Guide to YouTube ad operations are not the same as ads on Google search or paid social media platforms. There are specific creative constraints and different bidding models that need to be taken into account.
Start with one of the guided campaign setups to get your account up and running as quickly as possible. These are recommended based on the objectives and goals you select, such as increasing sales, leads or traffic to your website.
Then, determine how you want to be charged for your YouTube ads — cost-per-click (CPC) or cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM). This will affect your budget strategy and should be based on the goals of your campaign.
Operational Insights: A Comprehensive Guide to YouTube Ad Operations
You can also use topic targeting to show your ad on videos and channels related to the topics you choose. This is similar to keyword targeting but typically works better for awareness campaigns than conversion-focused ones.
YouTube recommends adding content exclusions to ensure your ads appear only on relevant video instances. You can choose to exclude specific categories, such as profanity or sexual content, or even exclude specific YouTube videos or channels.
YouTube also has brand safety settings that help ensure your ads don’t appear next to inappropriate content. These are recommended if your business is sensitive to the reputation of its products or services. You can also set up expanded inventory, standard inventory and limited inventory to further restrict the places your ads are shown to keep them on-brand.