Intro or no intro?

I tend to get bored if i have to wait a few seconds for some animated intro to do its thing. I notice most of them tend to look the same, with some fade ins, 3d text drops, sparkly stuff happens and music. I prefer something short, like 2 seconds and simple. It name drops the creator and allows me to briefly prep for watching and before i look elsewhere the video starts and im engaged.

If you can't make up your mind, make a couple of varying lengths and watch them over and over again...kind of like a designers photocopy test. If you get sick of it after say watching it 5 times then its not good enough. :D
 
Keep the intro under 10 seconds unless you're making long videos, and even if you make long videos, don't make the intro long if it's just some 3D animation or whatever, only extend it if it's showing little previews of stuff from your show or something relevant - yes flashy long intros look cool the first time, but after that they get annoying and just end up being something you skip past, but those relevant intros that capture the feel of the show, are the ones I'll sit through, even if they're 30+ seconds.

Ideally I'd say keep it to 5-6 seconds, something simple that shows off your brand. Also, don't put the intro right at the start of the video. Have about 5 seconds of you doing a hook at the start of the video when you let people know what it's going to be about, or tease something cool about the episode, then go into the intro, then start your video.

For example mine looks like so:

5 second hook, which'll be me saying something like: "Let's find out how you can make your lucid dreams more stable"
Then my 6 second intro plays.
Then I welcome everyone and go into the video's main content.

For what it's worth, I've tested the audience retention on similar videos that had the intro at the start, and similar ones that had a hook first and then the intro - and the ones that start with the hook get about 10-15% better overall retention times, which is pretty huge. So don't put the intro right at the start, have some kind of hook/teaser first.
 
MichaelP said:
Some viewers want you to get to the point with your video and maybe you should add a a small part of the video to the beginning, something interesting.
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This is what I do, if I understand correctly. I play 6 seconds of something to do with the video, something that looks at least appetising and then do the intro over the top of that about 3 or 4 seconds in so the whole thing is 6 seconds tops
 
Honestly it depends. I don't think that for your kinda channel should have an intro. I wouldn't mind if it had one though aslong as it'd short like you had it.
 
For the most parts I like intro's, just seems more "professional" and gives you something to remember the channel by.

I don't really understand how people can lose interest in a video because it has a 4-6 sec intro.
 
I believe the intro you have is fine. I'm new to YouTube and I mostly stick to the fitness channels because that is what my channel is. From what I've seen and from my own experience the intro clips work. Especially if they have music clips that I like or can get catchy. I will find myself humming them sometimes at random times of the day from channels I've watched a few times. That to me at least is branding, sticks with you after you walk away.
 
I guess it really depends. Logos add branding to your channel that make it more recognizable however some people do find it annoying. I have an intro that is about 6 long that gives the channel name and video title.
 
an intro is the first thing..but the next thing is to use it correctly..maybe the video in my signature can give you an example of how i handle it. Instead of putting my intro BEFORE the content. i put it WITH my content..maybe you can do that while making a quick introduction about your video(teasing to keep watching it) play your intro while theres footage in the background..just my opinion ^^
 
My channel is only small and I don't even have the proper software to even make a good intro. Just wondering what you guys think I should do
 
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