Back in the day (about 10 years ago), when limited bandwidth prevented the option of wide, high-resolution header images as introductions to websites, designers struggled with the best solutions for impressive home page designs. Now, it seems like these large-format, high-resolution images are falling to the ways of the past, and are being replaced by a new industry trend: an opening header video.

The opening header video can be as short as 5 to 15 seconds, with a simple message or call to action for a specific business/website promotional message. Sometimes they run on a continuous video loop until the visitor clicks in to enter the website. An opening video is a great way to establish better engagement with website visitors, promote your website message and mission, and ultimately maximize website conversion rates.

The general use and popularity of video in marketing messages has been growing by leaps and bounds over the last several years, and seems like a natural transition into the website opening theme. Currently, the trend is making its way in the tech world with hip startups, but it would be interesting to see how fast the new trend gets adopted by larger companies who generally lag in change and innovative design.

Here are a few example of good use of home page opening video that we found worthy of mention. These companies have a clear picture of their marketing message and use home page opening video as a tactic to convert more sales.

  • Yelp's New Video Review Feature

  • Uber Leading Innovation