If you are looking to run ads to generate leads for your business then chances are you have probably considered or tried mainstream ad platforms like Meta or Google search ads but, you haven’t probably considered YouTube as a source, or maybe you have and that is why you are here reading this😅.
If you have considered YouTube as a lead gen source, I can bet that you haven’t considered the method I am about to share here with you today.
Why? because no one on the internet is talking about it and only a handful of people know about it.
But before we begin explaining the process of effective lead gen with YouTube let’s tackle the elephant in the room.
Are YouTube ads good for lead generation?
In the digital age, where visual content reigns supreme, YouTube has emerged as a powerhouse for marketers aiming to engage audiences and generate leads. With over 2 billion logged-in monthly users, 500 hours of content uploaded to the platform every minute, the platform offers unprecedented reach and engagement opportunities. So yes Youtube ads are an effective lead generation tool,and they stand out as a strategic asset for businesses seeking to amplify their brand awareness and capture high-quality leads efficiently.
Not only is YouTube a video hub and an advertising network it is also the second biggest search engine in the world processing more queries than Bing, Yahoo and some other smaller search engines. HINT: this is an opportunity and is connected to the secret lead generation strategy that we will talk about later in the article.
I know what you are thinking now!
What does it cost to run ads on YouTube?
While the exact ad costs may vary and estimate by surfsideppc suggests the cost of YouTube advertising can be around $0.10 on average and CPM (cost per thousand impressions) can be $10 on average.
Understanding YouTube’s Advertising Platform
YouTube, with its billions of users, offers an advertising platform unmatched in reach and engagement potential. It’s a place where video content is king, and where targeted ads can perform exceptionally well if used correctly. For lead generation, understanding the various ad formats YouTube offers is crucial. TrueView in-stream ads, for example, allow viewers to skip ads after 5 seconds but can include calls-to-action (CTAs) for lead generation, making them a great tool for marketers.
The Mechanics of YouTube Lead Generation Ads
Lead generation ads on YouTube are designed to capture interest and gather information from potential customers directly through the ad. These ads typically come with customizable CTAs and lead form templates, enabling viewers to submit their information without leaving the YouTube platform and making the experience frictionless for the user.
Setting Up Your First YouTube Lead Generation Campaign
If you are a pro and just need the strategy, you can scroll all the way down to the “Meat and Potatoes” section to directly learn about the lead generation strategies. But if this is your first time creating a campaign, this might be useful.
Creating a lead generation campaign on YouTube involves several steps:
1. Define Your Campaign Goals:
Clear objectives are essential. Whether it’s increasing sign-ups, downloads, or collecting email addresses, your goal will shape your campaign’s direction. The image below contains a list of objectives that are available when building out your campaign in Google ads account.
2. Choose the Right Ad Format:
Skippable In-stream Ads:
Videos that play before, during, or after other videos, which viewers can skip after 5 seconds.Non-skippable In-stream Ads:
Short ads that cannot be skipped, ensuring the viewer watches the entire message.Bumper Ads:
Very short (6 seconds or less) video ads that cannot be skipped, ideal for brief, memorable messages.Display Ads:
Image-based ads shown to the right of the feature video and above the video suggestions list; only on desktop.In-feed Ads:
Ads that appear in places where viewers discover content, like on the YouTube homepage, search results, or next to related videos.Overlay Ads:
Semi-transparent ads that appear on the lower portion of the video, offering a direct call to action.Sponsored Cards:
Small cards that appear within videos, showcasing products featured in the video.Masthead Ads:
High-visibility ads displayed at the top of YouTube’s homepage, available on a reservation basis through a Google sales representative.
For detailed descriptions and strategic applications, visit Setupad’s guide on YouTube ad formats.
3. Craft Compelling Video Content:
The success of your ad heavily relies on the quality and relevance of your video content. It should engage viewers and clearly communicate the value of your offer.
Some tips for youtube ad creatives you should consider:
Use an element of surprise
Be relatable
Find inspiration from the competition
Be clear with your call to actions
Tell a story
Aim to be native to the platform
Leverage user generated content
Be conscious of your target devices
Optimizing Landing Pages for YouTube Traffic
The journey doesn’t end with a click. Optimizing your landing pages is crucial for converting YouTube traffic into leads. Ensure that your landing page is directly relevant to the ad, with a clear value proposition and a simple, user-friendly form. Fast loading times and mobile optimization are also critical, considering the significant portion of YouTube traffic that comes from mobile devices.
If you want to dive deeper into landing page optimization for Youtube ads consider this guide by OMG commerce.
Targeting and Segmentation Strategies
YouTube offers sophisticated targeting options to ensure your ads reach the right audience. These include demographic targeting, interest targeting, and remarketing. For lead generation, it’s vital to segment your audience and tailor your message to match their specific needs and interests. This targeted approach increases the relevance of your ads and improves conversion rates.
Meat and Potatoes
So now that we have the foundational stuff out of the way, let’s talk about how you can generate leads effectively and efficiently using YouTube ads.
High intent traffic diversion
Combined audience targeting
Google interest signal targeting
Now remember, all of these strategies follow the same campaign level setup,but are different ad groups within a lead generation campaign.
Here is how we will structure the campaign.
We will select “create campaign without a goal guidance”
Choose video as the campaign type
Choose video views as the subtype
Strategy 1 – High intent traffic diversion
For this strategy we are targeting people extremely close to the bottom of the funnel by targeting them based on the content they are watching. This is also known as placement targeting inside Google ads platform.
For example: let’s say we are selling a project management tool, we want to find people who are consuming content that signals intent to buy project management tools or directly relevant content.
But before we begin this strategy we will need a tool that helps us find this relevant content where we can place our ads.
This is where Adzaps can do its magic, simply signup to a free or paid account.
Once you have an Adzaps account build out a campaign to find highly targeted placements for your Youtube ads.
Once you have this list simply select all these videos and copy their link to clipboard.
Next, paste all these links into the placement targeting option inside your Google ads.
Use this as the only targeting criteria and add as many placements as relevant to reach maximum people.
The people watching these videos are high quality leads who are experiencing the problem you are solving and with an effective message and offer you can reach people who are ready to buy with this method.
Note: With this lead generation strategy Google/YouTube will not show your ads to anyone beyond the viewers of your targeted videos, so make sure that you provide enough placements to reach a decent pool of potential leads.
Strategy 2 – Combined audience targeting
If your goal is to generate leads and sales, start with a custom intent audience campaign. Identify 3-10 keywords your ideal customers are likely typing into YouTube. For this strategy we will use a mixture of Keyword based targeting and behavioral targeting.
These can be ‘how to’, ‘reviews’, and even competitor product names. Your goal is to create an audience full of people actively researching your offers.
These keywords are also available through the Adzaps search we made earlier.
Google will use this information to find people interested in what you sell and run your ads to them. Since this is a sales/lead generation campaign use in-stream ads only.
This campaign will only have two ad groups:
Ad Group A: ‘People with any of these interests or purchase intentions
Ad Group B: ‘People who searched for any of these terms on Google’
Strategy 3 – Google interest signal targeting
For your 3rd leads/sales campaign test out relevant In-Market audiences. Review the latest options from Google and make a list of every In-Market and Life Event audience that may be relevant to your business. Choose 3-5 to start with for your second campaign.
One targeting option per ad group AND all ad groups should be one targeting type.
Once your campaign is running, wait 7 days or at least 1,000 impressions before you start making changes. Your goal is to find the best audience targeting and video ad combinations. If an audience or video is under performing, just pause it and move on with the ones that are working
