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  • Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

    Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

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    As more people opt for quick and engaging visuals that instantly capture attention, so does the number of brands who include short-form video content (or shorts) in their digital marketing strategies. YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce businesses a powerful platform for capitalizing on these bite-sized video consumption trends. 

    The bottom line is this format is versatile for storytelling, showcasing products, and driving audience engagement, making it a critical digital marketing tool.

    But is it for everyone? 

    This post will answer exactly that! We will explain everything you need to know about using YouTube Shorts videos for your brand and why you absolutely should, and include some inspiring YouTube Shorts examples throughout. 

    Let’s jump in!

    Understanding YouTube Shorts

    Similar to TikTok, YouTube Shorts cater to the growing demand for quick, engaging content and provide a new way for users to connect and share on the platform. 

    Simply put, they are short-form videos on YouTube that allow creators and brands to upload content up to 60 seconds in length. And unlike regular YouTube videos, Shorts include vertical video perspectives, unlike the horizontal mode of longer videos on the platform. 

    Integrated within YouTube’s vast ecosystem, Shorts are no more than a minute long and were designed to enhance visibility and reach, particularly among younger audiences. They can be viewed on YouTube’s homepage, the app’s Shorts tab, and on channel homepages.

    Debuted as a beta in India in September 2020, YouTube Shorts is riding the wave of rising popularity for short-form video content. Following its success, the feature went global, with an extensive rollout that started in March 2021. Since then, brands such as Fashion Nova have been jumping onto the YouTube Shorts video bandwagon. 

    eCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion NovaeCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion Nova

    YouTube Shorts Statistics 

    • By the end of 2023, YouTube Shorts hit 70 billion daily views
    • The average time spent per day on YouTube increased since adding Shorts, which is now around 48.7 minutes 
    • The largest age group using YouTube is between 25 and 34
    • YouTube has the highest average session duration compared to other platforms 

    average session time for YouTube average session time for YouTube

    [Source: Data Reportal

    Talking about comparing…

    YouTube Shorts vs. TikTok vs. Instagram Reels 

    YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels each carve out their niche in the growing consumption of short-form video content, targeting different audiences with various content styles. While TikTok is designed to captivate with highly creative, trend-setting content, Instagram Reels’ integration with its social media features capitalizes on an established user base. 

    YouTube Shorts, on the other hand, leverages the extensive YouTube ecosystem, offering videos up to 60 seconds that benefit from YouTube’s powerful search and recommendation algorithms.

    Let’s take a quick look at each of its main distinguishing features.

    YouTube Shorts 

    1. Unique features. Being part of YouTube means users get long-form and short-form content on one platform.
    2. Content style. Matches YouTube’s wide-ranging vibe and is less about casual clips and more about variety. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Access to YouTube’s well-established, unique audience and the ability to use Shorts to promote long-form content without needing to send users to another platform.
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. Most (21.3%) Shorts viewers are aged 25 to 34. 

    Gymshark is a brand that understands the advantages of YouTube Shorts and dominates with them. Take a look at the view metrics for some of their latest Shorts

    YouTube Shorts for businesses example YouTube Shorts for businesses example

    TikTok 

    1. Unique features. From green-screen effects to image carousels, TikTok is packed with unique features. 
    2. Content style. Although content styles change a lot with changing trends, authenticity is a key content must. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Significantly boosts brand visibility and engagement through viral Shopping content
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The majority of TikTok users are aged between 18 and 34. 

    You can read more about TikTok in the following guides: 

    Instagram Reels 

    1. Unique features. From easy-to-use text, AR filters, creative tools and audio, to Meta’s powerful reach, Instagram Reels are a quick way to get branded, short-form content. 
    2. Content style. Generates more refined content than, say, TikTok, but still veers toward authenticity.  
    3. Marketing advantages. Instagram Reels’ direct shopping capabilities (such as tagged product videos) offers advanced product discovery.  
    4. Video length. Up to 90 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The biggest pools of users are between 18–24 and 25–34 years old.

    You can read more about Instagram Reels in the following guides: Instagram Reels for Business: Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples and 9+ High-Performing Instagram Ads Examples to Steal.

    YouTube Shorts Benefits 

    Now, let’s quickly explore the distinctive features and opportunities YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce marketers! 

    A Gateway to Richer Content

    Being part of YouTube means that Shorts serve as a gateway for discovering long-form videos — allowing eCommerce brands to blend short and long videos. This enables you to accommodate varying consumer interests, turning short video viewers into channel lovers, and, ultimately, product buyers. 

    More Evergreen Content Opportunities

    Unlike other, more momentary channels, Shorts remain accessible indefinitely, enhancing long-term visibility. This means that your evergreen Shorts will continue to attract views and other content engagements months after posting. 

    Broader Audience Reach

    Launching within YouTube’s massive user base, Shorts instantly tapped into a broader audience spectrum. By leveraging this reach, you can pinpoint and engage specific segments to refine your targeting strategies and ensure content consistency that resonates with existing subscribers while appealing to potential customers.

    Wider Audience Engagement 

    The wide demographic reach highlighted above also means that brands have the opportunity to engage with broad audiences, from younger short-form enthusiasts to older audiences that other platforms (like Reels or TikTok) may not appeal to. This enables more tailored content strategies that appeal to professionals, older generations, or specific consumer interests.

    Stability and Trustworthiness

    Lastly, because YouTube is a well-established platform with a longstanding reputation, Shorts is a stable and trustworthy channel for eCommerce marketing. The lower risk of unexpected restrictions or disruptions allows for a more secure investment in content development.

    How to Get Started with YouTube Shorts

    To start your YouTube Shorts strategy off right, you need a blend of creativity and strategy. Let’s outline the key steps you need to take to kickstart your journey, from establishing your presence with a dedicated YouTube channel to crafting and sharing your first engaging Short.  

