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You know YouTube ads matter. But getting them right, applying YouTube Ads best practices? That can feel like a puzzle. Millions of potential views, but how many will really engage or click?
If you're fed up with low click-throughs and a lack of engagement, you're not alone. And you've come to the right place.
In this article, we will share 11 straightforward tips to increase CTR and Conversion Rate from your YouTube ad campaign. Let's dive in.
For a complete Youtube Ads beginner's guide, check out our article.
Video ads should be between 20 seconds and 3 minutes. The three most-watched video ads Google highlighted in March 2023 all fit within these parameters. Any shorter might not explain enough, any longer might bore viewers.
Put the most important info at the start. Many viewers stop watching after 45 seconds, so make your point before then. But remember, YouTube users might watch longer than on other platforms because they're there to watch videos in the first place. The quality of your video must stay consistent from start to finish.
The entire video should be lively and hold the viewer’s attention. This is the key to effective video ads.
To achieve this, you just need a compelling story. Youtube video ads with great storytelling have a higher conversion rate than ads that have a much higher quality of visuals but poor stories. Follow the ABCD framework:
Let's look at an example of a successful ad that uses these techniques.
And the best part? All of this happens just within 20 seconds.
A hook is a scene at the beginning of your video that tells the viewer why the ad is worth watching.
Without a hook, viewers may ignore your ad regardless of its high production quality and storytelling.
A well-produced video hook gives viewers a reason to watch. For instance, a hook can be the highlight of your story, an unexpected datapoint, or a teaser of what’s to come.
Here are the types of hooks and how you can use them:
Explain your business clearly: Show and tell what your product or service does in simple language. Make it easy for viewers to see how it can help them.
Keep your brand voice the same: Your ads should sound like they're coming from the same place as your other communications. This makes your brand more familiar and trustworthy to your audience. For example, if your brand is fun and young, your video ads should also be fun and cater to young people.
Because the video may be your sole communication with your viewers. You need need to keep your brand voice consistent. Ex:
To make video features appear optimally across different mobile devices, prepare video assets in these vertical dimensions/aspect ratios: 16:9, 2:3, 1:1, or 9:16 (recommended).
Important: Don’t use burn-in bars, as this prevents YouTube from displaying your video in the best way!
Remind viewers to take a specific action, like visiting the landing page on your website or buying your product. Tell consumers how to interact with you and under what terms (access, offers, pricing, CTAs, etc.). Ex:
Low-quality videos are not suitable for your Youtube channel or advertising. Use at least 720p or 1280×720, but we recommend using 1080p, or 1920 x 1080 as the ideal YouTube video dimensions for a standard video.
Add open captions to your video ads to catch the attention of viewers scrolling with their sound off. Remember, your message needs to come across effectively even in silence.
Making your YouTube ads funny or entertaining can help them stand out and be remembered. Here are some actionable steps to do this:
Remember, humor needs to be used carefully. Always keep it respectful and in line with your brand's voice and image. Test your ad on a small group before launching it broadly to ensure the humor lands as intended.
If you ever had a cat, you should know how quickly they get bored of playing with the same toys. And when they do, you'll probably see something like this:
So what's the solution?
Hide those toys from them for a while. Take them out after some time, and you'll notice that your cat's engagement with them has improved.
Youtube viewers are the same. They won't be entertained if they are forced to watch the same ad too often. But instead of playing where they aren't supposed to, they'll do something worse. They'll start hating your brand.
You need to find the optimal balance between ad frequency and viewer engagement. Adjust the frequency capping settings to control how often your ads are shown to users. Avoid bombarding viewers with excessive ad repetitions, as it may lead to ad fatigue and negative associations with your brand.
Here's how you can approach this:
To maximize the impact of your brand's YouTube channel and ads, it's essential to understand and adapt to ad formats:
Let's dive into how we made a winning YouTube ad for Mindvalley's "Masterclass" series.
We created an ad with life coach Marisa Peer. In the ad, she gave a powerful talk about believing in oneself, which would encourage viewers to sign up for her course.
We aimed the ad at people interested in personal growth and self-improvement. Having Marisa Peer in our ad was a surefire way to connect with these viewers.
We made sure our ad was engaging from the get-go with Marisa's inspiring talk. This helped viewers watch the whole ad and think about taking the course.
We used the right keywords in the title, description, and tags of landing pages for our ad, so it would show up when people searched for related content.
We chose an ad type that viewers could skip if they wanted to. This let us share a longer message, and interested viewers could watch the whole thing.
Our ad looked and sounded professional. This made our ad more credible and helped keep viewers engaged.
We looked at how many people watched our ad, how long they watched it, and how many clicked on it. This helped us understand what was working and what we could improve.
We ended our ad by asking viewers to sign up for the Masterclass. This clear call-to-action helped turn viewers into potential customers.
As we've explored, the key to creating winning YouTube ads lies in understanding your audience, crafting engaging video content, optimizing for discoverability, choosing the right format, ensuring high quality, using analytics to guide improvements, and ending with a compelling call-to-action.
But the learning doesn't stop here. Now, it's your turn. Use these best practices as a launching pad for your own YouTube ad strategies. Experiment, learn, and have fun in the process. Here's to creating ads that not only win but also make a lasting impact. Go forth and let your brand's voice resonate on the YouTube platform!
To make sure your ads reach the right people, it's crucial to define your target audience. Use YouTube's targeting options, like demographics, interests, and behaviors, to make the Google Ads algorithm reach the viewers who would be most interested in what you offer.
For better SEO, use relevant keywords in your video title, description, and tags. Also, transcribe your Youtube videos or provide subtitles as YouTube's algorithm scans this text for keywords to understand what your video is about.
Your choice of ad format should depend on your goals, budget, and content. Skippable in-stream ads are good for longer messages, while non-skippable ads are better for short, impactful messages.
To make your ads engaging, start with a strong hook to grab attention. Keep your message clear and simple, use high-quality visuals and sound, and include a clear call-to-action.
In YouTube Analytics, focus on watch time, audience retention, engagement, and click-through rate. These metrics show you how well your video ad campaign is performing and what you can improve.
A good CTA is clear, direct, and encourages viewers to take action right away. It could be as simple as "Learn More," "Sign Up," or "Buy Now." Make it stand out visually in your ad.
High-quality video production makes your ads look professional and trustworthy. It can help hold viewers' attention, make your message clear, and boost display campaigns' overall viewer engagement.