Vertical videos are a great fit for social content, and now you can run and monetize them on your site with Raptive’s vertical embed option.
Vertical embeds display vertical videos in a vertical player, so your content looks more natural on the page. This helps avoid pillarboxing, which is black or empty space on the sides of a vertical video when it plays in a horizontal player).
(Note: This Raptive sample site is AI-generated and for illustration purposes only.)
Vertical embeds are available for the stationary Related player, which readers click to play.
In this article:
How vertical video embeds work
When you copy an embed code from your dashboard, you’ll see two options:
Horizontal embed code
Vertical embed code
Choose the vertical embed code when you want to add a vertical video to your site in a vertical player.
Vertical embeds work a little differently from horizontal embeds. A horizontal embed plays the embedded video first, then moves on to your playlist. A vertical embed loops the embedded video instead of moving to the next video.
Most ads that run in vertical embeds will still be horizontal. Most web video ad demand is horizontal, so this helps support strong monetization for the vertical player.
How to embed a vertical video
To embed a vertical video:
- In your dashboard, go to Videos → Library
- Find the video you want to embed
- Click the embed icon
- Select “Copy vertical embed code”
- Add the vertical embed code to your site
If you use WordPress shortcodes, update your Raptive Ads plugin to version 3.12 or later to run vertical embeds.
How to update an existing embed to vertical
Existing video embeds won’t automatically update to the vertical player, even if the video itself is vertical.
To update an existing vertical video embed, use one of these options:
- Copy the vertical embed code for the video from your dashboard, then replace the old embed code in your CMS
- Find the old embed code in your CMS, then add
orientation="vertical"at the end of the embed code
Be sure to include the space before orientation.
Frequently asked questions
I already embedded my vertical videos on my site. Will they update to vertical embeds automatically?
No. Existing embeds will stay horizontal, even if the video itself is vertical.
To update an existing embed, replace the current embed code with the vertical embed code from your creator dashboard, or add orientation="vertical" at the end of the current embed code. Be sure to include the space before orientation.
Can I run a vertical Sticky Playlist player?
No. Vertical support is currently available for the stationary Related player, which readers click to play.
The Sticky Playlist player still helps drive strong overall earnings, but its performance isn’t significantly impacted by how many videos run in it or what kind of videos they are. The stationary Related player is more likely to engage readers with a specific video on the page, so vertical support is focused there.
Why does the embedded video loop in the vertical player instead of moving on to my playlist?
The embedded video loops in the vertical player to ensure only vertical content runs there. Most creators’ playlists include horizontal videos, so looping helps keep the vertical player experience consistent.
Why does the vertical player run horizontal ads?
Most web video ad demand is horizontal. To support strong monetization for the vertical player, horizontal ads can still run in vertical embeds.
Is this part of the vertical video pilot I’m involved in?
No. The vertical embed option is separate from the vertical video pilot.
Vertical embeds run through the Raptive video player and work the same way you embed horizontal videos: copy the embed code from your dashboard, then add it to your CMS.
Will the vertical video player include advanced playlist functionality? Or if we have "advanced playlist" enabled in admin, will that automatically apply to the Vertical Video player?
Vertical video only loops itself, so it never advances to a playlist or other videos. So no, it won't have the advanced playlist functionality.