    1. Create a YouTube channel. If you haven’t already set one up, you will need a YouTube channel to post Shorts. (You can follow our guide on doing just that, here.) 
    2. Download the YouTube app. You will want to ensure you have the latest version of the YouTube app to take advantage of the newest Shorts features. Use the Shorts camera in the YouTube app for easy recording, video editing, and music uploading.
    3. Build your YouTube Shorts content plan. Here, you can identify critical product features, upcoming promotions, trending topics, and customer success stories that align with your brand’s narrative, and build your content plan accordingly. 
    4. Record your Short. Your YouTube app’s Shorts camera allows you to record video. Ideally, record in segments, adding each part to create a complete video.   
    5. Edit your video and add tags. Next, you will use the YouTube app video editing tool to trim videos, add text overlays, or incorporate music. Then craft compelling titles that include keywords and hashtags to boost discoverability.
    6. Publish your Short. Finally, you are ready to publish, monitor, and engage with audience comments. 

    Here’s a comprehensive video made by YouTube creators on how you can create Shorts. 

    But you don’t have to start shooting everything from scratch — you can also make Shorts from your existing videos. Let’s quickly run through how. 

    How to Make YouTube Shorts from Existing YouTube Videos 

    To craft a YouTube Short from an existing video or livestream, whether it’s your creation or someone else’s, start by clicking the “Create” button beneath the video. Decide if you want to “Cut” a clip to maintain the original audio or create a fresh “Sound” for a personalized audio touch. 

    After selecting and refining your segment:

    • Hit “Next”
    • Input your Short’s specifics
    • Upload YouTube Shorts to share your snippet with the world

    Tips for Creating Engaging YouTube Shorts

    When you start creating YouTube Shorts from scratch, how do you best do it to boost engagement, brand awareness, and, ultimately, sales? In this section, we give you a few YouTube Shorts creation tips to get you started! 

    1. Grab Attention from the First Second 

    As with any short video content, you need to hook your audience early. For YouTube Shorts, this could mean starting with an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a compelling visual within the first few seconds to grab attention immediately. 

    You also want to use engaging thumbnails to make your content stand out and elicit that click-to-view. Cosmetic giants Lush are experts at this. Here’s one of their most popular videos that catches your attention right away.

    2. Get Creative with Music and Effects 

    Other important elements of Shorts are royalty-free background music and sound effects. While it is essential to assume some viewers mute tvideos, you still want to make sure you create a vibe for those who do. A catchy tune or comedic sounds can go a long way to doing just that. 

    Here’s a YouTube Shorts example from Warby Parker’s YouTube channel

    3. Jump on Trends and Challenges

    Unlike longer videos, trends and viral content aren’t in short supply with short-form content! 

    Participating in trends is a good way to get traction with your Shorts. To keep your content plans relevant, you need to stay up to date with the latest trends and challenges on YouTube and other social media platforms. 

    You could create your own YouTube Shorts challenge to encourage community participation and sharing. Here are some of the more popular challenges: 

    • Ghost pepper challenges
    • Pancake art challenges
    • Random exercise challenges 
    • Try-not-to-laugh challenges
    • 7-second challenges
    • 24-hour challenges 
    • The-floor-is-lava challenges
    • Blindfolded makeup challenges

    You might also want to take advantage of some of YouTube Shorts’ newer features, such as COLLAB, to collaborate with creators, like-minded brands, and your customers for challenges. 

    Pro Tip: What Kind of Shorts Do Well on YouTube?

    Good news for eCommerce marketers: some of the most popular YouTube Shorts topics line up perfectly for product sellers and influencer marketing campaigns. These include makeup and beauty, entertainment, food and drink, video games, and sports. 

    Here’s a YouTube video breaking down some popular YouTube Shorts niches and how you can monetize them (as a creator) or steal them (as a brand). 

    4. Add Text for Clarity 

    Another Short video tip is using text and graphics for effect. 

    Text overlays are vital to emphasize important points or add context where audio can’t be used. In addition, including captions will make your YouTube Shorts more accessible to a wider audience, including those who prefer to watch videos without sound or those who are hearing impaired.

    In fact, more and more people report that they prefer videos with subtitles, with captions said to dramatically increase video engagement. One study found that as many as 80% of viewers are more likely to watch a video to the end if it has subtitles! 

    5. End with a Strong CTA 

    Like with any marketing element, you need a strong CTA to encourage interaction. You want your YouTube Shorts video to be clear, directing your viewers to like, comment, share, or subscribe, fostering engagement and building your community.

    And the more engagement and response your Shorts get, the more significantly you can boost conversions. They also help you gain invaluable insights into specific actions that you can use for other marketing elements. Here are a few examples to get you started. 

    CTA ideas for YouTube shorts CTA ideas for YouTube shorts

    Sometimes, your message needs just a few more words! Take Sephora, for instance. Even though this whole YouTube Short is a call to action to recycle beauty product containers, it still ends with a CTA note. 

    6. Experiment, Analyze, and Tweak 

    When it comes to any successful content marketing strategy, you want to continuously test, tweak, and analyze. This means experimenting with different content types and analyzing their results to mine for vital insights you can use to drive content ideas further down the line. 

    And don’t be afraid to experiment with different styles or types of content to see what resonates most with your audience. Then regularly review your Shorts’ performance analytics to understand viewer preferences and refine your content strategy. 

    Hacks to Maximize Your YouTube Shorts’ Reach

    Expanding your YouTube Shorts’ visibility is crucial to broadening your content’s reach and ensuring your Shorts captivate as many viewers as possible. Let’s look at some of the top ways you can do that. 

    1. Invest in a YouTube Video PPC Strategy 

    Last year, YouTube started rolling out Shorts placement for video action campaigns. They then started showing product feeds connected to these campaigns in Shorts, making them shoppable. This means that if you’re running YouTube video campaigns, you should already be seeing Shorts placement. 

    youtube short example youtube short example

    If you haven’t yet invested in eCommerce YouTube ads, now is the time. Not only to improve the reach of your Shorts, but to help boost traffic to your online store. 

