At Entroxy, we often refer to the studies which suggest that the human attention span has de-evolved, dropping to a mere 1.7 seconds and yet YouTube watch-time is increasing – with many popular channels offering videos comparable in length to traditional TV. So, how can our attention spans be falling, when we are consuming more?
How do you make video ads irresistible to watch?
There’s an increasingly popular theory that much of our decision-making happens subconsciously, based on experiences that we’ve already had.
Billy Corbyn, Creative Director at Google EMEA's Unskippable Labs has an hypotheses about what makes video ads irresistible to watch: "If we as consumers have been exposed to advertising for the majority of our lives, perhaps our subconscious brains have come to understand the signals of what we know to be advertising. And so, when we receive such a signal, in an environment categorised by choice and adaptation – namely, the choice to skip – our muscle memory kicks in and our subconscious brain acts as a filter. If this is true, then the key consideration isn’t whether advertising is ‘good’ or ‘bad’ – that’s too binary. It is about adapting creative that flexes this muscle, bypasses the subconscious, and accounts for this new attention shift."
There’s more than one way to tell a story. One size no longer fits all. It’s never been a more exciting time for brands to experiment and serve viewers with new journeys and experiences...
YouTube Bumper Ads: Making a big impact with small stories
Since their inception in 2016, I’ve always had an attraction to the 'unskippable’ bumper ads. Whether it's my burning desire to defy the odds - making the skippable, unskippable - or simplily that sounds like a character from The Incredibles... (“The Unskippable”). Either way, with their diverse number of targeting options and the serious ROI potential when used as part of an omni-channel digital campaign - they are a must have for any digital campaign in 2020!
For Strand Palace, we made two sets of bumper ads to compliment our Facebook campaign, driving awareness for the hotel and its location in the heart of London. These ads were designed to reinforce our campaign messaging; the first highlighting imagery for a ”romantic London weekend”, the second for a “girls night out In London”. These were served as remarketing to website visitors who did not purchase.
For Amplify Trading, we created a series of bumper ads targeting people watching the most-watched “learn to trade” videos and popular YouTube channels. The ads were designed to promote the key, unique benefits of learning to trade with Amplify on their trading floor in the city vs learning online.
For Occupyd, we used contextual keyword targeting to reach likely small business owners who are searching for ways to maximise revenue / increase profitability in their business. We specifically designed these bumper ads to introduce Occupyd, the new flexible workspace platform.
For more creative ways to use YouTube, check out the winning campaigns in the 2019 YouTube Works Awards. Every year, the bar is raised in terms of both innovation and effectiveness in YouTube advertising. Discover how the worlds largest brands delivered measurable results through creativity and strategic thinking in the YouTube Works awards. Learn More >>
