09 Video Optimization Tips For Faster Loading Time

The average internet user today is fond of video, and websites featuring videos are better received. However, you need to realize that merely having a video will not suffice. A video that has not been optimized properly will lead to performance issues when uploaded to your website.

Such an act will do your brand more harm than good as potential users are likely to lose interest in your offering. The fact that the last couple of years have seen a significant increase in the size of videos being uploaded online is another major cause driving the need for video optimization. In this article, we talk about 9 ways you can adopt to optimize your video and thereby improve its performance.

Outline

Select The Right Video Size

The first step to optimizing videos is identifying the correct video size. For example, if you are working on CSS or HTML, it is a good practice to clearly define the height and width of your video. That way, the browser knows the bandwidth that it needs to allot, and the user has a seamless viewing experience.

The choice of video size will depend on the purpose it is intended for. For example, a 720p (1280 X 720 pixel) video will be ideal for uploading to your brand’s social media handle. If you intend for the video to be watched on an HD TV or through video streaming apps, then you can go as high as 1080p or (1920 X 1080 pixels).

Compress The Videos

The thumb rule of video optimization states that the size of the video file must be small so that it loads faster and gives a better viewing experience. The best way to do that is to use a data compression tool that gives a smaller video file without compromising on the image quality. Poor image quality makes the video come off as an animated GIF, and that takes a toll on the professional appeal of your website or brand page.

Decide on the Streaming

Traditionally, a video had to be downloaded on a user’s system before you could view it. This resulted in unnecessary time wastage. To optimize your video in today’s world, you can consider the use of HTML5 tags, thereby allowing video delivery in small chucks. That way, the chunks are arranged bit-by-bit and are ready for playback in the viewer’s browser.

Do Away With Unwanted Audio

These days, muted videos are in vogue as many users browse brand websites or social media with their phones on silent mode. If you are creating a muted video, it is a good practice to do away with the audio data from the video file. This optimizes the video by bringing down the size of the video file.

For s video that you created from scratch, try omitting the audio during the file export stage. Alternatively, multiple video editing tools allow you to strip audio from video files.

Use A CDN Network

CDN is an acronym for the content delivery network, which is a network of servers used to store cached copies of any website’s static assets. That way, the content is retrieved from the nearest edge server, and the user gets a faster content delivery.

This removes the wait time for video buffering and helps in tackling redundancy issues. With proper planning, it is plausible to leverage the power of a content delivery network and provide a significant improvement to the overall speed.

Provide A Smoother Viewing Experience

These days, many websites have videos that automatically start playing when a user lands on the page. For a smooth video viewing experience, try to avoid having such videos on your website. Ideally, no video should play till the web page has loaded completely. That way, you optimize your content to ensure a smoother video viewing experience for the end-user.

Optimize Videos For Mobile

A significant fraction of website viewers access the web page from their smartphones, and you need to optimize the video for mobile viewing. Firstly, the website should be able to detect the device orientation and display videos accordingly. Ideally, you should have a separate version of your website dedicated to mobile users.

If that is not feasible, try to identify videos in your current webpage that does not look good on a mobile screen. Then, add codes in CSS or HTML that will prevent such videos from being displayed. Understand that no matter how good your frontend development skills are, it is not practical for all types of video content to be equally accepted on a mobile device.

Also, invest in analytics to identify if your website is frequented more often by mobile viewers or desktop users. If you find that mobile users are more regular, you can consider shooting most of your videos in portrait mode.

Increase Video Visibility

The internet today is a sea of digital content, and you need to walk the extra mile to ensure that your video gets the digital visibility that it deserves. Start by investing your efforts into keyword research. High visibility keywords allow you to reach out to the correct target audience.

If possible, try to incorporate some keywords in your video title. The video title should be short and crisp. Descriptive titles are better received as compared to generic ones.

Optimize the Visual Appeal

Most people judge a video by its thumbnail, and that is why you must devote your efforts to creating an appropriate thumbnail. Have metadata that tells potential viewers what the video is about and why they must watch it. Ensure that you add the metadata after the data compression to do away with the risk of it being wiped out.

Thus, you see that creating a video is not enough, and you need to walk the extra mile and optimize it for digital viewing. With the tips discussed above, you can now work on fixing the finer nuances and creating a video that will be well-received among your target audience.