While one might think it’s simple to advertise on YouTube, with all the nuances Google has released, advertising on YouTube has become surprisingly complicated. Companies can no longer get away with simply posting a random brand video and then putting ad spend behind it. Or rather, companies can get away with it, but if that’s their YouTube strategy, then they’re missing out on a lot of opportunities.
Video Action campaigns have been Google’s secret weapon, and even though they are currently being pivoted to Demand Gen campaigns instead, that does not mean that they have stopped working or are any less effective.
Video Action campaigns are Google’s bottom of the marketing funnel video ad type. They allow companies to use video ads to convert their customers to actual sales. And in our experience, they do in fact succeed at doing just that.
After testing Video Action campaigns for the last few years, here are some of the biggest takeaways for Video Action campaign success:
Pick The Right Video
Not all videos perform equally well in Video Action campaigns. While we’ve seen success with both user-generated content and produced videos, success still comes down to the individual video. As a result, it is very important to test different videos. If the goal is video action, focus on cost per conversion as the main KPI to determine success. The video with the highest conversion rate or the highest view rate might not be the one with the lowest cost per conversion, and we’ve seen this occur many times due to the nature of the algorithms.
That said, different videos may also serve different audiences equally well. As such, it can make sense to run multiple videos in the same Demand Gen ad group. In our experience, videos that highlight the product or service tend to perform better than those that don’t. While there can be exceptions, this isn’t necessarily the best place for a creative conceptual TV ad to run – since the focus is direct response, the video will do better if it educates the viewer and tells them what to do next.
Add a CTA button
CTAs are crucial to success in Video Action Campaigns, so it’s imperative to use the drop-down menu to select the most relevant option and add one to your ad. A relevant CTA button can significantly increase high-quality clicks.
Keep an eye on your placements
Now that Video Action Campaigns are moving into Demand Gen, advertisers can segment data by ad type to see how their videos are performing in each type of placement:
- Skippable in-stream
- In-feed
- Shorts
This is exciting because it will allow advertisers to better optimize creatives for the placement and to adjust placements based on performance.
Test and learn
Because some videos perform better than others, it is important to always be testing and learning when it comes to video creatives. That means put a creative testing plan in place, and where possible, test multiple versions of videos against each other. That said, that doesn’t mean drop dozens of videos into a single ad group. We typically recommend running 2-6 videos at a time per ad group and acting promptly to pause the low performers once a winner with statistical significance has been determined.
Maximize The Power of Supporting Copy
Video Action ads, now Demand Gen ads, allow advertisers to show additional copy alongside the video. Don’t forget to pay attention to the messaging in the rest of the copy to make sure it educates, contains a call-to-action, and names to product. Think of it as a search ad within the video – if they are interested, what can they do next?
Hooking prospective customers with clear differentiated copy that tells them what to expect when they visit the website is crucial to successfully and efficiently getting those prospects to convert.
Conclusion
Video Action ads, now Demand Gen ads, are an effective tool for driving conversions efficiently. As Google’s YouTube advertising options continue to evolve, don’t forget the power of YouTube campaigns to drive bottom-of-the-funnel conversions, especially when all the available features of the ad type are taken advantage of.
By picking the right video and CTA button, maximizing the use of supporting copy, analyzing the placements, and implementing a testing framework, advertisers can set themselves up for success on this crucial but underutilized ad format.
