YouTube’s newly launched campaign “More Than A Viewer” highlights the video site’s relationship with its users in a move to court UK advertisers by demonstrating that its audience is engaged in the content they’re watching, and has the power to drive behavior.
From AMV BBDO, the creative campaign flips the camera on YouTube viewers, showing a total of 27 people interacting with the site for a range of entertainment and education. It focuses on their actions and reactions as they watch YouTube videos while participating in activities such as yoga, putting on makeup, following a recipe—not always with success—and learning to play the guitar.
The B2B campaign comes amid a branding mishap for the video-sharing site after dozens of high-profile advertisers pulled their spending following The Times’ February report that their ads were appearing next to content funded by terrorist groups.
The mostly temporary boycott resulted in YouTube giving advertisers more control over where their content appears, and hiring additional staff to keep better tabs on placement.
The campaign, which aims to rebuild the video site’s reputation, debuted just in time for the start of upfronts in London, where YouTube, ITV and Channel 4 will meet with advertisers to showcase their programming for the year ahead.
YouTube’s “Brandcast” is scheduled for November 23. The company claims more than 1.5 billion users globally, and boasts that 95 percent of the time spent watching videos is “viewable and audible”—meaning its full-screen with the volume on, as opposed to with the sound off.
The distinction highlight’s YouTube’s role in the audio-visual industry amid growing competition from social media companies such as Facebook and Snapchat, which have ramped up their video programming with original content and partnerships with TV networks and other media outlets.
More Than A Viewer also features many viewers on-the-go as they connect to the site via phones and tablets, implying the significance of YouTube’s mobile consumption for advertisers.
The campaign includes 90, 30, 15 and 6-second spots tailored to YouTube’s platform, as well as ads in print, online and on out-of-home sites such as King’s Cross and Oxford Circus stations in London.
It’s expected to run only in the UK for now.
Credits
Client: YouTube
Agency: AMV BBDO
Executive Creative Director: Alex Grieve & Adrian Rossi
Creatives: Mike Crowe & Rob Messeter
Agency Producer: Sophie Honour
Account Handling: Jonny Spindler, Alistair Nichols
Planning: Craig Mawdsley, Candice Juniper
Media Agency: Essence and OMD
Production Company: Pulse Films
Directors: 32
Producer: Arleen McGann
Sound Design: 750 MPH
Editing: Ten Three
Post-Production: The Mill
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