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You might have spent years creating script, storytelling, finding the right talent, videography, and editing. The results? A supernova brand or product video. Well, you cannot expect someone to watch by embedding the video on a homepage or sharing it on social media.
That’s the time YouTube advertising comes into your marketing strategy. The platform is popular among video platforms and is the world’s second most visited site other than Google. An ad option was launched in 2007 and used by almost 55% of marketers.
The reason why people go for YouTube is that video content is more engaging for audiences and there’s the added bonus of having some nice video content that you can use for marketing efforts. Well, great content is used to be found, it is also important that your content is good and grab attention along with educating prospects and those unfamiliar with your brand.
Running a series of YouTube ads is one way to ensure more of your target audience finds the video content you’ve produces. The thing is, advertising on YouTube is very different from running a PPC or paid social campaign.
Is Advertising on YouTube Effective?
The answer is always yes. There are many benefits with the YouTube advertising campaign including the demographics, and the cost-effective cost per view. As we have discussed video content is the finest choice to connect with more people as it more engaging and memorable than static content when it comes to social media marketing and advertising.
We’ll go over some best practices and examples below, to make sure you get the most out of your advertising efforts. But if this isn’t enough to convince you.
- YouTube has over 2 Billion monthly active users (Sproutsocial)
- YouTube is the second most popular website in the world(Sproutsocial)
- People watch over 1 billion hours of YouTube video content each day(Sproutsocial)
What kind of Ads are on YouTube?
You may know that why you should choose YouTube for advertising. But it is important to understand what kind of ads you can use. The following are the few of them.
- Skippable in-stream ads
- Non-skippable in-stream ads (including ‘bumper’ ads)
- Discovery ads
- Viewable ads
- Overlay ads
It’s depended on your requirements and goals to make the use of these complement your social media marketing.
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Skippable in-stream ads
Ahh, that skip button. Yes, we all are aware of these ads as once in a while we got such ads while watching YouTube videos. And no wonder we all like it and we all use it. Since 2009, the skip option is there on YouTube and after some videos saw significantly fewer views due to people closing windows and hitting back buttons out of frustration at having to watch a 30, 40, 60 second, or even 6 minute which is the max, ad before their content.
Skippable video ads on YouTube ads can be display prior to your video beginning, in the middle of a video, or at the end of video. They must be at least 12 seconds in length through many are longer. The viewer need only sit through 5 seconds before the skip option appears. So, it is a gamble for companies to consider whether or not this option makes sense financially.
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Non-skippable in-stream ads
While skippable is easy to avoid, non-skippable is must to watch as you don’t have any options. And now on the other side of the coin are non-skippable ads. These can show in all the same places as the skippable ads and are often shorter.
This is a finest option if your goal is brand awareness and if leads and sales are your top priority. It is probably better to go with a discovery ad which we’ll go over next. Non-skippable ads can run for a max of 15 seconds. Because of this, it is essential to have a deft group of writers and creatives who can craft enticing and engaging ad content that gets your message across in that amount of time.
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Discovery Ads
This is a third and most important when it comes to YouTube ads and called Discovery or TrueView ads. The reason why its called discovery is because the user must actively choose it and watch it before the advertiser is charged. These ads show up as a part of the recommended video results on the homepage, or sidebar, and link either to a YouTube channel or individual video.
The reason these ads are referred to as TrueView by YouTube is that you will only be charged if a user truly watches the ad, meaning they have to click on it to see it, it doesn’t play automatically like an in-stream ad.
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Non-video Ads
These are banner ads that show either on YouTube homepage, above organic search results, or on the sidebar of suggested videos. They are not video ads, nor do they have to link to a YouTube video. Discovery ads can have a thumbnail, but it’s not needed, and often have multiple CTAs.
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Overlay Ads
These are another type of non-video ad, also called in-display ads. Overlay ads are smaller and rectangular, usually with a photo and text. They get embedded into a video and show while the video is playing. These ads are desktop-only and will not show on mobile devices.
Setting Up a YouTube Ad Campaign
To set up a YouTube ad campaign, you need to have a YouTube channel set up and then go through Google Ads. You’ll add the URL for the YouTube video you’d like to use as your ad into Google ads. The following are the steps to follow.
- Link your YouTube channel with Google Ads
- Upload the video that will serve as your ad to your YouTube Channel. Make sure it’s listed as public.
- Choose a video from the Google ads new campaign window
Select your goals. You can choose any of the following:
- Sales
- Lead generation
- Website traffic
- Product and brand consideration
- Brand awareness and reach
- Choose the type of ad you’d like to use.
- Define your budget and your target audience
- Paste in the YouTube URL of the video that will serve as your ad
That’s it! Now it is time to watch the ad.
Final Thoughts:
To conclude, we’ve told you before that video content is a must-have part of your content strategy. above mentioned are the types of ads and tips to set up your YouTube ad and let the magic happen. We hope you find it insightful and appropriate to your first YouTube ad.
Need help in implementing YouTube ads? M-connect Media can help you as we have in-house professional marketers and SEO along with content writers who can help you create enticing ads for you. Dial us to know more.
