What direct response / D2C physical product ads are working right now, post iOS update on YouTube?

Most importantly, why are they working and what takeaways can you apply to your own YouTube advertising?

Let’s take a closer look at 3 of this summer’s best from inside the VidTao YouTube ad competitive intelligence dashboard...

PillowCube

Offer: https://www.pillowcube.com/

Adspend: ~$2.6M

Key Takeaways:

  • Strong opening 5 seconds: Opening question “Why do we make our pillow in the shape of a cube?” combined with curiosity-provoking cube pillow visual immediately captures attention and gets viewers to stick around past the “skip ad” button.
  • Clear visual demonstration of value: Clear visual explanation of why normal pillows don’t suit our anatomy. Clear demonstration of why a cube pillow is better:

  • Built for Short Attention Spans: Notice how the viewer is given something new to focus on every 2 seconds throughout the video. The video doesn’t linger on any one thing, and as a result the viewer has no time to get bored.
  • Effective use of comedy: Many big budget comedy ads fall flat in terms of performance. In this case, notice how each demonstration of value is combined with a visual comedic “gag”. “Perfect pillow for spooning”, “Perfect for office naps”, “Try it out on the airplane”.
  • Music Tempo: What is said / shown on screen is obviously crucial to a video’s performance. But don’t underestimate the power of background sound & sound effects. According to retail researchers, slower music can result in 38% more time spent in a store, and a correspondingly more purchased by customers, versus faster tempo music that causes shoppers to speed up and move through the store faster. YouTube ads exist in an entirely different context, where your main enemy is boredom and the main objective is to get qualified clicks which result in sales. Faster tempo background music has been shown to increase betting speed in laboratory controlled experiments. So to keep the viewer engaged and give more encouragement to click, try faster tempo background music, like PillowCube does here.

4Patriots Survival Food

Offer: https://4patriots.com/products/3-month-survival-food-kit

Adspend estimate: ~$380k in the past 2.5 months

Key Takeaways:

  • Strong 5 second intro with immediate disqualification: The video starts with a GoPro 1st person angle of the product, while the speaker says, “this is a full 3 months of food, without needing any refrigeration or special storage.” The user is presented a binary choice: Either you’re bored or interested by the idea of having 3 months of non-perishable survival food. If you aren’t? Great - you skip the ad and 4Patriots doesn’t pay anything for the ad impression. But if you are? You see the product and its major benefits in an intriguing way, right away.
  • 1st Person “Unboxing” angle: More on the 5 second intro: The 1st person GoPro angle serves both as a pattern interrupt (most videos we’re used to seeing on YouTube are not taken from this angle) and is a compelling way to draw the viewer’s attention to the product, right away. Notice how the video quickly transitions to a more typical sales video, immediately after this DIY intro.
  • Great use of UGC: This ad, like most 4Patriots ads, does an amazing job of incorporating user generated content (UGC) to build credibility and show the product in action. (Go and look at all the 4Patriots ads inside VidTao and you’ll see many great examples of this format).

  • “No brainer” offer stack: Notice how this offer stacks an easy payment plan, massive bonuses, cash back rebate, and an iron-clad guarantee to make buying a 3 month supply of food a complete “no brainer” offer. How can you make it as easy as possible for you prospect to say “yes” to your offer? And then how can you make sure you are communicating this in your ad?

Manscaped

Offer: https://www.manscaped.com/products/the-performance-package

Adspend estimate: ~$1.7M

Key Takeaways:

  • Use of Sound Effects: Notice how this ad uses sound effects to keep the viewer engaged. The zip of the box being opened. The scratch of the grip on the shaver. The click as the blade is attached. All these little sound effects seem inconsequential but they definitely minimize boredom and keep the viewer engaged.
  • “Native” Product Review Content Angle: Excessorizeme is the content creator who Manscaped partnered with to create this video. The unboxing video is a type of organic content most of us are used to seeing on YouTube, and the overall feel of this video makes it feel less like an ad and more like actual non-paid content “native” to YouTube. Have you tried partnering with existing content creators to build new content for your ads? This can be a great way to get quality, fresh ad content without breaking the bank. Share in the Comments what’s worked for you and/or if you have any questions on the specifics of sourcing great ad content from creators.
  • Product Demo: If you have a physical product? Show it in action. Manscaped does this here with a quick application to the hand here:

(See one phenomenal use of product demo to sell a physical product via video ad here: https://blog.vidtao.com/this-43-year-old-ecommerce-video-ad-generated-half-a-billion-in-sales/)

What Physical Product / eCommerce Ads are you testing now?

Got an eCommerce / Physical Product YouTube ad you’re trying to run? Want some feedback? Go ahead and share in the Comments section and we’ll send our best custom feedback.

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What are your YouTube ad questions?

In the meantime, what questions do YOU have about YouTube ads?

Let us know in the Comments section below, and we’ll make sure to cover your question in an upcoming post.

Have a nice day!

The VidTao Team


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