    Looking to scale your business?

    Get Google Ads hacks for free (used by our 500K customers)

    2. Optimize for Discoverability

    You can put all the effort you can muster into your Shorts, but if you aren’t reaching the right viewer, you’re missing the mark. This is where discoverability optimization comes in. Here are a few ways you can do that: 

    1. Exploit keyword-rich titles and descriptions to improve visibility in YouTube search results 
    2. Add trending and relevant hashtags to increase the chances of being discovered by a wider audience 
    3. Interact with comments to boost engagement metrics and improve chances for YouTube’s algorithm to recommend your content 
    4. Leverage YouTube Stories and community posts to promote Shorts to existing subscribers and increase content engagement 
    5. Partner with other brands and YouTube creators to tap into new niche audiences 

    Talking about creators…

    3. Collaborate with Creators or Brands 

    Another way to get more eyes on your content is by collaborating with other people or brands. 

    By working with creators or influencers, or partnering with other brands, you can tap into their audiences and introduce your brand channel to potential new subscribers — and shoppers. Here are a few ideas to get you started: 

    1. Host a joint giveaway or contest with creators or brands whereby viewers need to engage with both channels 
    2. Leverage cross-promotion on social media to share behind-the-scenes content, teaser clips, or to simply promote the collaboration across your Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook profiles to maximize reach 
    3. Create a collaborative series of Shorts where you tackle topics, challenges, or create content that is relevant to both audiences

    Let’s say you’re a fashion brand. You could partner with a beauty influencer to create a series of “Complete the Look” Shorts. In each Short, you could feature the influencer styling a fashion item from your store with their makeup tips. This type of collaboration not only helps you reach new audiences. It helps you showcase your products while adding real value for your audiences and establishing your brand as an expert in fashion. 

    4. Leverage the Power of Thumbnails

    YouTube Shorts thumbnails may be small, but they are often the first thing a potential viewer will see. By creating captivating custom thumbnails for your Shorts, you are able to grab attention on and off the social media platform. 

    They also play a role in ensuring that the Shorts page of your channel is inviting and that all your content is easy to discover. Therefore, you want to ensure that you maintain a consistent style or branding across your thumbnails to make your content instantly recognizable and enticing for the view-click. Additionally, you may want to consider incorporating brief, compelling text overlays that tease the content of the Short or highlight the value within, further encouraging clicks. 

    Or not! The best approach is one that perfectly fits your specific brand, vibe, and market. Take a look at eCommerce giant ASOS’s Shorts feed, which does just that. 

    brand youtube shorts example brand youtube shorts example

    5. Consistent Posting Schedule

    Like with any marketing platform, consistency is key! By maintaining a regular posting schedule, you keep your audience engaged. The more engaged your audience is, the more likely YouTube will recommend your content. 

    If your aim is to quickly boost your account and catch that viral wave with your short-form videos, you may want to consider ramping up your posting frequency to two or three times daily. This may sound daunting — but you can start by repurposing your existing video content instead of starting from scratch. 

    According to SocialPilot, the best times to post on YouTube are displayed in the chart below. Of course, these are average estimates, so you should test and tweak optimum post times for your specific brand and audience. 

    best time of day to post on YouTube best time of day to post on YouTube

    Strategies for Driving Product Sales with YouTube Shorts

    This part of our guide is dedicated to outlining actionable strategies that can turn your YouTube viewers into customers. This means being able to capitalize on the dynamic and engaging nature of Shorts to boost your eCommerce success. 

    Through a mix of affiliate marketing, user-generated content, product teasers, and interactive demonstrations, these strategies are designed to not only capture attention but also to convert that attention into sales. 

    Let’s dive in. 

    1. Leverage Influencer Marketing and Affiliate Programs

    Influencer marketing and affiliate programs can be good ways to drive product sales from YouTube Shorts. Both enable you to leverage the vast reach and credibility of established online personalities and platforms.

    By partnering with YouTube influencers with niche audiences, you are tapping into their fans — fans who will trust their product recommendations. This also enables you to include more authentic endorsements in YouTube Shorts, which helps build product and brand trust while increasing visibility. 

    Similarly, offering an affiliate program for your brand helps you to promote products. Because it’s permanence-based, this can be a cost-effective strategy. It also gives you additional (valuable) data that you can use to drive our marketing strategies beyond just YouTube optimization. 

    Let’s say you’re an eCommerce brand specializing in sustainable fashion. You could collaborate with eco-conscious fashion influencers on YouTube to create Shorts videos showcasing how to style different pieces for different occasions. These influencers could then use your affiliate links in their video descriptions, directing viewers to purchase the outfits directly from the brand’s website. 

    This approach not only highlights the versatility and appeal of the products but also aligns the brand with the values of both the influencer and their audience, driving targeted traffic and increasing sales conversions.

    New to affiliate marketing? Here’s a guide from Shopify. 

    2. Showcase User-Generated Content and Testimonials

    Another way you can use YouTube Shorts to push product conversions is with UGC (user-generated content) or testimonials. This doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking. 

    For instance, you could encourage your customers to share their own Shorts using your products with a specific hashtag. Perhaps for an incentive like a promotional code or a free gift? Then, you could select the best Shorts to feature on your channel and/or offer further incentives for sharing. 

    This not only provides social proof but also builds a community around your brand, increasing trust and driving sales.

    For example, let’s say you are a beauty eCommerce store launching a new line of skincare products

    You could run a campaign asking your followers to post YouTube Shorts of their skincare routines featuring these new products, using a dedicated hashtag. You could offer a prize for the best video, like a month’s supply of skincare. You could then highlight these UGC Shorts on your feed and on other social media platforms to showcase real-life examples of product effectiveness, while cultivating brand loyalty and building trust.  

    3. Use YouTube Shorts for Product Teasers and Countdown Launches

    Short-form video content is a great element you can use to create anticipation and excitement around new product launches. By sharing teaser Shorts that highlight key features or unique selling points, it can be extremely effective. 

