The following excerpt is from Perry Marshall, Mike Rhodes and Bryan Todd’s book Ultimate Guide to Google AdWords. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | IndieBound When it comes to YouTube ads, you should create ads that are helpful and useful so that even if viewers don’t follow you any further online, at least they’ve had a positive experience with your brand. This strategy helps foster a good relationship between the brand and the viewer, and means you won’t annoy your viewers with a pushy sales message.
It’s important to focus on one core idea in each ad that shows your audience that you understand their needs and you have a solution that is right for them. The focus should always be to provide value to the viewer. Think about what your customer is doing in that moment that they’re typing in a search query. Provide a useful experience to meet that need.
Timing is everything on YouTube, and you want to be in front of your shoppers with an ad that’s right for them in the buying cycle. An effective YouTube ad will talk to each shopper as you would in real life (“the Message”). Through YouTube’s incredibly specific targeting (“the Method”), we can meet our potential customers in the right moment with a relevant message and offer.
Message
In terms of messaging, your aim is to be as true to real life as possible. Don’t say or do anything in an ad that you wouldn’t do if you were talking to that person in real life. For example, if you had a brick-and-mortar store and saw someone eyeing a pair of running shoes in the window, you might strike up a conversation with them: “Do you run?” You might ask if they’re training for an event, how long they’ve been training, what they’re looking for in a shoe. You’d then dig into your expertise and make your shoe recommendation based on their needs. It’s possible to have this same normal, helpful interaction with shoppers online. Informed by the vast troves of data from Google, you can show YouTube ads with a tailored message to each type of shopper by simply structuring your ads in custom ways.
Each ad should have three overall elements:
1. Attention
On YouTube, you want to grab viewers in the first five seconds, with video featuring something eye-catching, unexpected or memorable — without succumbing…
