Video is one of the hottest trends in marketing, and the role of advising clients on their use of video (or offering video services yourself) can add real value to the consulting partnership between printer and client. Is AI-generated video an option? Heidi Tolliver-Walker explores consumer perceptions of AI video.
With video being one of the hottest trends in marketing, and 84% of consumers saying that watching a video influenced their purchasing decision, a role advising customers on the use of video (or offering video services yourself) could add real value to the consulting partnership between printer and customer.
But video can be expensive, and not everyone has access to a studio. So what about AI-generated video? Is it a good option? It could be a good option, but as with AI-generated imagery, there is a learning curve, and AI isn't right for everything.
Moreover, developing the expertise to create AI videos isn’t necessarily cheap: In addition to the learning curve (if creating an AI image is complicated and highly uncertain, how much more complicated would creating a video be?), AI videos also require the creation of various components and the expertise to combine them to produce the desired end result.
Time is money, so is it worth it, and to whom?
To answer these questions, Idomoo, which provides a platform for creating personalized interactive videos, commissioned a market study of 2,008 consumers in the US and UK in January 2024. The survey was conducted by independent research firm Atomik Research. Idomoo recently shared “exclusive, never-before-published” data with Marketing Sherpa about how different age groups feel about AI video, which then reached out to marketers and entrepreneurs across different generations to get their personal perspectives as well.
Millennials and Gen Z: AI
According to the survey, both Millennials and Gen Z say they would be “very interested” or “open to” AI-generated videos from brands. This includes 78% of Millennials and 76% of Gen Z, with a two-point margin of error (i.e., there is no statistical difference between the two). However, more Millennials than Gen Z say they would be “very interested” in AI videos (38% vs. 32%).
Notably, the Marketing Sherpa article doesn't define what “interest” means. Are respondents more likely to watch AI videos than traditional videos? Or are they just curious to see what AI videos are like? Would the numbers change depending on what they see once they have the experience? If it's high quality, would interest settle at the same level as a regular video? (“I don't care how it's produced, as long as it's interesting and relevant to me.”) Would the numbers go down if the quality is lower than expected?
Either way, interest is high, at least initially. Marketing Sherpa said:[We] We expect brands to adopt AI video as an integral part of their content strategy much more quickly than other mediums such as traditional video, not only because their most desirable audiences are craving it, but also because the technology itself makes it easy to generate high-quality, usable content at scale.”
Cheaper compared to what?
Of course, we have to ask: cheap compared to what? Throughout their analysis, MECLABS and the study authors refer to AI-generated video as “cheap,” but how do we define that? If we're comparing AI-generated video to videos that “cost millions of dollars,” [requires] Yes, if you compare it to the “hundreds of hours of work” that big budget productions can put in, but probably not if you compare it to the low budget videos that most small businesses make (where an iPhone video is often perfectly acceptable).
This won't be cheap, especially considering that AI-generated video still requires traditionally produced components and the expertise needed to put them together.
The reason AI video producers love this process is that once they go through the learning curve and understand how to generate high-quality AI videos, it becomes much easier to personalize or customize videos for individuals or different audiences at scale, which increases engagement rates.
But two little words are key: “on a massive scale.”
There is also indifference
Notably, however, 11% of Gen Z respondents and 15% of millennials were “indifferent” to receiving AI-generated videos. As one respondent noted, “AI cannot process and understand the complexities of human emotions, so it cannot appeal to emotions with advertising or messaging.” More than a third of Baby Boomers (38%) and 57% of the Silent Generation said they would not want to receive AI videos at all.
Even if they are accepting of AI-generated content, most respondents still want the transparency to know that a video was generated using AI (at least for now): More than three-quarters (77%) of Gen Z and 72% of Millennials want to know if a video is AI-generated.
“I want to know when AI is being used. AI is still new and brands aren't sure how to proceed, but full transparency is the best way to go,” said Michael Nemeroff, co-founder and CEO of RushOrderTees, a self-described “millennial elder” who was also quoted in the MECLABS report.
Ironically, Baby Boomers and Silent Generations, who are the least likely to embrace AI-generated videos, are also the least interested in knowing if the video was generated by AI. “As long as the message and visuals are clear and compelling, I don't care,” said Be Visible president Vesti Kent, a Baby Boomer quoted in the report, speaking for her generation.
So what's a printer or marketer to do? Experiment, of course. Research the tool, try it out, and see how it fits as part of your larger business strategy. Even if you don't ultimately create videos for your clients, it's best to know about how it works, its pros and cons, and you should be in a position to give them the insight they need moving forward.
