YouTube is still one of the most popular platforms for content creators and advertisers, with many different types of ads for advertisers to use for their brands. Some are attention-grabbing banner ads, while others are the interactive and immersive kind that increase engagement.

This blog seeks to define bumper ads, the main form of advertisement used on YouTube. We’ll explain the best practices, so you have a better understanding of how they can be applied to a campaign. 

What Are YouTube Bumper Ads?

YouTube bumper ads are short video advertisements designed to reach customers and increase awareness for a brand. They are usually a brief message that is memorable and informative. 

The video also only runs for six seconds, and it can’t be skipped by the viewer. These can be run on their own as a campaign, which is ideal for marketers who are increasing awareness for their target market. 

Source: YouTube

How Much Do Bumper Ads Cost on YouTube?

Usually, the pricing for YouTube Bumper ads will vary based on your industry, location, and target audience. However, the good part about the cost of bumper ads is that advertisers only pay for the impression rate (CPM 1,000 impressions) instead of one set rate. This is perfect for those who truly want to see their money isn’t being wasted.

In general, while some industries or target audiences may be considerably higher you can expect to pay between $1 and $4 per thousand views.

How to Create a Bumper Ad on YouTube

Step 1: Login to Google Ads, navigate to the Campaigns page, and click the blue “+” button:

Source: AdExpresso

Step 2: Click New Campaigns

Step 3: Establish your campaign goal. For this example, we choose Brand Awareness and Reach

Step 4: Select Video as your campaign type.

Source: AdEspresso

Step 5: Select Bumper as your campaign subtypes

Source: AdEspresso

Afterwards,

• Enter your total campaign budget and start and end date for your campaign.
• Choose what networks you want your ad to show in.
• Set your audience’s language and location
• Establish where you don’t want your ads to be shown
• Use Additional Settings to choose what devices, frequency, and set other actions for your campaign
• Name your ad group
• Establish your target audience in the demographics section.
• Set keywords you want your ad to display for.
• Set your Target CPM, or the average rate you want to pay for every thousand views.

Step 6: Upload your video and hit Create Campaign.

After your ad is created, it generally takes Google no more than 24 hours to approve it.

This is How to Create Your YouTube Bumper Ads

There are key pieces that involve the bumper ad method. Take a look at the following to see what exact details go into making a bumper ad truly work for you and your brand. 

• Bumper ads work best with TrueView ads, as short videos have proven more effective.
• Bumper ads won’t increment the view count for YouTube. 
• Videos must be a few seconds or shorter. Longer videos are placed in a different category. 

Make sure to familiarize yourself with the different video campaigns to ensure they’re a good fit before starting your campaign. The video must also be hosted on YouTube. 

What Are the Best Practices?

There are three main best practices for this form of advertisement:

1. Keep the Focus to One Objective

If the ads are longer, you could set up a whole story scenario, but not with bumper ads. Be concise and make one objective a solid focus, so the message might be diminished with too much information in a short time. 

2. Make it Simple

Make sure to not overwhelm the viewer with too many visuals or too much text across the screen.  Keeping the ads simple creates a much bigger statement and more  understanding. 

3. Be Striking in the First Moment

Grab the viewer’s attention instantly. We live in a world where the attention span is shorter than ever before. Whether it’s an eye-opening visual or a funny moment, get your viewer to watch all the way through to the end, and have them remember it for long after the fact. 

What’s the Key Benefit?

Well, they’re proven to work! So many consumers turn a blind eye to most advertisements. Bumper ads, on the other hand, are short and direct, so the consumer has less incentive to cancel out of it. This means more engagement among more viewers, resulting in more conversions for your brand. 

Our Final Thoughts

Bumper ads are certainly short, but they can be quite effective. With so many different key pieces and benefits, we find it a great addition to online campaigns. They are simple, but it’s these advertisements that convince viewers to click websites, pick up phones, or go to the store. 

What are your final thoughts on digital bumper ads? Let us know if you’ve used this method in your campaigns, or if you plan to in the near future. With so many success stories from other brands, why not give it a shot