Have you ever been watching cable TV, and they show you short videos or clips of what show is coming next? Sometimes they’re funny or informative. Adult Swim has used them for so long that they’ve become part of their branding.
We’ll be going over what exactly a bumper is and why we use them, so keep reading!
What Is a Bumper?
The video bumper is a short video that appears before the main video, often as a way to set up what is to come in an advertisement or movie trailer. Bumpers are a creative way to set up a video or advertisement. They can be used in movies, commercials, and TV shows.
Bumpers are often used to introduce the main content but can also exist at the end of something. In fact, bumpers are so prevalent that some people use them outside of traditional media as well — for example, they’re commonly used as branding for the show, such as how daytime talk shows usually pan to a sign of the show’s name before they go to commercial breaks.
Why Do We Use Bumpers?
Normally, a bumper is used to draw attention to the main video and help viewers understand what they’re about to watch.
Video bumpers can be used in a number of different ways:
- To introduce or set up the main content
- To enhance that content with additional context or information
- As an ad unit in its own right (for example, if you have multiple videos on one page)
The bumper can be thought of as similar to the title card in a film but would more likely contain animation than text. It’s often used at the beginning of a commercial break after the last ad has been shown.
A bumper with no sound is called a silent bumper or silent jumper. Silent bumpers are used for several reasons; to fill time between two commercials or as a transition between two segments in a show.
Making Bumpers with Cloudinary
If you have several videos on your site, or you want to be able to add a bumper to your videos without manually editing each one, why not use Cloudinary? We offer video transformations through our media management API or with our SDK to use it in whatever language you choose. You can even see it in action with this handy tutorial!
And the best part? You can get started with Cloudinary for free! Sign up today.
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