Video is the star format when it comes to connecting with users. More than 1,000 million spend an average of 40 minutes daily viewing videos through a YouTube channel. Producing a sum of more than 6,000 million hours per month .
This social network has become the preferred medium for the exchange of knowledge, proof of this is that YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world, and the third most visited website after Google and Facebook .
These statistics represent a huge number of potential customers within the reach of any company, ready to hit the play in the millions and millions of embedded videos. Is this not more than an advantage for advertisers?
Apart from its high level of users, YouTube advertising is very effective , in addition to having a high level of effectiveness, largely due to the level of attraction it produces in users, generating strong engagement .
Before we get fully into how to advertise on YouTube, it is important that you are up to date on everything related to social networks , in addition to knowing which are the most used social networks . On the other hand, if you are thinking of carrying out promotional actions through various social networks , do not forget to take a look at our previous post, where we analyzed how to carry out campaigns on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , or Instagram .
Of course, to complete this tutorial we recommend that you review how to launch campaigns in Google AdWords .
Below we detail all the details of why YouTube is ideal for promotional actions. Shall we start?
ADVANTAGES OF INVESTING IN YOUTUBE
Table of Contents
- Great interaction by users. The video, not being flat format, makes it easier to provoke emotions, as well as connecting more quickly. …
- Link between user and brand. When feelings are appealed to, a fundamental factor occurs, the creation of links between a brand and its users.
- Greater impact. Video is one of the best media that helps capture the attention of consumers.
- Easy analysis of results. Through YouTube Analytics, data such as: level of participation, visits to the channel or the profits generated (among others) may be known.
- Wide variety of ads. YouTube consists of a wide variety of formats when launching a campaign:
- TrueView: Ads inserted into a video posted on YouTube. The advertiser will only pay when their ad has been viewed for a minimum of 30 seconds. This modality consists of four different formats:
- in-display: video inserted and played simultaneously to the start of a recommended video
- in-slate : Set of ads inserted at the start of a video. This can not be reproduced, until the user does not view one of the ads in full.
- in-search: inserted in relation to the search result indicated by the user.
- in-stream: the one inserted at the beginning of a video. Automatically, a 5-second playback will be performed.
- Bumper Ads: Video with a maximum duration of 6 seconds. This time the advertiser will be the one who decides at what height of the video the ad is inserted, which cannot be omitted.
- Sponsored cards: Banner format. Promotional action consisting of a small text with few seconds of viewing
- TrueView: Ads inserted into a video posted on YouTube. The advertiser will only pay when their ad has been viewed for a minimum of 30 seconds. This modality consists of four different formats:
- Reach the right target . Through a specific segmentation, based on keywords, themes, demographics, age …
HOW TO CREATE A YOUTUBE CAMPAIGN: STEP BY STEP
YouTube allows two ways to launch advertising campaigns:
VIDEO ADVERTISING WITH ADWORDS
To begin, we will highlight that it is necessary to have both a Gmail and a Google Adwords account . In the case of not having it, you can visit our post again where we provide the necessary keys to get into Google Adwords .
Step 1. Link YouTube channels with AdWords
This step is of vital importance so that after the launch of an advertising campaign on YouTube it is possible to access the statistics made by Adwords. To start you need to access the YouTube channel . Once inside, click on the name of the channel you want to link , and select ” My channel “.
Within “Video Manager” , click on “Advanced Options” and “Link an AdWords account for video”. After selecting “Link an AdWords account” , just follow the instructions provided and click “Finish”.
After having made the link, the request must be approved in the AdWords account. And voila, linked account!
Step 2. Select the video to promote
The videos that you want to promote, must be hosted in advance on YouTube. To make the video selection, it is necessary to select the “ Video manager ” option within the YouTube channel, and then click on “ Promote ”.
Step 3. Establish promotional features
Once the video to be promoted has been selected, it will be necessary to select the “Create campaign” option , where relevant data will be decided to carry out the campaign:
- Budget : daily amount allocated to the advertising action
- Segmentation : choosing the target to whom you want to send the advertising video. For this segmentation we can select criteria such as: choice of social networks where you want to publish the campaign, location or language of the user …
- Calendar : total duration of the campaign, indicating both the start and end dates
Step 4. Detail the ad
The time has come to clarify the characteristics of the video to be promoted, such as the campaign title , description (using keywords, since YouTube requires a short description), and selection of the video’s thumbnail image.
Step 5. Launching the campaign
This last step is necessary to carry out within AdWords, where you will click on ” Create and launch campaign “. Once launched, approval will be required on both YouTube and AdWords (such notification can sometimes take 24 hours to complete).