    Even better if it’s paired with a countdown series leading up to a launch date, which encourages viewers to subscribe and stay tuned for the reveal. This strategy not only generates buzz on your channel but primes audiences to cash out their carts on release day. 

    Let’s imagine that you are a tech eCommerce brand gearing up to launch your latest smartwatch. In the weeks leading up to the launch, you could release a series of YouTube Shorts, each unveiling a sneak peek of a smartwatch feature — like its sleek design, innovative health tracking, or seamless connectivity — without showing the full product. Each Short ends with a countdown timer to the launch, sparking curiosity and excitement. 

    In theory, by the time the final Short reveals the launch, the audience is already primed and eager to purchase, significantly boosting sales from the get-go.

    Pro Tip: How to Make a Good Product Teaser Using YouTube Shorts 

    1. Start your teaser with a question or a mysterious glimpse of the product to spark curiosity 
    2. Focus on one standout feature of your product in each Short to keep viewers interested 
    3. Add dynamic visuals and compelling music to create an emotional connection for each Short 
    4. Include a visual countdown in your Shorts to build anticipation  
    5. End each Short with a good CTA — encouraging viewers to subscribe or visit your website for the full reveal 

    4. Plan Interactive Product Demonstrations and Tutorials

    The last must-try strategy for driving product sales with YouTube Shorts is interactive product demos and tutorials. Short video content is a great medium to offer engaging tutorials or how-to guides that demonstrate the practical uses and benefits of your products. 

    To capitalize on every second and ensure and ensure your videos are relatable, you want to highlight the problems your products solve in everyday scenarios. Then, you could add interactive elements — such as asking viewers to comment on how they would use the product or what they want to see next — to enhance engagement and drive interest toward making a purchase.

    This is a Shorts strategy that Selena Gomez’s makeup brand, Rare Beauty, is crushing with. Sure, it helps that she hosts the tutorials herself, but the concept is still easily duplicatable on a smaller scale. 

    brands using youtube shorts brands using youtube shorts

    Final Thoughts: Measuring Success with YouTube Shorts

    No matter which YouTube Shorts tip or hack you use for your short video planning, the metrics will matter in a big way. Not just for the success of your Shorts but your overall video marketing strategy. This goes for all your Shorts, even those posted in collaboration with your YouTube Shorts creators.

    From the time you (or a short creator) uploads YouTube Shorts to the app, you should be keeping track of their performance. Metrics such as view count, likes, comments, shares, and subscriber growth provide insights into how effectively Shorts are resonating with audiences. Additionally, monitoring the watch time and audience retention rates can help identify which short video content keeps viewers engaged the longest. 

    This data-driven approach ensures continuous improvement and maximization of the Shorts platform’s potential for growth and engagement.

    Tip: YouTube Analytics Metrics to Keep an Eye On 

    Here are some of the YouTube analytics data points you can use to measure the success of your Shorts videos: 

    • Views 
    • Likes and dislikes 
    • Comments 
    • Shares 
    • Subscriber growth 
    • Watch time
    • Traffic source 
    • CTR (of links in short video description) 
    • Audience demographics 

    Let’s say you’re a small business specializing in eco-friendly home goods, and you decide to leverage YouTube Shorts to showcase your products and share sustainability tips. After posting consistently for a month and seeing good daily metrics, you start analyzing your Shorts’ performance to gauge success.

    You pinpoint a short, 30-second clip demonstrating a zero-waste kitchen hack using one of your products that significantly outperforms others, with 20,000 views, 500 likes, and numerous shares and comments praising it. The analytics also show that this Short led to a 10% increase in channel subscribers and drove a noticeable spike in traffic to your product page linked in the video description.

    The success metrics — high view count, engagement rates, and direct impact on subscriber growth and website traffic — highlight the effectiveness of this Short, which you can, yes, use to plan content ideas in the future. But it’s useful for more than just content planning. Successful engagement and view feedback can also drive our product development and marketing strategies on other platforms — such as your Google video ads!! 

     

    Nicole Blanckenberg

    Nicole is a content writer at StoreYa with over sixteen years experience and flair for storytelling. She runs on a healthy dose of caffeine and enthusiasm. When she’s not researching the next content trend or creating informative small business content, she’s an avid beachgoer, coffee shop junkie and hangs out on LinkedIn.

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  • April 28, 2024 – Advertise

    April 28, 2024 – Advertise

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    The process of creating advertising is not as easy as it might look to the outside world. Creative ads are those which still get noticed despite challenges like vague briefs, whimsical approval system and such like. My weekly compilation of creative ads is a small tribute to agencies & brand teams. This week, views on current advertising trends and a collection of creative ads.

    The moment marketing bug

    The moment marketing trend is driven by FOMO, some inexplicable need to associate a brand (often in a tenuous manner) to a news event or cause in the hope that it will generate buzz in favour of the brand – building affinity or helping it gain stature.

    In that context, caught up on the reaction to the ‘Bombae’ ad, apparently in support of UP Board topper Prachi Nigam who got trolled for her looks. One of those ‘this ad is not about our brand‘ but is exactly that. How often to tell brands that not everything that’s happening in this world – is an opportunity for them to advertise?

    We hope you never get bullied into using our razor‘. Pretty convoluted way of promoting the brand in the guise of not promoting the brand, but batting for a cause. This will sound harsh to the copywriter who came up with the line (BTW, this was ‘approved’?) but this is not good brand thinking or writing. Maybe a lot of those who entered advertising in the recent years (last 5-7 years?) have only been exposed to ‘digital’ advertising (images & ideas for social media posts mainly, and the occasional web film or TV script) and not to the classic print or TV work from say 1990-2000s?

