Google AdWords Video ads tips and tricks

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Video ads best practices

Q: What kind of content should be included in the video ad?

A: Again, make sure to keep the user's attention. Try to tell a story - and stay clear of the product-based infomercial. Use people - owners, customers and the like to tell their story with the product.

Q: Is there an ideal length for an ad?

A: Most ads will be watched for less than 30 seconds, so make sure that even if you make your ad longer than 30 seconds, that you front-load your important messages. Movie trailers or short films are obviously watched longer, but even they start to see a drop off at around 90 seconds.

full article: http://adwords.blogspot.com/2006/07/video-ads-best-practices.html?ctx=awblog&sourceid=awo&subid=us-et-awb-091306_1

Second, you'll want to review these tips to ensure that the content of your video ad itself is as compelling as possible:

    * Key Messages: Because users may not watch your entire video, make sure you deliver your key messages early in the video.
    * Keep it Engaging: Video should be entertaining, informational, and relevant. Unlike TV advertising, you only have a captive audience if they choose to continue watching your ad. Whenever it appears on a site, your video ad will be your only communication with that site’s users, so it’s important to be clear about what your business offers. And remember, your audience won’t just respond to what you say, but how you say it.
    * Short and Sweet: Although videos can be up to 2 minutes in length, we’ve found that users start dropping off significantly if ads are longer than 45 seconds.
    * Make it Audible: Video ads allow you to use both sight and sound to communicate with your consumers – so make sure that the voices and/or soundtracks you use complement your overall message. If you are using a soundtrack, the music should not drown out any voices.
    * Call-to-Action: Make sure you communicate to your users what you’d like for them to do – visit your store or site, call a phone number, complete a purchase – so they’ll have clear next-steps once the video’s completed.

full article: http://adwords.blogspot.com/2006/09/vide...-of-3.html

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Part 2 of Google AdWords Video Ads Tips & Tricks:

Here are several things that you may want to consider while managing your account:

    * Watch that play rate: If you find that your play rates start falling off, it probably means that the same users are seeing your opening image and don’t want to rewatch your video. If this is the case, try adding new video ads to your campaigns. If producing new video ads is not possible, then at least consider alternating between new opening images. You can also extend the reach of your campaign by either adding more sites with site targeting or new keywords that we can use to target your ads contextually.

    * Bid for Impressions: When you bid on a CPC (cost-per-click) basis, our technology tries to maximize the number of clickthroughs you’ll receive. If your ad fully conveys your message without requiring the user to click through to your site, this could lower your overall quality score and in turn signal our system to not serve your ad. With CPM (cost-per-thousand impressions) bidding, you assign a value to a user seeing your ad – our system then optimizes delivery in order to show the ad to more people. CPM bidding helps you maximize your exposure across sites in the Google content network.

    * Exclude irrelevant placements: By using negative keywords and the site exclusion tool you can block your ads from showing up alongside content that may not fit with your specific marketing objectives.

    * Focus on playback metrics: You probably want to increase the total amount of time that your audience spends engaging with your brand. By maximizing the duration and number of plays your video ads receive, you can achieve this goal. CTR (clickthrough rates) are important, but you shouldn’t weed out placements or sites based solely on an ad’s clickthrough rate.

full article: http://adwords.blogspot.com/2006/09/vide...-of-3.html

Part 3:

Running a successful video ad campaign isn’t just about creating engaging ads; your campaign settings are also crucial. Below are four tips to keep in mind when designing your campaign:

    * Geo-Targeting: When you set your language and location settings, focus your advertising to regions or areas where you conduct business.

    * Selecting Sites: If you’re using site targeting, use the site tool to select sites that are of interest to your audience. If there is a specific demographic that you’re trying to reach, use demographic site selection to find the right sites.

    * Selecting Keywords: If you’re running a keyword-targeted campaign, it is important that you have tightly formed AdGroups; make sure that all of the keywords in an AdGroup revolve around a specific theme or topic.

    * Bidding: Bid appropriately. Manage to cost-per-play goals: set the maximum you would like to pay per impression, but optimize to achieve target cost-per-play and audience reach goals.

http://adwords.blogspot.com/2006/09/vide...-of-3.html