Current Issue Summary
Dec 2023 (Vol. 64, Issue 4)
How Video Cover Images Influence Pre-Roll Advertisement Clicks: The Value of Emotional Faces in Driving Attention to the Ad
Cover images—thumbnail or preview images that provide a glimpse of the content to be shown in a pre-roll video ad—is the subject of this research. We know from earlier studies that “cover images play a crucial role in driving video content consumption and box office revenue (Zhou and Yen, 2018; Zhou et al., 2019).” Authors Mingyue Zhang and Jiaqi Cao (both of East China Normal University), and Jiang Qian (The University of Sydney Business School) take it one step further, investigating the interaction effect between the arousal level of these cover images and viewers’ sensational needs, and their effect on clicks on pre-roll ads. Sensation seeking, they write, “is an important form of emotional gratification characterized by the need for varied, novel and complex sensations and experiences (Zuckerman, 1994).” Using data from a leading online video platform, and conducting three experiments, Zhang, Cao and Qian found that “matching the arousal level (high vs. low) of cover images with viewers’ sensational needs (high vs. low) significantly increases advertisement clicks.” Among the takeaways:
- “Identifying sensational needs of viewers could rely on their video selection.
- “Customizing the arousal level of the video cover image to match viewers’ sensational need increases pre-roll advertisement clicking.
- “Charging video cover images with positive emotions further amplifies the matching effect on pre-roll advertisement clicking.”