There are many marketing channels available for small businesses, should YouTube be one of them?
If you’ve never advertised on YouTube, a new infographic by One Productions makes a persuasive case why you should look into it.
YouTube Advertising for Beginners
The infographic starts with some very important data points on why you should advertise on YouTube.
The low cost of advertising on YouTube is an attractive proposition for small businesses. According to the report, a typical video ad costs between $0.10 and $0.30 per view. This will depend on video quality, targeting, and overall goal.
Next is the demographics of YouTube users, which runs the gamut. According to Pew Research, 35% of all adults in the U.S. Use it to watch how-to videos. But it is especially popular with young viewers as 96% of 18 to 24-year-old Internet users use YouTube.
If you’re considering TV advertising, One Productions reports YouTube reaches more 18 to 34-year-old Americans than any TV network.
Now that you know the reach of YouTube, what are some of the basics of advertising on the platform?
YouTube Ad Formats
Bumper Ads
When Google tested more than 300 bumper ads in 2016, it resulted in a 90% increase for ad recall.
Bumper ads are short ads shown before video with a maximum length of six seconds, and they are not skippable. Use bumper ads to complement a larger video ad campaign and increase the reach of your brand.
The only time you pay is when your ads receive 1,000 impressions.
True View In-stream Ads
True view in-stream ads are played in pre-roll, mid-roll, or post-roll of a video. These ads can last up to 6 minutes, with short ads being non-skippable and long ads after 5 seconds.
These ads can be customized with different call to actions (CTAs) and overlay text. Viewers who click on the ad may also watch your other videos within 24 hours.
For this type of ad, you will pay when the viewer watches for at least 30 seconds, until the end of the video, or they take action.
True View Discovery Ads
According to Google, when users choose to watch an ad, they are 75% more engaged than people who are forced to watch one ad.
True view discovery ads run on the YouTube homepage, search results, and related videos. And when the ad is clicked, the video page shows a banner display.
The reason they are effective is users choose to watch them, which results in higher retention rates. They are also ideal for promoting 15-60 second videos.
As far as paying, you will be charged every time a user clicks to view the video. But there is no charge for impressions.
Targeting
One of the biggest advantages of digital advertising is it allows small businesses multiple targeting options to reach their audience.
You can target your ad by demographic, placement, topics, interests, and remarketing.
Demographic is obvious enough, but the other options offer different ways you can reach your audience. With placement, you can bid to run ads on specific videos your target audience is likely to visit.
Topics and interests reach audiences related to selected topics and target people who have a strong interest and relevant topics. This also includes targeting users with strong search history related to the products or services you offer.
Remarketing goes back to viewers who in the past have interacted with the videos, ads or channel for further engagement.
Optimizing Your YouTube Ad Campaign
Google is known for many of the tools it provides to optimize your advertising. And as the parent company of YouTube, they will be available to you.
You can test the ad on YouTube to find the most effective approach to reach your audience. Experiment with creative CTAs, bidding, and targeting until you find what clicks with your audience.
Additionally, you can monitor your stats, include transcription, and more.
Take a look at the infographic below for more details.
Image: Oneproductions.com