Advertisements are actually the worst
I have a confession to make: I never, ever, unless I am away from my keyboard, watch a full advertisement video on YouTube.
I’m referring to the ones that give viewers the option to “skip ad” after about 5 seconds.
Shouldda, couldda, wouldda
As a marketing professional, and business owner who invests my last in good ad space, I should do better, but I just don’t have the patience.
Before you disown me though, you should know I’m not the only one.
You’ve probably even skipped an ad or two yourself but so have 71% of other americans according to a recent study by Launch Leap.
Numbers don’t lie
According to this study, although YouTube is the third most popular social media platform for daily usage among 18-34 year olds, people are not receiving the ad’s the way businesses hope.
Only 29% of survey respondents said they watch ad videos in their entirety.
The others use ad-blockers to avoid them (11%), while the remaining just wait for the “skip ad” button.
These low engagement rates for businesses means there’s about 50 more seconds of advertising content that goes unseen. That equates to 50 seconds of marketing funds wasted which could’ve otherwise been spent towards different marketing efforts.
So what’s that mean for businesses using YouTube ads?
Although YouTube provides the skip ad option, it’s no wonder businesses would target the reputable platform with video ads.
[clickToTweet tweet=”With such low engagement numbers, a change away from video ads can be expected.” quote=”But with such low engagement numbers, a change in marketing strategies can be expected.”]
I predict businesses start doing one of three things: invest to create even more captivating content that will make people actually stay; use advertisements that convey their message in only 5 seconds before the skip ad option; and pay to have sponsored videos appear in the suggested video sidebar.
How do you see businesses adjusting to the dismal advertisement engagement rates? Do you see them adjusting at all?
