The digital age has brought the advertising world the ability to target specific components of a customer base efficiently. While large-scale technologies have been at the forefront of transforming a marketer’s toolbox in recent years. Similar levels of message customization are now being democratized for the masses.
Advertisers of all varieties, from the biggest of agencies to startups, can now leverage the tremendous power afforded by agile, tailored ad campaigns. As is often the case, Google is leading the charge in this movement, primarily through its YouTube platform.
With the introduction of YouTube Director Mix, YouTube now affords advertisers the ability to design and implement highly customized ad campaigns without the significant resources typically required for such efforts.
Requiring just primary digital assets and a clear perspective of the target audience, Director Mix allows advertisers to create a wide range of messages in varying tone, story, duration, and intent to create ad campaigns that engage a specific audience at all points within the sales funnel.
A cursory look at YouTube Director Mix
Given the innate power of video advertising, able to capture an audience and tell an immersive story like few other formats, it seems only natural that a native video platform would lead the way in providing advertisers new options to relay ideas and creativity.
Mobile video advertising continues to grow faster than any other digital advertising format, with predictions that mobile video ad spend will reach over $8.6 billion globally next year.
At its heart, YouTube’s Director Mix allows advertisers to create a wide variety of ads with just a handful of uploaded assets. Think of the platform as a Mr. Potato Head for an ad campaign, able to mix-and-match between different videos, voiceovers, stills, graphics and other forms of digital assets to create a dynamic, varied collection of ads that can be run on the YouTube platform.
Like Mr. Potato Head, a slight variation in a combination of assets can create an entirely different and unique look, feel, and tone to match a particular customer base and point within the funnel.
Such variation and the extreme number of resulting ads would’ve formally been significantly more draining of time, money, and effort.
With Director Mix, however, YouTube streamlines the process without sacrificing that needed variation to make the campaign continually fresh and innovative.
Integrating the benefits of big data
Given Google’s status as the heavyweight champion of organic search and consumer data, it only stands to reason that the company would leverage its significant capacity to supply advertisers with data to help curate the ads created through Director mix.
By integrating the many different components of Google’s line of business into the consumer data that drives Director Mix, advertisers can hone their messages to engage the specific audience they crave.
For instance, if a viewer has recently looked up a particular address through Google maps, the geographical data can now be used to present that viewer ads for businesses within that vicinity. Even utilizing the most advanced big data and machine learning systems, advertisers, have never been provided that level of immediacy to target their messages short of embedded geofencing apps.
Similarly, Director Mix can use an individual’s search queries to match advertisements to those that mesh well with the user’s interests. If someone is researching new cars, for instance, YouTube Director Mix software can present ads for companies that assist with car shopping, auto manufacturers, or any other related product or service.
Enjoy the benefits of machine learning without draining resources
Although advertisers have never been lacking for sufficient data regarding a customer base. The sheer scope and size of that data have traditionally made it unmanageable.
The algorithms that lie at the heart of machine learning are able to organize and analyze the data to provide advertisers a much-needed roadmap.
With YouTube Director Mix, however, the ability to leverage data no longer has to stem from machine learning platforms.
Sequencing ads for the funnel
As most advertisers would readily admit, tailoring the different components of a campaign to appeal to the various stages throughout the sales funnel is a demanding, sometimes even infuriating process. It’s not enough to come up with an innovative and engaging concept.
The ad campaigns that are best equipped to transform impressions to conversions are those that take the time and effort to customize message and tone for different points within the sales funnel.
A customer that is unfamiliar with the company or the offer is likely best engaged by an ad that builds a brand identity. The same ad will not work for a customer that is past that initial stage and closer to making a purchase.
YouTube Director Mix takes this need into account and affords the campaign the ability to properly sequence a set of ads to best influence a user depending on where they are in the sales funnel.
As this is an automated process on the new platform, advertisers can enjoy the same levels of ad efficiency and effectiveness that were previously achieved primarily through a far more laborious process.
When paired with a platform like YouTube’s TrueView ads, advertising is also afforded a cost efficiency that grants it a significantly higher level of optimization across several vital components of a campaign.
Although Director Mix isn’t the first of the customizable, automated ad platforms, it is certainly unique in the scope of what it provides a marketing team. Its integration into Google’s Custom Affinity Audience targeting abilities makes it exceptionally adept at isolating particular users with particular interests.
Nothing is perfect
For all the tremendous benefits YouTube’s Director Mix provides an advertiser, it of course still has its shortcomings. Google has already been put under a bit of a microscope regarding the ways it treats user data and customer privacy.
By integrating data from other components falling under the Google umbrella such as Google Search and Maps for instance. The metrics that drive the design and distribution of ads within Director Mix.
A large swath of the advertising community has always considered itself more artist than a statistician. Advertising has traditionally been a thoroughly human endeavor. Relying on a team’s collective creativity, charisma, and imagination to craft messages that appeal to some component of our humanity.
YouTube Director Mix is only as good as the assets it is provided. Although any company or agency with a Google Ads account is free to use the platform, they are also responsible for creating and uploading the digital assets that serve as the basis for the ads created. If those original assets are of poor quality it will likely show in the resulting ads. Even the most awe-inspiring buildings are ultimately unreliable if the foundation is shaky.
Director Mix and post-click landing pages: an advertiser’s power couple
Director Mix gives advertisers a simple and streamlined approach to building a highly personalized customer experience. However, an effective marketing strategy is one that engages and appeals across all points of the sales funnel. An advertising campaign that starts with persuasive ads but doesn’t generate sales will be a failure.
Pairing the ads created within Director Mix and a post-click landing page that provides a continuity of tone and message along with a persuasive call-to-action lends a power and potency to a campaign. Leveraging the unique approach of YouTube’s platform along with a matching and effective post-click landing page marks a considerable step forward for advertising personalization.
Sales conversions are reliant upon positive and fulfilling customer experiences. To generate the enhanced ROI and accompanying revenues that companies are striving for. The combination of creativity and specificity gave to advertisers by YouTube Director Mix.
The next phase of targeted advertising
To put it in more precise terms, this combination is the epitome of level 3 advertising that operates with a precision and speaks to the customer in a highly customized and specific fashion. Utilizing Director Mix and well-designed landing pages mark the effective end of advertisers fishing for customers with immense nets.
Level 3 of the Advertising Personalization Classification System employs a far higher degree of efficiency, fishing for those same schools of customers with much more efficient tools. Advertisers no longer have to worry themselves over appealing to the most extensive customer base. Instead, a targeted and customized approach will preserve resources while maximizing impact.
Customize your message throughout the funnel with Instapage
At Instapage, our 100% customizable platform allows our partners to create specific post-click landing pages to match and maximize tailored campaigns. Our innovative approach permits advertisers to create seamless and effective customer experience between ad and CTA that generate conversions.