What Is Video Hosting?
Increasing video view rates has always been a key concern for online business owners, content creators, and digital marketers. One of the most important factors in this area is the appearance of the video and its placement on the web page. Read on to learn how to maximize video view rates by following a few key principles around video appearance and positioning.
After designing a polished landing page, placing a call-to-action button is one of the most critical considerations — it directly affects a page\'s conversion rate. But if you\'re using a video in your sales funnel, the placement and size of that video matters enormously for driving views and conversions.
In this article, we analyzed thousands of videos embedded across different websites to identify the optimal video position and size for maximizing views. Stay with Kavimo to the end.
How We Did It
The analysis below is based on a review of 95,000 web pages, each containing videos hosted and served by video hosting services. We collected data on each video\'s position on the page and its distance from the top edge of the screen. We focused on videos without autoplay and excluded pop-up-style videos. We also removed data from users who reloaded the same page multiple times, to keep our statistics as organic as possible.
When collecting and monitoring data, we divided each page into 7 zones, each 250 pixels tall, and tracked where on the page each video fell. For example, in the image shown, the video is in zone 2.
The Relationship Between Video Position and Play Rate
We observed a sharp drop in play rates for videos placed between zones 3 and 4. This decline is likely because the play button is not immediately visible to the user on arrival. On most screens, zones 1 and 2 are visible immediately upon landing — zone 3 may be visible on some larger displays, but zones 4 through 7 are never visible without scrolling. Videos in those lower zones naturally receive fewer views.
Statistics show that visitors who encounter a video immediately upon arriving at your site are far more likely to sign up than those on pages without video. So do your best to include video on your web pages — and place it in a prominent, accessible location. Our first recommendation: always place your video in zone 1 to achieve the highest possible view rate.
The Relationship Between Video Size and View Rate
Does video size affect how often it gets watched? Yes — the dimensions of the video you embed have a significant impact on view rates. We have all seen websites that squeeze a video into a narrow column on the right side of the page below zone 1 or 2. In some cases the video or its play button is distractingly large, leaving a poor impression. So how many views do you think those videos actually get?
Using our dataset, we determined the effect of video size on play rate. Based on the data, the ideal width for a video appears to be between 401 and 600 pixels — videos around this size have the highest average play rates.
A video between 401 and 600 pixels wide will not fill the entire screen, but it is still large enough to capture user attention. By contrast, very large videos can feel overwhelming and drive users away before they even hit play.
Looking at video height shows a similar, predictable pattern — which makes sense, since width and height are directly proportional.
Summary
Two simple factors make a big difference in your video view rate: placing your video near the top of the page and choosing the right dimensions. Apply these tips to your site today and see the results for yourself.