The social media social shopping evolution continues, this time with a promising new development at YouTube. The social firm is ringing in the holiday season offering shoppable ads to marketers.
Product Reviews & Unboxing Videos
This new feature is primarily being marketed for product reviews and unboxing videos because the majority of viewers of such content decide to do so as the first step of the buying process. These are some of the strongest types of content on YouTube in terms of reach, popularity and influence and they’re equally powerful across categories as diverse as electronics, children’s toys, beauty and grooming products, kitchen appliances and many more.
The shoppable click-to-buy ads will appear simultaneously during featured, relevant videos. Viewers who are intrigued by the featured products and are interested to learn more or are considering to purchase will be even more likely to finalize the transaction when presented with both opportunities at once. The in-content click-to-buy ad is a powerful combination of information, relevance and convenience.
The Power of Collaboration
While you are invited to produce content as a marketer or brand, consider working with influencers if you’re interesting in building a campaign on YouTube. Collaborating with influencers such as video bloggers (vbloggers), editors and/or other noted personalities is an excellent way to increase interest and engagement. Authenticity and trust are the key. In fact, according to Google research, 68% of YouTube users prefer when product-focused ads come from what they refer to as “people like me” in lieu of brands.
To emphasize the power and importance of influencer collaboration, YouTube has recently presented their Awesome Stuff Week series in which they’ve paid influencers to create original videos in which they review products, open packages of products ordered online, etc. The video hosts all explained on camera that they were paid by YouTube to create the videos but that all of their opinions are of their own. All of the videos featured shoppable click-to-buy ads and were very well-received by the public.
Shoppable YouTube ads have all of the elements to take social shopping and YouTube to the new heights. Consider your industry, products and target market to see if such a campaign could work for you. 2015-2016 holiday season is an apt time to experiment with YouTube’s shoppable ads to quickly gain insights to determine its potential for future, continued success for your brand.