    Industry gurus also repeat stuff like ‘more than ever before consumers seek deep meaningful relationships with the brands they use‘ (really? I just want a product to work as advertised and if it makes me happy or proud using it, that’s a bonus) which leads to warped thinking on faux brand purpose and some random ‘social cause’ leading brand thinking. The rationale seems to be ‘let’s build affinity with the youth by associating our brand with a social cause‘. Yes, maybe the youngsters view brands which ‘do good’ in favourable light but they can see through fakery too or just lip service. And in such a scenario pegging everything on ‘you should prefer my brand because it believes in <insert cause of the day>’ will not make product anchored, benefit-driven advertising as the first, preferred approach. Sadly many business leaders and startup founders think that this is the way to go.

    VOOM Nutrition: power of plants

    It’s good fun when there’s a delicious twist in the tale – be it in a movie or an ad. A new ad for plant based food brand dramatises the impact of a mere plant in our lives. Great build and a hilarious climax.

    Agency: McCann Bristol

    Dutchie Yogurt: gut health

    A majority of ads everywhere are beyond mediocre. They are just ignored – a fate worse than being disliked. Maybe that’s the case with advertising in Thailand too. But going by what bubbles up as latest advertising on social media from there, they seem to have a far better strike rate at crafting compelling advertising. Unlike India, where an idea has to cut across several language and cultural differences, Thailand has the advantage of a single language across the country. A common thread in their advertising seems to be humour – and that too, over-the-top, zany humour. Also, ads poke fun at the tactics of advertising itself and hence have a self-deprecating tone. It’s a clever ploy to solve the branding issue – as we see in this hilarious ad for Dutchie Yogurt – where a character holding the pack is randomly inserted across situations.

    Agency: Ogilvy. See English subtitles here.

    Persil: Guess who won

    When I saw this new campaign from Persil (sold as Surf in India) I was reminded of two things: consistency of a brand property and the right use of exaggeration in advertising. It is said that advertising is ‘suspension of disbelief’ for a few seconds. No one takes it seriously if an ad shows a protagonist securing a job after using a shampoo. The second aspect is about consistently pursuing and taking forward a brand idea.

    The ‘dirt is good’ platform has the ability to shock you into paying attention (coming from a detergent brand) but also makes the reader ‘connect the dots’. I don’t one should take the scenarios portrayed below literally. Cricket fans would know that the representation is no guarantee of victory but it does drive forward the original message of encouraging us all to not let worry of soiling clothes prevent us from outdoor activity. As an aside – don’t you think such campaigns work because of the platform already set by the previous efforts?

    Agency: LOLA MullenLowe

    Coca-Cola: recycled logo – green washing?

    Is this creative thinking? Yes. One could say its bold. Who would maim their own logo (the only element in the ad) to risk not being recognised as to who the advertiser is? But Coca-Cola is among the rare brands who have distinct brand assets which are recognisable globally – even when as subtle as simply showing the outline of the bottle shape. A new campaign from the brand has put up billboards which show their logo crushed. The intent is to urge people to recycle the Coca-Cola cans. While being environment friendly and sustainability are critical issues which need extensive work, will just one billboard trigger a behavioural change in large numbers? Clearly, no. Also, a do-good message from a brand which contributes to a unhealthy lifestyle is a bit much. But that’s the magic of cola marketing – create endearing little campaigns which make the brand attractive – brighten the halo around it.

    Agency: WPP Open X



    MakeMyTrip: international trips

    I liked both the strategy and the creative expression for this new ad campaign for a travel aggregator, MakeMyTrip. In a cluttered market where real product or service differentiation is hard to come by chances of a brand getting into the consideration set are higher by resonating with a consumer need. In that context it is smart to slice the market and consider ‘first time international travellers’ and convey that the brand understands them. In India, there is a significant group who are considering (and can afford) an international trip but will have anxiety over travel arrangements, food and sight seeing. The ad doesn’t answer how the brand is uniquely placed to address those concerns as it lists some generic features but the build up is good fun.

    Streeteasy: odyssey

    Finding a real-estate property you like – either for rent or purchase can be an adventure, an epic saga. In a big city like New York it can be even more challenging. A new campaign for Streeteasy literally depicts it as an odyssey – remnant of art forms.

    Old world meets new world in the brand’s 2024 campaign, “Let The Journey Begin,” mixing Renaissance flair and classical art with the modernity of life in the city to reach would-be buyers no matter where they are in their journey

    Source

    Agency: Mother

    Mother Dairy: mother’s love

    It’s actually quite refreshing to see a feel-good ad which steers clear from a lofty brand purpose, ’cause advertising’ or solving a problem for millions of Indians. The brand name helps to claim ‘motherly love’ depicted by small acts of care which bring a smile.

    Agency: Ogilvy

    Heinz: helping reduce food waste

    Adding ketchup to unlikely food combinations – not just fries, is a thing. A heritage brand like Heinz can then lay claim to ‘helping reduce food waste since 1869’ since many avoid wasting food by finishing the last bits off with some Heinz ketchup.

    Agency: Fitzroy Amsterdam

    Times: Power of Print

    In association with the Election Commission of India, Times Power of Print – an initiative by Times of India to celebrate creativity in print mounted a contest for a voter awareness initiative. A team from Havas won the contest by creating a page – not just ad, printed in purple (instead of the usual pink) to ‘remind people of unused ink’.

    Agency: Havas

    Burger King: You’ll always be King

    Here’s a clever tactical idea anchored on the brand name. Sibling jealousy is common especially when the attention shifts from a elder child to a newborn. An Easter promo in UK capitalises on it through a TVC and outdoor.

    Which one was your favourite? Do comment in.

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  • Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

    Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

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    As more people opt for quick and engaging visuals that instantly capture attention, so does the number of brands who include short-form video content (or shorts) in their digital marketing strategies. YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce businesses a powerful platform for capitalizing on these bite-sized video consumption trends. 

    The bottom line is this format is versatile for storytelling, showcasing products, and driving audience engagement, making it a critical digital marketing tool.

    But is it for everyone? 

    This post will answer exactly that! We will explain everything you need to know about using YouTube Shorts videos for your brand and why you absolutely should, and include some inspiring YouTube Shorts examples throughout. 

