Partnering to help you reach your customers throughout the purchase journey

In YouTube’s 15 years, the world has changed in countless unpredictable ways. Over the last 15 weeks, the pace of that change has accelerated more than we’d ever thought possible. This is a challenging time for many brands and businesses, and it’s also a time to reassess; to reexamine what’s no longer working and where opportunities might lie, both in the long term and the right now.

In this shifting landscape, the unique role that YouTube plays in people’s lives has also accelerated, as viewers come to our platform for advice on everything from homeschooling to home hairdressing, de-stressing and staying connected. At the height of stay at home directives in March and April, YouTube saw a 25% increase in watchtime overall, including a 29% increase on TV screens in the U.S.

That’s a shift driven by people looking for helpful content, but also by YouTube’s power to reach every demographic with content that speaks personally to them. My oldest son, for instance, is a classic ‘cord cutter’ who watches mostly esports. I’m more into personalized content that linear TV can’t offer, like rap versions of Dr Seuss classics (seriously, check it out). 

So in this new context, how are we at YouTube helping businesses better connect with these engaged audiences? Well, firstly, we’re making it easier to reach viewers watching the content they love. By reimagining Google Preferred as a new upfront solution called YouTube Select, we’re able to offer more diverse content, and more capabilities for the TV screen. YouTube can help you drive reach alongside TV. Recent Nielsen Total Ad Ratings studies found that 66% of the target audience reached by YouTube was incremental to TV. 

We’re also focusing on helping brands drive results toward the end of the purchase journey. YouTube ads that drive action, from website clicks to downloads and purchases, have driven nearly one billion conversions in the past 12 months.

In a time when your dollars need to do more for you than ever, YouTube works throughout the purchase journey. In an MMM meta-analysis we commissioned with Nielsen, YouTube had greater incremental sales per impression than Other Online Video in 81% of MMMs that measured YouTube, Other Digital, TV and Other OLV in 2016-2019.

As we all learn to adapt and evolve in this moment, YouTube will do our part to provide our users with a platform that meets their needs. The world continues to change – and the brands, businesses and individuals who embrace those changes have a bright future to look forward to. 

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