YouTube Releases Multi-Platform Campaign to Promote Top Content Creators

YouTube Releases Multi-Platform Campaign to Promote Top Content Creators

By Melita Kuburas for StreamDaily

When spending money on YouTube, advertisers want to know exactly what they’re buying.

In the latest attempt to address buyer requests for a better understanding of what content their ads are wrapped around, the Google-owned platform is launching a multi-platform campaign next week in the U.S. that puts a spotlight on some of its top content creators within the beauty, fashion and cooking verticals.

One of the challenges for YouTube has been to highlight its verticals in a way that advertisers – and viewers – will see it as a channelized site, where people tune in daily to check out what the favorite creators have uploaded. The platform took this challenge head on with the Original Channels Initiative back in 2012, where it invested in clearly defined verticals of animation, dance, and women-focused programming.

Now, the focus is on promoting those verticals. YouTube did this last year by highlighting some of its content categories with Comedy Week, Geek Week, and YouTube for example. Next week’s campaign, which runs through mid-May, is purposely launched ahead of the Digital Content NewFronts as it’s an extension of the Google Preferred offering that’s tied to the company’s upcoming presentation at the event on April 30.

Google Preferred asks advertisers to put money upfront against YouTube’s limited inventory of content by its top 5% of creators (based on engagement and popularity). The program gives advertisers an opportunity to better understand what they’re getting when they place a buy, and it allows Google to involve more creators in the Upfront process, according to a spokesperson. Google Preferred also incorporates Nielsen and ComScore tools, which addresses media buyer requests for more transparent measurement.

Arranged by New York-based agency Co:Collective the campaign includes TV ads with the intention to raise awareness about vloggers Michelle Phan, Bethany Mota, and Rosanna Pansino, and their channels. Focusing on the Chicago and New York markets, the campaign also includes print ads, digital out-of-home placements, subway station dominations and train wraps, as well as a media partnership with Rovio’s Angry Birds that drives players to Pansino’s cooking channel. The campaign also runs across Google search, and includes rich media display ads, in addition to YouTube masthead and video ads.

This is an excerpt. Click here to read the full article in StreamDaily.