YouTube Upgrades Promoted Videos Service

YouTube has introduced new ways for individuals or companies to advertise through its video platform. From now on, people looking to promote products or services through videos on YouTube have an extra option to feature their product in the “Related Videos” category.

Slowly, but surely, Google is reshaping the video sharing platform into a money-making giant just as it did with online advertising through AdWords. Users looking to advertise on YouTube can do this in three ways: the classic AdWords service, in-video ads or the Promoted Videos service.

If users don't want to promote themselves through a home-made or professional-made video, they can choose to buy advertising space on YouTube pages or inside their videos. The in-video ads are very similar to what AdWords look like and how they work.

Inside the video box, there is a small space at the bottom of the page, where YouTube has decided to show ads for short periods of times or until the user decides to close the advertisement. The space can be filled with regular text, HTML formatted text or with graphics.

Another way to promote a service or product on YouTube is through the usage of a video in the Promoted Videos service. These need to be uploaded on YouTube, and the member should join the service (this can be done here).

Initially, the service offered users the possibility of featuring a clip on the video search results page. Promoted videos were always shown on the right and sometimes marked with an yellow background or a text line quoting “Featured video.”

With the new extension introduced by YouTube, users that have joined the Promoted Videos service will now be able to opt for their videos to be promoted inside the “Related Videos” category that appears on any video page. This section is in the right column of the page, under the membership info and the “More from this user” category. Clips in this section are marked with the “Featured video” tag or have a yellow background.

Knowing that only 3% of all the videos have ads displayed inside of them, someone could only imagine the amount of profit that could be earned from a campaign like this, if it proves to be as successful as AdWords.