The advertising landscape has changed dramatically over the last decade or so, and YouTube has been a dominant platform at the front of it. The changes in advertising are mainly driven by technology with a focus on consumer behavior and what media consumption preferences they have. Print, television, and radio were old ways where the consumer could change the station and skip right over the ad.

Now digital personalization exists, so ads are shown to the right person at the right time. It’s a win for consumers and businesses, sort of speaking. Opportunities for engagement have skyrocketed, and YouTube takes advantage of that down to the wire. Whether it’s small details like background music for vlogs or programmatic advertising, they’ve thought of it all. Let’s explore just how so.

YouTube Has a Number of Strong Advertising Benefits

YouTube has a different approach and a number of benefits that provide a leg up on some of its strongest competitors. This, in turn, forces companies to provide stronger advertising services with proven results. Here are some of the factors.

Significant Consumer Reach

YouTube has over 2.6 billion users logging in to their accounts monthly. This is one of the biggest claims to fame that YouTube has when it comes to dominating advertising in business. Their users are active, which gives companies a better shot at getting potential clients’ attention.

Video Content Is Engaging

The difference between the reach YouTube has and other social media platforms is that the format of YouTube is engaging. On Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook, users can continually scroll past any advertisements. On YouTube, they have to watch at least a few seconds of an ad to continue watching the content they want. It follows a similar method to commercials, except you can’t change the channel and come back.  

Multiple Advertising Formats

Anyone who has ever been on Youtube has likely firsthand witnessed their different advertising formats. There are advertisements at the beginning called pre-roll ads. These are reserved for shorter videos, while mid-roll advertisements are for longer videos.

The list goes on. There are also TrueView advertisements where users can skip the ad after it’s played for a few seconds. In this case, companies will only pay for advertising that audiences stay engaged with. There are also display ads, sponsored cards, and overlays. With YouTube offering so many advertising options, a company is able to align its needs with its budget. This way, YouTube caters to a variety of companies rather than one specific one.

Analytics and Feedback Systems

Proven results are a huge part of providing advertising services. The bar is set higher than when marketing focuses were on print and TV. Companies want to make sure that their content is being engaged. Trueview ads are an example of this. But YouTube also provides intensive feedback to advertising companies so they can understand how consumers are receiving their content. Metrics specific to performance on advertising campaigns is one example. Through this, companies can measure their return on investment (ROI), They can also get specific demographic information about their audience and how to refine their strategies.

Video Advertising In Itself

Aside from the advertising that can happen during videos, companies can make their own content that users can interact with. This is called user-generated content. Through commoning, shares, likes, and other interactions, companies can use YouTube as a platform to produce engaging content. This method is comparable to some other social platforms.

What Does This Mean For The Industry?

YouTube is driving digital advertising and marketing to new competitive heights. Many of the different methods YouTube has used can be seen implemented in other platforms. Sponsored posts through Instagram and Facebook are a mirror of sponsored programming shown during videos.

The video has also proven to be the way to go. YouTube has always been a proprietor of showing engaging video content. Instagram, Pinterest, and other platforms did not always have this feature. But our brains take in video content easier than pictures or stagnant content. It captures our attention more easily. In other words, it’s more engaging.

YouTube’s influence has been monumental. And while other social platforms have adopted some of its practices, other companies have not yet figured out how to get a leg up on YouTube.

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