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Creating content that captures viewers’ attention is a great challenge for marketers today. This is especially true for advertisements. The challenge of getting someone to focus on your ad is the same whether they have fallen into a YouTube hole or are just watching one video on their phone. In 2016, Google recognized that attention spans were decreasing and developed a new type of ad called a bumper ad.
Google describes bumper ads as a 6-second video format that drives brand reach and frequency. These ads can be added to traditional campaigns through Google Ads and are sold at a cost-per-click. A bumper ad can augment broader messaging and extend an existing campaign’s reach.
YouTube bumper ads help advertisers increase brand awareness and reach. It can be difficult to create compelling non-skippable ads due to their limited duration. This article covers the basics of YouTube bumper ads, including their purpose, cost, and effectiveness.
Now let’s get started.
YouTube bumper ads are short unskippable videos that run before, during, or after other videos on YouTube. They are typically 6 seconds long and can be used to promote a brand or product. Bumper ads have become increasingly popular due to their ability to drive reach, frequency, and brand awareness.
The YouTube bumper ads format is one of YouTube’s six advertising formats. A bumper ad’s short length makes it the best for increasing brand recognition and reach. Overlay ads, skippable video ads, and non-skippable video ads, on the other hand, are more suitable for longer ad spots that describe detailed product features and benefits.
Advertisers can run bumper ads independently. It is recommended that they be run in combination with TrueView Ads to increase their effectiveness. The first-time viewers can be shown TrueView ads, and then YouTube bumper ads to increase frequency.
Similarly to other YouTube and Google advertising types, bumper ads are priced based on bidding. You will, however, be charged per 1,000 impressions in this case, since only CPM pricing is available. Pricing will vary depending on targeting and competition. You can however set a daily budget and a maximum CPM to ensure you don’t overspend.
According to Google, 70% of campaigns significantly boosted brand awareness, with an average lift of 9%. Moreover, 9 out of 10 ads drove ad recall globally, averaging over 30%. The effectiveness of an advertisement is measured by ad recall. In this metric, respondents are exposed to an advertisement and then asked later if they can recall it. In advertising, a lift is the sales increase resulting from the advertisement.
Here are some best practices for creating YouTube bumper ads:
With a 30-second ad, you can include a story, product information, a tagline, and more. It’s not possible to do that with bumper ads. There is no room for ambiguity in your ad. Your ad’s message might be confusing if you try to pack too much into it, which may diminish the campaign’s impact.
One single objective should be the focus. Consider what you want your ad to convey. You could, for example, sell a smartphone by highlighting its bright, bezel-less screen, or emphasizing its durability or how many apps can run simultaneously. You can focus on one emotion that seeing a movie would evoke if you are promoting a movie. Keep your ad quick and concise, no matter what it is. Don’t overload one advertisement with too many selling points.
In addition to having one objective, you should also keep your visuals and flow simple. It will be difficult to follow in such a short time frame if there are too many visuals, cut scenes, or overwhelming text.
Your viewers will get confused and lose interest. You should also keep your video simple and linear. Don’t switch between different locations or camera angles too often; it will distract the viewer.
A striking visual or funny moment at the start of your ad can quickly capture your viewers’ attention. This is essential in short ads.
A visually unappealing ad will likely be ignored. Find ways to make your video visually appealing. The best way to do this is to use a professional editor. The right music, graphics, and effects can help your video stand out from the crowd.
It may be tempting for advertisers to cut down their 30- or 15-second video ads to fit the six-second format. However, this effort will likely not translate, and the ad will seem confusing or disjointed. Starting fresh and creating ads specifically tailored to the six-second (or shorter) ad slot may be the best idea.
The six-second ad format is not new, but it is a good idea to familiarize yourself with the format. You can do this by watching some examples of the ads and reading up on how they work.
In retargeting, marketers can target people who have previously interacted with their brand. Your campaign may target visitors to your website or members of your email list, depending on the settings. You may underestimate retargeting if you only consider it a way to encourage people to revisit abandoned carts. You can also remarket to viewers who:
These options make YouTube bumper ads particularly useful for retargeting. This format is ideal for re-engaging viewers who have already interacted with your brand. It is annoying for users to see unskippable ads, but with bumper ads, you can reinforce your brand without further aggravating your customers.
