What content and context factors lead to selection of a video clip? The heuristic route perspective

Abstract

The popularity of watching video clips on mobile devices is rapidly increasing. The providers of such video services have developed mobile capabilities and have worked to increase their video selections. This study investigates the effect of the factors of preview content (the thumbnail and the title) and context (the popularity cue and the serial position) on video selection in a mobile context by adopting dual process theory and the model of attention capture and transfer. We performed a logit transformation on the dependent variable, and then applied generalized least squares (GLS) regression to analyze 206,221 logs and 323 thumbnails and titles of a video service. Image and text- mining techniques were used to ascertain the level of valence and response to content. This study has four main findings: (1) low valence but high arousal of a thumbnail has a positive effect on video selection; (2) high valence and arousal by a title has a positive effect on video selection; (3) the upper serial position of a video clip and a high popularity cue have a positive effect on the video selection; and (4) the length and recency of a video have a positive effect on the video selection. The results of this study suggest practical implications to help the programming and marketing strategy of the video service as well.