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Video Is Now More Important for Google Search and PPC: What You Need to Know

Video Is Now More Important for Google Search and PPC: What You Need to Know

If you haven’t gotten on the video marketing bandwagon yet, Google is giving you even more reasons to reconsider. And whether through paid placement or organic strategy, you have many options when it comes to leveraging the power of video.

 

It’s no secret that Google owns YouTube. But did you know that YouTube isn’t just a video platform? It’s also the world’s second-largest search engine — right behind the Big G itself. And you can use video ads to get in on the action.

 

Through Google Ads, the company’s proprietary paid-search platform, Google lets you create video ad campaigns in a variety of lengths and formats. Ads are displayed on YouTube as well as video partner sites. Videos created with a Google Ads template will work with any campaign that’s video compatible, including Performance Max campaigns, app campaigns and video action campaigns.

 

Many Choices in Google Paid Search

Google dominates the U.S. paid search market, garnering more than 50% of total ad revenue share, beating out corporate giants like Amazon, Microsoft and Yelp. And when it comes to video ads, the platform offers numerous choices.

 

Skippable in-stream ads. You often see these at the beginning, middle or end of YouTube videos. Viewers can “skip” over them after five seconds.

 

Non-skippable in-stream ads. Similarly placed in content, non-skippable in-stream ads run a maximum of 15 seconds.

 

In-feed video ads. Previously called video discovery ads, in-feed ads appear in YouTube search results or alongside related YouTube videos and in a similar format, with a thumbnail image and text description.

 

Outstream ads. Only displayed on mobile, outstream ads appear on websites or apps running on Google video partners. They’re not shown on YouTube.

 

Bumper ads. These are non-skippable and play before, during or following other videos on YouTube or sites and apps running on Google video partners. They’re a maximum of six seconds in length.

 

Masthead ads. Reserved through a Google sales associate, masthead ads can appear on mobile, desktop or smart TVs and auto-play with sound muted for up to 30 seconds at the top of the YouTube Home feed. They feature an information panel that uses assets from your channel. You can include up to two companion videos.

 

Organic Reach

When it comes to nonpaid, organic search, you don’t have to be a mega-influencer to get people to see and engage with your business’s YouTube videos. But you do have to create high-quality content that adds value for viewers and then optimize it to amplify your reach.

 

Start by doing the same kind of homework you do to optimize written content for Google search. Research keywords and include them in the video file, title and description. Make sure your video content also includes your keywords, which will be picked up by your subtitles or closed captioning. Also include relevant hashtags — use tags and categorize your videos (this can be done under advanced settings).

 

Finally, leverage cards and end-screens to promote your brand. Cards can be found by clicking on the little “i” in the upper right-hand corner of your video. They can direct viewers to navigate to a website to make a purchase, allow them to participate in polls or be used to recommend other content. End screens are similar, but they display after a video is done playing.

 

What’s Next?

Google recently announced that Google Search Ads will soon allow video. They are also releasing a basic video editor within the Google Ads platform for creating slideshow-style videos. You’ve probably already seen YouTube videos ranking high on search engine results pages. Google will soon start to prioritize websites and landing pages that have original relevant video content on them, especially ones that meet their “helpful content update” standards.

 

Bottom Line

Don’t wait for prospects and customers to yell “Cut!” before you implement a video-forward marketing strategy for your business or brand. If you’re not sure where to start, our digital marketing experts are standing by to call “Action!” on your next video marketing campaign.

 

Sources

https://searchengineland.com/new-report-confirms-search-advertising-is-thriving-amid-economic-uncertainty-388004

https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/2375464?hl=en

https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/youtube-seo