    Let’s jump in!

    Understanding YouTube Shorts

    Similar to TikTok, YouTube Shorts cater to the growing demand for quick, engaging content and provide a new way for users to connect and share on the platform. 

    Simply put, they are short-form videos on YouTube that allow creators and brands to upload content up to 60 seconds in length. And unlike regular YouTube videos, Shorts include vertical video perspectives, unlike the horizontal mode of longer videos on the platform. 

    Integrated within YouTube’s vast ecosystem, Shorts are no more than a minute long and were designed to enhance visibility and reach, particularly among younger audiences. They can be viewed on YouTube’s homepage, the app’s Shorts tab, and on channel homepages.

    Debuted as a beta in India in September 2020, YouTube Shorts is riding the wave of rising popularity for short-form video content. Following its success, the feature went global, with an extensive rollout that started in March 2021. Since then, brands such as Fashion Nova have been jumping onto the YouTube Shorts video bandwagon. 

    eCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion NovaeCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion Nova

    YouTube Shorts Statistics 

    • By the end of 2023, YouTube Shorts hit 70 billion daily views
    • The average time spent per day on YouTube increased since adding Shorts, which is now around 48.7 minutes 
    • The largest age group using YouTube is between 25 and 34
    • YouTube has the highest average session duration compared to other platforms 

    average session time for YouTube average session time for YouTube

    [Source: Data Reportal

    Talking about comparing…

    YouTube Shorts vs. TikTok vs. Instagram Reels 

    YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels each carve out their niche in the growing consumption of short-form video content, targeting different audiences with various content styles. While TikTok is designed to captivate with highly creative, trend-setting content, Instagram Reels’ integration with its social media features capitalizes on an established user base. 

    YouTube Shorts, on the other hand, leverages the extensive YouTube ecosystem, offering videos up to 60 seconds that benefit from YouTube’s powerful search and recommendation algorithms.

    Let’s take a quick look at each of its main distinguishing features.

    YouTube Shorts 

    1. Unique features. Being part of YouTube means users get long-form and short-form content on one platform.
    2. Content style. Matches YouTube’s wide-ranging vibe and is less about casual clips and more about variety. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Access to YouTube’s well-established, unique audience and the ability to use Shorts to promote long-form content without needing to send users to another platform.
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. Most (21.3%) Shorts viewers are aged 25 to 34. 

    Gymshark is a brand that understands the advantages of YouTube Shorts and dominates with them. Take a look at the view metrics for some of their latest Shorts

    YouTube Shorts for businesses example YouTube Shorts for businesses example

    TikTok 

    1. Unique features. From green-screen effects to image carousels, TikTok is packed with unique features. 
    2. Content style. Although content styles change a lot with changing trends, authenticity is a key content must. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Significantly boosts brand visibility and engagement through viral Shopping content
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The majority of TikTok users are aged between 18 and 34. 

    You can read more about TikTok in the following guides: 

    Instagram Reels 

    1. Unique features. From easy-to-use text, AR filters, creative tools and audio, to Meta’s powerful reach, Instagram Reels are a quick way to get branded, short-form content. 
    2. Content style. Generates more refined content than, say, TikTok, but still veers toward authenticity.  
    3. Marketing advantages. Instagram Reels’ direct shopping capabilities (such as tagged product videos) offers advanced product discovery.  
    4. Video length. Up to 90 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The biggest pools of users are between 18–24 and 25–34 years old.

    You can read more about Instagram Reels in the following guides: Instagram Reels for Business: Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples and 9+ High-Performing Instagram Ads Examples to Steal.

    YouTube Shorts Benefits 

    Now, let’s quickly explore the distinctive features and opportunities YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce marketers! 

    A Gateway to Richer Content

    Being part of YouTube means that Shorts serve as a gateway for discovering long-form videos — allowing eCommerce brands to blend short and long videos. This enables you to accommodate varying consumer interests, turning short video viewers into channel lovers, and, ultimately, product buyers. 

    More Evergreen Content Opportunities

    Unlike other, more momentary channels, Shorts remain accessible indefinitely, enhancing long-term visibility. This means that your evergreen Shorts will continue to attract views and other content engagements months after posting. 

    Broader Audience Reach

    Launching within YouTube’s massive user base, Shorts instantly tapped into a broader audience spectrum. By leveraging this reach, you can pinpoint and engage specific segments to refine your targeting strategies and ensure content consistency that resonates with existing subscribers while appealing to potential customers.

    Wider Audience Engagement 

    The wide demographic reach highlighted above also means that brands have the opportunity to engage with broad audiences, from younger short-form enthusiasts to older audiences that other platforms (like Reels or TikTok) may not appeal to. This enables more tailored content strategies that appeal to professionals, older generations, or specific consumer interests.

    Stability and Trustworthiness

    Lastly, because YouTube is a well-established platform with a longstanding reputation, Shorts is a stable and trustworthy channel for eCommerce marketing. The lower risk of unexpected restrictions or disruptions allows for a more secure investment in content development.

    How to Get Started with YouTube Shorts

    To start your YouTube Shorts strategy off right, you need a blend of creativity and strategy. Let’s outline the key steps you need to take to kickstart your journey, from establishing your presence with a dedicated YouTube channel to crafting and sharing your first engaging Short.  

    1. Create a YouTube channel. If you haven’t already set one up, you will need a YouTube channel to post Shorts. (You can follow our guide on doing just that, here.) 
    2. Download the YouTube app. You will want to ensure you have the latest version of the YouTube app to take advantage of the newest Shorts features. Use the Shorts camera in the YouTube app for easy recording, video editing, and music uploading.
    3. Build your YouTube Shorts content plan. Here, you can identify critical product features, upcoming promotions, trending topics, and customer success stories that align with your brand’s narrative, and build your content plan accordingly. 
    4. Record your Short. Your YouTube app’s Shorts camera allows you to record video. Ideally, record in segments, adding each part to create a complete video.   
    5. Edit your video and add tags. Next, you will use the YouTube app video editing tool to trim videos, add text overlays, or incorporate music. Then craft compelling titles that include keywords and hashtags to boost discoverability.
    6. Publish your Short. Finally, you are ready to publish, monitor, and engage with audience comments. 

