YouTube and Video Advertising Trends for 2020

The constant updates in the Google Ads platform can feel daunting, but Google’s process of refinement means a competitive market, improving ROI, and satisfied consumers. Our goal as PPC marketers is to be the best at the game of patience, and trial and error. The Avenue team keeps a pulse on current and upcoming industry trends so we can make the best use of the clients’ dollars, and in 2020, we predict continued growth across video advertising.

Video is quickly becoming one of the most viewed and well-digested mediums on digital. Where people used to spend time consuming television during a few key day parts, now they have the luxury of deciding to consume video at any point from their mobile device, specifically on YouTube. Audience targeting capabilities allow advertisers to be extremely detailed about who they want to show ads to, which will become increasingly important as video ads saturate the market.

Access to video advertising is more accessible than ever.

Not only is placing an ad on YouTube budget-friendly, it is highly targeted, and easier than ever to create. Advertisers on a small budget have access to camera equipment and editing software on their own cell phone. As video advertising prevails, expect to see some ingenuity in the creative space, and more refined targeting to make up for lack of resources.

According to Forbes, an average user will spend 88% more time on a website with video than one without.

Your brand’s message will be far better retained when consumed through a video ad. “Viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to 10% when reading it in text.”

“The new primetime is personal.”

Advertisers are no longer restricted to the limited, expensive day part of 8 p.m. to 11 p.m., because consumers are customizing their experience on YouTube, streaming, and OTT. Submit your audience targeting preferences and campaign goals to Google Ads, and let Google take care of the rest.

YouTube has become highly self-directed.

While years ago YouTube videos would be personally shared with you to bring you to platform (i.e. your friend sends you a video called “Charlie Bit My Finger” and says, “you need to watch this.”), now users come to the platform without referral, simply seeking entertainment. According to YouTube, “in the last three years, watch time from content users discover on the YouTube homepage has grown 10X.”

YouTube ranks No. 2 in reach among all streaming services.

On average, users watch over 180 million hours of YouTube on TV screens every day, ranking just below Netflix based on reach among top OTT platforms. The difference between YouTube and Netflix? YouTube has ads.

We’ve seen the trends, now what can we do as marketers? Google has several working features that continue to add value to advertisers like Mastheads, TrueView Video Discovery Ads, Ad Pods (2 ads stacked together in long form video), Smart Pricing, and In-Market Audiences. The ingredients to success of your campaign depend on your own objectives, but it’s certainly there if you get the right recipe.