Vdopia an online video ad network has launched a new online video ad format called branded skin to capture a bigger share in the online video advertising market.
Vdopia already offers pre-roll and post-roll video ads in which a video ad runs before or after the video content showcased in the video player. The branded skin format will actually enable advertisers to use the outer covering, called the skin of the video player, for advertising purposes as well.
The ad network will allow advertisers to use the outer covering of the video player to display their product, logo and brand message at the bottom of the skin, where the ‘play’ and ‘stop’ buttons are displayed. Advertisers can also opt for an extended outer covering in which the size of the branded skin is increased to fit a banner ad on the right side of the skin, apart from the regular brand or logo placed at the bottom.
Another type of branded skin option being offered by Vdopia includes an over-lay branded skin, in which a ‘clickable’ branded animation will be played over the video
Vdopia claims that it has the technology to showcase different branded skins for the same video content displayed on a website. Saurabh Bhatia, chief business officer, Vdopia, explained that the technology enables them to showcase different branded skins to a single consumer who refreshes the webpage and sees the video content displayed on the website again and again. They can also display different branded skins for the same video content on a website to different users based on their geography and demography.
The company has already started pitching advertisers to use the branded skin format for brand building or lead generation campaigns. It has also developed an interactivity feature inside the branded skins which enables viewers of the video content to click and get directed to a microsite to get details about the brand or product.
Advertisers can also use the interactivity feature to generate leads. They can insert a form inside the extended skin or in a microsite, which a viewer can access by clicking on the branded skin.
Vdopia has already roped in various advertisers such as Tata Sky, Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Big TV, which have opted for branded skins in which their product is displayed at the bottom of the video-player skin. Airtel is using the over-lay branded skin option. Other brands which have signed up for branded skins include Axis Bank, Kurkure, 7-Up, Nokia, Mitsubishi Outlander and Cadbury Bournville.