    Here’s a comprehensive video made by YouTube creators on how you can create Shorts. 

    But you don’t have to start shooting everything from scratch — you can also make Shorts from your existing videos. Let’s quickly run through how. 

    How to Make YouTube Shorts from Existing YouTube Videos 

    To craft a YouTube Short from an existing video or livestream, whether it’s your creation or someone else’s, start by clicking the “Create” button beneath the video. Decide if you want to “Cut” a clip to maintain the original audio or create a fresh “Sound” for a personalized audio touch. 

    After selecting and refining your segment:

    • Hit “Next”
    • Input your Short’s specifics
    • Upload YouTube Shorts to share your snippet with the world

    Tips for Creating Engaging YouTube Shorts

    When you start creating YouTube Shorts from scratch, how do you best do it to boost engagement, brand awareness, and, ultimately, sales? In this section, we give you a few YouTube Shorts creation tips to get you started! 

    1. Grab Attention from the First Second 

    As with any short video content, you need to hook your audience early. For YouTube Shorts, this could mean starting with an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a compelling visual within the first few seconds to grab attention immediately. 

    You also want to use engaging thumbnails to make your content stand out and elicit that click-to-view. Cosmetic giants Lush are experts at this. Here’s one of their most popular videos that catches your attention right away.

    2. Get Creative with Music and Effects 

    Other important elements of Shorts are royalty-free background music and sound effects. While it is essential to assume some viewers mute tvideos, you still want to make sure you create a vibe for those who do. A catchy tune or comedic sounds can go a long way to doing just that. 

    Here’s a YouTube Shorts example from Warby Parker’s YouTube channel

    3. Jump on Trends and Challenges

    Unlike longer videos, trends and viral content aren’t in short supply with short-form content! 

    Participating in trends is a good way to get traction with your Shorts. To keep your content plans relevant, you need to stay up to date with the latest trends and challenges on YouTube and other social media platforms. 

    You could create your own YouTube Shorts challenge to encourage community participation and sharing. Here are some of the more popular challenges: 

    • Ghost pepper challenges
    • Pancake art challenges
    • Random exercise challenges 
    • Try-not-to-laugh challenges
    • 7-second challenges
    • 24-hour challenges 
    • The-floor-is-lava challenges
    • Blindfolded makeup challenges

    You might also want to take advantage of some of YouTube Shorts’ newer features, such as COLLAB, to collaborate with creators, like-minded brands, and your customers for challenges. 

    Pro Tip: What Kind of Shorts Do Well on YouTube?

    Good news for eCommerce marketers: some of the most popular YouTube Shorts topics line up perfectly for product sellers and influencer marketing campaigns. These include makeup and beauty, entertainment, food and drink, video games, and sports. 

    Here’s a YouTube video breaking down some popular YouTube Shorts niches and how you can monetize them (as a creator) or steal them (as a brand). 

    4. Add Text for Clarity 

    Another Short video tip is using text and graphics for effect. 

    Text overlays are vital to emphasize important points or add context where audio can’t be used. In addition, including captions will make your YouTube Shorts more accessible to a wider audience, including those who prefer to watch videos without sound or those who are hearing impaired.

    In fact, more and more people report that they prefer videos with subtitles, with captions said to dramatically increase video engagement. One study found that as many as 80% of viewers are more likely to watch a video to the end if it has subtitles! 

    5. End with a Strong CTA 

    Like with any marketing element, you need a strong CTA to encourage interaction. You want your YouTube Shorts video to be clear, directing your viewers to like, comment, share, or subscribe, fostering engagement and building your community.

    And the more engagement and response your Shorts get, the more significantly you can boost conversions. They also help you gain invaluable insights into specific actions that you can use for other marketing elements. Here are a few examples to get you started. 

    CTA ideas for YouTube shorts CTA ideas for YouTube shorts

    Sometimes, your message needs just a few more words! Take Sephora, for instance. Even though this whole YouTube Short is a call to action to recycle beauty product containers, it still ends with a CTA note. 

    6. Experiment, Analyze, and Tweak 

    When it comes to any successful content marketing strategy, you want to continuously test, tweak, and analyze. This means experimenting with different content types and analyzing their results to mine for vital insights you can use to drive content ideas further down the line. 

    And don’t be afraid to experiment with different styles or types of content to see what resonates most with your audience. Then regularly review your Shorts’ performance analytics to understand viewer preferences and refine your content strategy. 

    Hacks to Maximize Your YouTube Shorts’ Reach

    Expanding your YouTube Shorts’ visibility is crucial to broadening your content’s reach and ensuring your Shorts captivate as many viewers as possible. Let’s look at some of the top ways you can do that. 

    1. Invest in a YouTube Video PPC Strategy 

    Last year, YouTube started rolling out Shorts placement for video action campaigns. They then started showing product feeds connected to these campaigns in Shorts, making them shoppable. This means that if you’re running YouTube video campaigns, you should already be seeing Shorts placement. 

    youtube short example youtube short example

    If you haven’t yet invested in eCommerce YouTube ads, now is the time. Not only to improve the reach of your Shorts, but to help boost traffic to your online store. 

    Looking to scale your business?

