This year is shaping up to be the year video finally comes to every part of the enterprise. Whether you’re recording formal training, a quick social learning how-to, a sales demo, an executive chat, or anything else, the question looms large: how long should your video be? Whether you're posting to YouTube, Vimeo, or your own corporate YouTube or video content management system (VCMS), we've collected the data on just how long a good business video should be. Check it out!

1. Just
Should Your Business Video Be?
2014 is shaping up to be the year video finally comes to every part of the enterprise.
Whether you’re recording formal training, a quick social learning how-to, a sales demo, an
executive chat, or anything else, the question looms large: how long should your video be?
2.7
FIRST:
minutes
How do people
consume online
video?
Average length watched of
a single internet video1
53.6
Percent of viewers who
watch for less than
one minute2
IS THERE DATA THAT ISN’T SKEWED BY ALL
THOSE VIDEOS OF CATS ON YOUTUBE?
Fair question. Most of us are watching video at work for actual business value.
How do people consume that online video?
77%
62%
0-1 min video
55%
2-5 min video
35%
5-10 min video
28%
20-30 min video
45+ min video
Average completion rate, by video length, for business video3
What Does
Science Say?
The average attention span of most adults ranges from4
minutes
minutes
There Must Be An Easier Way…
Sure is. Just open up your video analytics and let your audience tell you.
09:59.0
08:12.3
07:45.3
07:15.3
07:00.2
06:07.8
04:51.7
04:11.6
03:13.5
03:02.9
02:41.1
02:15.9
01:59.9
01:54.2
00:45.1
00:30.4
00:02.9
00:01.5
00:00.9
00:00.0
Viewers
Video Content Management System: Viewer Analytics Dashboard
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
Time
Yep – right about here seems to be the right length for this team
So… How Long Should Your Videos Be?
First, remember the
1st RULE
OF PRESENTING
Your presentation should last exactly
as long as required to cover your
subject to the depth that is right for
your audience.
No shorter. No longer.
THEN
Break the
video into
short chapters
I
II
Record your
presentation
Share your video
(and watch your analytics!)
(Target 5 minutes)
Panopto makes it easy to record, share, and search video–in a single
solution that requires zero new hardware and zero specialized training.
Panopto’s video content management system automatically
standardizes almost any video camera, then automatically encodes and
uploads to a secure, searchable “Enterprise YouTube” of video content
that can be shared internally or with partners and customers.
For more, visit www.Panopto.com or call 855.PANOPTO today.
Sources:
III
1. http://www.statisticbrain.com/attention-span-statistics/
2. http://www.adeliestudios.com/typical-video-online-watched/
3. http://wistia.com/blog/does-length-matter-it-does-for-video-2k12-edition
4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attention_span