There is a good chance they will be relieved the ad is only six seconds long. When combined with another demographic targeting, remarketing can significantly reduce your overall reach. Don’t narrow down your remarketing ads.
Some advertisers find bumper ads challenging because of their shortened format. Is six seconds really enough time to tell the world about your absolutely amazing product? There are many YouTube advertising options, so why choose a short format? What makes them the best choice? YouTube bumper ads are effective.
The majority of consumers are becoming ‘ad-blind,’ meaning they don’t pay attention to advertisements. An ad that plays for a long time tends to distract users, especially on a desktop computer. Due to their short length and countdown timer, bumper ads are uniquely effective at keeping viewers’ attention. The content of bumper ads is more likely to be recalled by viewers.
Bumper ads also tend to be more memorable than other types of advertising. Bumpers are often humorous or surprising and provide a break from watching videos on YouTube. This can be helpful when users are looking for something new to watch.
In addition, bumper ads have been shown to improve brand awareness by helping viewers remember the message at the end of the ad. They also help viewers understand the brand’s personality and better understand what the company stands for.
You can target specific demographics with the same ad. This allows you to get the most bang for your buck by reaching a wide audience with a single video. In addition, bumper ads are one of the most cost-effective ways to reach billions of YouTube viewers, since Google charges by the number of impressions.
It’s easy to create a bumper ad. All you need is the right software and some basic knowledge of video editing.
The advertisement promotes Amazon’s two-hour Prime Now delivery service.
The message is clear and concise. The viewers know immediately that Amazon offers 2-hour delivery for free. Furthermore, viewers can see that Amazon is offering this delivery service for household items.
There is no narration. Therefore, viewers who aren’t paying attention to the screen will miss the advertisement.
This ad advertises Mercedes-Benz’s new Mercedes-AMG GT S, a car capable of reaching 100 km/h in just 3.8 seconds.
The message is simple: The car is fast.
This ad is clever in its use of length to demonstrate the speed of the car.
The ad relies heavily on the text that is shown briefly. Viewers might miss the message if they do not immediately pay attention to the ad messaging. For the message to be fully understood, you’d probably have to see the ad multiple times.
Watchers who have not tuned in yet or who only listen to the audio do not have any narration to capture their attention.
As a digital marketer, you use YouTube bumper ads to gain more customers for your business and Google Ads to generate leads. It can be challenging to manage all your campaign data if you have multiple campaigns running in one account. Here’s where PPC Signal comes in. It informs you in advance when your campaigns aren’t working.
Let’s say you are running a campaign. You realize that your PPC campaign isn’t performing well. You want to optimize the cost per conversion because it is one of the essential elements of a PPC campaign. On the dashboard of the PPC Signal, select the cost per conversion from the metrics, and you can get automated signals based on real-time data from your campaign. These signals can give you insights into the cost per conversion of your campaign and help you identify:
To learn more about the signal, you can explore it further. To explore, click on the Explore button.
By clicking the explore button, you can see graphical data about your campaign showing how long your conversion cost has been changing.
Also, you can view the data in a tabular format, allowing you to see which other campaign metrics affect your campaign cost per conversion.
Through these automated generated signal reports, you will be able to make quick decisions that will help you reduce your cost per conversion. As a result, your YouTube bumper ads will achieve the desired results.
PPC Signal can reduce your time to manage your campaign, and you don’t need to hire enough resources to manage your campaigns. This tool uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to boost your ROI.
Bumper ads last for 6 seconds (or less) and play before, during, or after another video. There is no option for viewers to skip the advertisement.
The maximum duration of non-skippable ads is 20 seconds (and in some regions, just 15 seconds), so you’ll need to be concise.
You can drive traffic to your website and grow brand awareness with YouTube bumper ads. With these ads, you can make the most of the ever-shortening attention spans of online consumers. Also, they’re highly customizable, affordable, and cost-effective. You can also target specific types of audiences with YouTube’s advanced targeting options rather than showing ads to billions of YouTube viewers.
Retargeting or TrueView ads can also increase the effectiveness of bumper ads after you’ve learned how bumper ads work and how to make the most of them. You can use PPC Signal’s YouTube bumper advertising management and optimization tools to make the most of this versatile video ad format.
This format is a powerful tool for boosting your brand’s presence on YouTube and increasing ROI. So if you have not already started using bumper ads, now is the time!
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