Slow-motion video ads can boost consumers’ desire for the featured product or brand by increasing feelings of immersion, according to recent research.

Immersion is a state of feeling fully absorbed, engrossed, or engaged in an experience.

Researchers at INSEAD studied the effect that slow motion has on consumers by immersing viewers in a novel aesthetic experience.

The experiments featuring products in different categories, including chocolate, mineral water, wine, and shampoo, consistently found that slow-motion video ads make consumers judge the product or brand as more luxurious.

The researchers discovered that slow motion can increase feelings of immersion, leading to greater hedonic value and a boost in perceived luxuriousness.

They also add that slow motion also makes the product seem more luxurious by unveiling intricate, fine-grained detail in movements that cannot normally be observed in real life or at regular speed.

This effect holds even after direct exposure to the featured product. However, the effect weakens when video blurriness or buffering impairs the immersive viewing experience.