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How to Strategically Place Video Ad Content

Strategic thinking about placement can amplify the impact of a great video. From your website to YouTube, OTT media to social, you have dozens of options for how to get your video in front of an audience. While it might seem best to just post it anywhere and everywhere, that can get expensive. A more strategic approach will help you reach the right audience at the right time while maximizing your potential return on investment. 

Choosing the right platform is an important step, but it’s only the beginning. To strategically place video ad content, you’ll need to think deeply about who your audience is, their likes and dislikes, and what you hope your video will achieve. We’ll examine each of these questions in detail. 

Choose a platform

There are plenty of free places to post your video. You should certainly take advantage of those, but let’s look a little more closely at the paid options so you can make strategic choices about when and where to invest in sharing your content. 

OTT – OTT or over the top marketing is the media jargon term for delivering video content over the internet without a cable or satellite subscription. Hulu and Sling are the OTT platforms that allow marketers to buy ad space. YouTube TV also technically falls into this category, but the platform deserves its own mention because it has some unique features. On OTT platforms, your video might play before or during shows, much like traditional TV commercials. You’ll pay per play. Viewers don’t have the option to skip ads, and you’ll be charged each time your ad runs. The audience is mostly under the age of 55, but the market is growing. 

YouTube Ads – A flexible and highly targeted option. You can play your video ads before or during YouTube videos. One valuable benefit to this platform is pay-per-view. Users will get the option to skip your video ad and go right to the content they came to see, and you won’t be charged if they do.

Social Media AdsFacebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, TikTok, and even Reddit allow you to place video ads. Some of these options have more granular targeting than others. Some, like Snapchat and TikTok, reach mostly young audiences, while Facebook and LinkedIn skew older. 

Traditional Broadcast Commercials – Television commercials are still a powerful way to reach older audiences and those who haven’t cut the cord just yet. 

Know your audience to strategically place video

To pick the right video ad platform, you need to know where your audience is most likely to consume media. Then combine what you know about your audience with your goals for your video to decide when and where your video should run. The following three steps will help you strategically place video content for maximum impact. 

1. Understand audience interests

Most of these platforms give you access to robust targeting tools. You may be able to show your video to people who are interested in a particular topic, match a certain demographic, or used a specific search term. This targeting power is only effective if used thoughtfully. 

Think beyond basic demographics like age and gender, to identify the content and topics your buyers might be interested in. Are they more likely to watch a comedy or a how-to video? What shows do they watch? What celebrities do they follow?

Base your first placements on what you already know about your shoppers, then use metrics reporting to refine your placements over time. 

2. Identify negative keywords and associations to avoid

At the start of the pandemic, advertising revenue fell. Partly, this was a result of economic uncertainty. But another reason for the decline in advertising was a fear of associating your product or service with a pandemic. Marketers didn’t want their ad showing up before a report on the spread of coronavirus, or popping up in the midst of a story about job losses as a result of stay-at-home orders. Some worried about seeming callous or careless, but there’s another good reason to be careful about what shows up immediately after your ad.

The human brain is a connection machine. We subconsciously try to recognize patterns and find connections in your environment. When your video ad appears next to an idea that is way off brand, your viewers might subconsciously connect the two. Identifying problematic topics can help you avoid placing your video next to content that might be offensive, confusing, or out of touch. 

When placing ads, you may have a list of keywords that searchers might use to signal they are interested in topics like yours. You can also create a list of negative keywords, those words that should not result in your video being served.

3. Consider your goals for strategic video ad placement

The ultimate goal of all marketing is to get people to purchase your product or service. But, that may not be the immediate goal for every video. Decide whether you are trying to raise awareness of your product, help viewers understand a problem or achieve some other nurturing goal. Think about how your video will help move audiences from one section of the sales funnel to the next.

Consider the viewer’s state of mind as they consume content on each platform. Are they in learning mode, seeking out distraction, or actively shopping? Look for placement opportunities where the viewer’s mindset is most likely to match your goal for the video. 

If your goal is to convert buyers, traditional commercials might not be the best option. Users tend to be more passive while watching television and are unlikely to run out and buy your product at the moment. However, if awareness is your goal, television commercials might be worth the investment.

When you strategically place video content you are more likely to achieve your video marketing goals. For help creating a video ad, contact the video experts at IdeaRocket. 

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