not contain reviews or quotes of any sort
- Videos should not contain “stars”
- No distracting or fast paced imagery
- No letterboxing – everything must be full frame
Tip 2: Use high quality imagery
You want to represent your products in the best way possible. So use high quality images in your video. The ideal resolution is 1920 x 1080px so choose high-resolution photos and video clips.
Tip 3: Focus on features and benefits
On Amazon, your potential customers are already looking to buy a specific product. Your job is to convince them that you are the best seller to buy from. So focus on what distinguishes you from the pack. What are the unique features and benefits of your product? Include them in your video.
Tip 4: Tailor to your brand
While your product should be the main focus of your video, you can tailor it to your brand by using your brand colors, a font that matches your brand style, and including your logo. Learn more about customizing your video in our guide to getting started with Animoto.
Tip 5: Keep it short
Amazon recommends that videos be no longer than 30 seconds. In fact, 15 to 30 seconds in the sweet spot.
Tip 6: Put your product front and center
A lot of Amazon sellers think they need to put their logo first in their video, or introduce their video with someone talking about the product. In actuality, the most effective videos are those that put the product front and center.
Showcase the product in the first 1 to 2 seconds for the best results. If you delay showing the product, potential customers may lose interest or scroll right past. This last tip is especially important for Amazon video ads in search, which we’ll talk about in the next section.
Amazon Sponsored Brands videos
You may have seen Amazon video ads in search and wondered how to use them to sell your products. These are part of Amazon Sponsored Brands, a new advertising service from Amazon that’s currently in beta. You can read more about it here.
Interested in running video ads on Amazon? They can be a great way to reach relevant audiences and showcase your brand across Amazon properties. Note that the typical minimum spend is $35,000, though video ad pricing varies depending on placement and pricing. You’ll also want to familiarize yourself with Amazon’s Sponsored Brands Videos (SBV) Policies.
Video and audio specifications for Amazon Sponsored Videos.
| Video duration | Between 6 and 45 seconds (30 secs or less highly recommended) |
| Video dimensions | 1920 x 1080px, 1280 x 720px or 3840 x 2160px |
| File size | Less than 500MB |
| File format | .MP4 or .MOV |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 |
| Video codec | H.264 or H.265 |
| Video profile | Main or Baseline |
| Frame rate | 23.976fps, 24fps, 25fps, 29.97fps, 29.98fps, or 30fps |
| Video bit rate | Minimum 1 Mbps |
| Video scan type | Progressive |
| Audio codec | PCM, AAC, or MP3 |
| Audio format | Stereo or mono |
| Audio bit rate | Minimum 96 kbps |
| Audio sample rate | Minimum 44.1khz |
| Letterboxing or pillarboxing | Videos must not have black bars on any side of the video content |
| We do not permit blank or black frames at the start or end of videos. |
Top moderation rejection reasons
Avoid these top rejection reasons to help ensure your Sponsored Brands video ad is approved in moderation.
- Black or empty frames at the start or end of videos. Don’t waste your chance to engage shoppers by using black or empty frames.
- Video is abruptly cropped at the maximum video duration. Abrupt edits can result in an incomplete video and a poor customer experience.
- Video includes Amazon branding elements. Amazon trademarks, products or references to Amazon products or services are prohibited.
- Video includes customer reviews. Customer reviews (including star ratings), even if these reviews are on Amazon, are not permitted.
Acceptance criteria
In addition to meeting the above technical specifications, video ads must meet the following criteria. Videos that do not meet these guidelines will not be accepted.
- Critical content within the video (such as on-screen text) must not obstruct the user interface. To ensure your video meets this guideline, please download the safe area template.
- All on-screen text must be a minimum of 30 pts and be legible.
- Letterboxing/Pillarboxing: Videos should not have black bars on any side of the video content.
- Videos must be in the language of the locale in which it is displayed, be easily understandable and clearly identify the brand or product promoted.