PROMOTED VIDEOS
If you are a company, you will surely be interested to know that YouTube allows you to insert so-called ‘promoted videos’ (company videos) in other YouTube videos. For the realization of this type of videos, YouTube has launched a mobile application which allows the creation of a video with an ‘impeccable appearance’ through any s martphone in a simple and totally free way. If you want to try, you just have to start the download of YouTube Editor for Business.
Once you have your video made, it’s time to launch the advertising campaign on YouTube. For this, it will only be necessary to activate the option of ‘ promoted videos’ , followed by the choice of the ad format . Once these two simple steps have been completed, the video will be inserted into another.
The video will be viewed by those users who have made a search within the channel with any of the keywords used in the video description
HOW TO MEASURE CAMPAIGN PERFORMANCE
AdWords is a very effective tool when it comes to analyzing the performance of any launched campaign. In “All campaigns” will be reflected all the actions carried out, by sectioning “Video campaigns” will appear as a list, the performance of this type of action performed. Some of the key metrics to consider within video campaigns are:
- Main performance. Analysis of the total number of video views by users, percentage of views (number of views or interactions divided by the number of exposures), and average CPV (cost per view)
- Clicks. Measures the number of times a user has clicked on the ad, in addition to analyzing the clickthrough rate (CTR)
- Interaction. Evaluates the number of clicks made on the interactive elements (icons or teasers ), in addition to the percentage of interaction (number of interactions divided by the number of ad exposures)
- Video audience. Analyze as a percentage, the number of users who have viewed 25% , 50%, 75% or all ( 100% ) of the video
- YouTube interaction. Examine the number of ‘shares earned’ (when a user has viewed the ad in addition to performing a related action on YouTube). AdWords distinguishes five different types:
- Visualizations. When a user, in addition to viewing the ad, views other videos within the advertiser’s channel
- Subscriptions. A user has subscribed to the advertised brand channel
- Adding to playlist. Occurs when a consumer adds the promotional video to one of their playlists
- I like. Interaction performed by the user when they indicate that the ad is liked
- Sharing. The viewer shares the video
TIPS FOR CREATING EFFECTIVE VIDEO ADS
If you want to launch a campaign on YouTube effectively, here are some keys to keep in mind.
1. Use the most appropriate format. As we mentioned at the beginning, there are four different types : in-display, in-slate, in-search, in-stream . The choice of the ideal format will depend on the objective to be achieved during the development of the campaign. For example, if our clear objective is to target traffic to a website, the in-tream format would clearly be the ideal one to choose.
2. Create an attractive Call to Action . Essential element to attract the attention of the person who is viewing the ad and decide to click to view it in its entirety.
3. Make good use of targeting methods. There are five different methods of orientation:
- Geo-targeting. Allows you to select a geographical area for the insertion of the advertisement
- Remarketing Targeting. Whose purpose is to reach those users who have ever visited the advertiser’s website
- Keyword Targeting. Keywords that target the insertion and display of the ad for those users who have used the same keywords in their search on YouTube
- Interest Targeting. Selection of various categories in relation to the interests of users
- Topic Targeting. Selection of specific topics through which it is intended to reach specific consumers
4.A striking thumbnail image. This image is of vital importance, since it will represent the ad, as well as being the first thing the consumer will see before watching the video. Therefore, it is essential that it is attractive, descriptive and striking
5.Use appropriate music. Sound is undoubtedly one of the fundamental factors within YouTube content. Choose and use music intelligently, thinking about the target for which the ad is intended is essential, the use of trends is always a good strategy
CONCLUSION
To conclude, we cannot fail to highlight the benefits YouTube provides to any advertiser. A study carried out by Google in Europe regarding advertising on YouTube revealed that 77% of the campaigns launched through the platform obtained a higher ROI than the advertising broadcast on television from 2013 to 2016. Brands such as Mars UK , or Danone , are some of the success stories of advertising on YouTube that this study reflects.
Both companies obtained more than double the ROI in embedded video campaigns on YouTube , in addition to seeing how their sales increased considerably thanks to online videos.
But the power of YouTube is not only within the reach of big brands , but also for SMEs. YouTube’s advertising system is extremely simple.
Its subsequent analysis will provide you with the keys to analyze where your objectives are being achieved, or in which aspects the campaign falters and should be improved.
YouTube is a key ally for brands, since it helps to improve both its image and increase the number of visits to a web page , both of which are fundamental aspects when it comes to increasing the visibility of a product or service.
