Video Ads
Advertising in video format, served before, during or between content on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Meta or the open web.
Also known as: Video Advertising
Video ads are advertising assets delivered in video format rather than as image or pure text. They run before, during or between content on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Meta, X, LinkedIn and on the open web. Video advertising combines image, motion, sound and language and therefore achieves higher attention than static formats, provided the first seconds carry.
Common formats
In stream ads run inside another video, for example before or inside a piece of content on YouTube. Out stream ads appear in articles and feeds that originally had no video player. Vertical short video ads dominate TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts. Connected TV ads run on smart TVs inside streaming services and reach classic TV audiences without a traditional broadcaster booking.
What successful video ads share
The first two seconds decide whether a video gets a chance at all. Brand and main message therefore belong on screen early. Subtitles are mandatory because many users scroll without sound on mobile. Short formats under ten seconds work for awareness, mid length formats for explanation, long formats above thirty seconds only when the content truly earns the attention.
In everyday marketing
Anyone producing video advertising should work with multiple cuts, for example a six second bumper version and a fifteen second full version, so the same idea runs across several slots. Tracking happens through the respective platform pixels or conversion APIs, complemented by UTM parameters on the clicks. A landing page is essential that picks up the visual language of the spot and delivers on its promise instead of pushing the user into a generic form.