U2BE Part Deux

To follow up on my previous post on YouTube, it was made clear to me by a forced loyal reader (probably the only reader) that I did not expound upon my answer to their monetization issue. I believe there would be great value in placing the ad around the border of the video screen for a few reasons, let me explain.

First, let’s play a little word associate game…Ads…no, not “tuberculosis”, you watch too much Seinfeld, I’d bet most of you come up with “annoying” within the first 3 words. Whether messing with your show on TV, making it impossible to flip the pages in a magazine, or in this case, watch the whole video on YouTube, ads are in the way. AdWords and AdSense have succeeded in part because they’re not in the way. Look at Facebook’s Beacon, failed because it was intrusive, in a little bit of a different way, but intrusive nonetheless.

What makes YouTube different than other web pages though? There's no scrolling, moving of the eyes left to right, up and down….no, it’s a dead on stare straight ahead. So put the ads there, almost. Placement around the perimeter ensures a couple things:

• The ad can’t be closed like current in video ads are
• The ad will be seen for the entire duration of the video (unless they listen, but who does that)

I’ve conceded this will wreak havoc with advertisers who need to create new online ads for their clients, but let’s look at this glass half full for a moment. A user now goes to Popular Mechanic’s website and sees an ad for Ford in a predetermined sized box that looks like every other Chevy, BMW, Volvo and Porche ad. With YouTube they have the unique advantage of having all the content of value in a centralized area, with the remainder of the page for robust, more create, and DIFFERENTIATING ads. Imagine if Ford instead animated a Mustang driving in and parking on top of the video of drag racing a user is viewing, and dropped down the new price and financing deals on either side. Perhaps Bud Light could bring back their frogs to hop across the screen chasing a fly holding a beer instead of having a picture of a girl in a bikini like every other ad. You get my point.

Sure I hear some of you screaming that the success of online advertising has been because of the ability to report EXACTLY how many users clicked on their ad, and consequently charge more. Who’s to say though this old ad sales pitch won’t fly?

“I will sell you a 40 foot by 20 foot sign on one of the busiest roads in America to be viewed by every man, woman and child who drives by for a low daily flat fee!”

Now throw in: we’ll only put the ad on roads where there’s people who like what you sell, these people don’t need to move a neck muscle to see your ad, and oh yea, they’re not driving 65 miles per hour and will view it for minutes on end! It just might work…