YouTube has updated its TrueView ad format with a more interactive experience for viewers across all screens, and a new way of billing clicks.
Under the new scheme, YouTube is adding interactive cards to its TrueView video ads, so that marketers have the option to include more information as overlays atop their in-stream spots.
Advertisers’ TrueView cards can contain information about the brand or its products, a list of related videos or playlists from the advertiser and links to the advertiser’s website.
“We’re trying to make TrueView an even better creative canvas for brands. Video has always had sight, sound and motion…. We’re taking the next step and going deeper into interactivity,” said Phil Farhi, director-product management for YouTube Ads.
YouTube will also let advertisers edit extra information at the top of their video ads.
However these “annotations” only worked when watching YouTube on a desktop computer or laptop and were limited to text.
TrueView cards work on tablets and smartphones and eventually internet-connected TV devices like Apple TV and Google’s Chromecast.