    Get Google Ads hacks for free (used by our 500K customers)

    2. Optimize for Discoverability

    You can put all the effort you can muster into your Shorts, but if you aren’t reaching the right viewer, you’re missing the mark. This is where discoverability optimization comes in. Here are a few ways you can do that: 

    1. Exploit keyword-rich titles and descriptions to improve visibility in YouTube search results 
    2. Add trending and relevant hashtags to increase the chances of being discovered by a wider audience 
    3. Interact with comments to boost engagement metrics and improve chances for YouTube’s algorithm to recommend your content 
    4. Leverage YouTube Stories and community posts to promote Shorts to existing subscribers and increase content engagement 
    5. Partner with other brands and YouTube creators to tap into new niche audiences 

    Talking about creators…

    3. Collaborate with Creators or Brands 

    Another way to get more eyes on your content is by collaborating with other people or brands. 

    By working with creators or influencers, or partnering with other brands, you can tap into their audiences and introduce your brand channel to potential new subscribers — and shoppers. Here are a few ideas to get you started: 

    1. Host a joint giveaway or contest with creators or brands whereby viewers need to engage with both channels 
    2. Leverage cross-promotion on social media to share behind-the-scenes content, teaser clips, or to simply promote the collaboration across your Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook profiles to maximize reach 
    3. Create a collaborative series of Shorts where you tackle topics, challenges, or create content that is relevant to both audiences

    Let’s say you’re a fashion brand. You could partner with a beauty influencer to create a series of “Complete the Look” Shorts. In each Short, you could feature the influencer styling a fashion item from your store with their makeup tips. This type of collaboration not only helps you reach new audiences. It helps you showcase your products while adding real value for your audiences and establishing your brand as an expert in fashion. 

    4. Leverage the Power of Thumbnails

    YouTube Shorts thumbnails may be small, but they are often the first thing a potential viewer will see. By creating captivating custom thumbnails for your Shorts, you are able to grab attention on and off the social media platform. 

    They also play a role in ensuring that the Shorts page of your channel is inviting and that all your content is easy to discover. Therefore, you want to ensure that you maintain a consistent style or branding across your thumbnails to make your content instantly recognizable and enticing for the view-click. Additionally, you may want to consider incorporating brief, compelling text overlays that tease the content of the Short or highlight the value within, further encouraging clicks. 

    Or not! The best approach is one that perfectly fits your specific brand, vibe, and market. Take a look at eCommerce giant ASOS’s Shorts feed, which does just that. 

    brand youtube shorts example brand youtube shorts example

    5. Consistent Posting Schedule

    Like with any marketing platform, consistency is key! By maintaining a regular posting schedule, you keep your audience engaged. The more engaged your audience is, the more likely YouTube will recommend your content. 

    If your aim is to quickly boost your account and catch that viral wave with your short-form videos, you may want to consider ramping up your posting frequency to two or three times daily. This may sound daunting — but you can start by repurposing your existing video content instead of starting from scratch. 

    According to SocialPilot, the best times to post on YouTube are displayed in the chart below. Of course, these are average estimates, so you should test and tweak optimum post times for your specific brand and audience. 

    best time of day to post on YouTube best time of day to post on YouTube

    Strategies for Driving Product Sales with YouTube Shorts

    This part of our guide is dedicated to outlining actionable strategies that can turn your YouTube viewers into customers. This means being able to capitalize on the dynamic and engaging nature of Shorts to boost your eCommerce success. 

    Through a mix of affiliate marketing, user-generated content, product teasers, and interactive demonstrations, these strategies are designed to not only capture attention but also to convert that attention into sales. 

    Let’s dive in. 

    1. Leverage Influencer Marketing and Affiliate Programs

    Influencer marketing and affiliate programs can be good ways to drive product sales from YouTube Shorts. Both enable you to leverage the vast reach and credibility of established online personalities and platforms.

    By partnering with YouTube influencers with niche audiences, you are tapping into their fans — fans who will trust their product recommendations. This also enables you to include more authentic endorsements in YouTube Shorts, which helps build product and brand trust while increasing visibility. 

    Similarly, offering an affiliate program for your brand helps you to promote products. Because it’s permanence-based, this can be a cost-effective strategy. It also gives you additional (valuable) data that you can use to drive our marketing strategies beyond just YouTube optimization. 

    Let’s say you’re an eCommerce brand specializing in sustainable fashion. You could collaborate with eco-conscious fashion influencers on YouTube to create Shorts videos showcasing how to style different pieces for different occasions. These influencers could then use your affiliate links in their video descriptions, directing viewers to purchase the outfits directly from the brand’s website. 

    This approach not only highlights the versatility and appeal of the products but also aligns the brand with the values of both the influencer and their audience, driving targeted traffic and increasing sales conversions.

    New to affiliate marketing? Here’s a guide from Shopify. 

    2. Showcase User-Generated Content and Testimonials

    Another way you can use YouTube Shorts to push product conversions is with UGC (user-generated content) or testimonials. This doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking. 

    For instance, you could encourage your customers to share their own Shorts using your products with a specific hashtag. Perhaps for an incentive like a promotional code or a free gift? Then, you could select the best Shorts to feature on your channel and/or offer further incentives for sharing. 

    This not only provides social proof but also builds a community around your brand, increasing trust and driving sales.

    For example, let’s say you are a beauty eCommerce store launching a new line of skincare products

    You could run a campaign asking your followers to post YouTube Shorts of their skincare routines featuring these new products, using a dedicated hashtag. You could offer a prize for the best video, like a month’s supply of skincare. You could then highlight these UGC Shorts on your feed and on other social media platforms to showcase real-life examples of product effectiveness, while cultivating brand loyalty and building trust.  

    3. Use YouTube Shorts for Product Teasers and Countdown Launches

    Short-form video content is a great element you can use to create anticipation and excitement around new product launches. By sharing teaser Shorts that highlight key features or unique selling points, it can be extremely effective. 

    Even better if it’s paired with a countdown series leading up to a launch date, which encourages viewers to subscribe and stay tuned for the reveal. This strategy not only generates buzz on your channel but primes audiences to cash out their carts on release day. 

    Let’s imagine that you are a tech eCommerce brand gearing up to launch your latest smartwatch. In the weeks leading up to the launch, you could release a series of YouTube Shorts, each unveiling a sneak peek of a smartwatch feature — like its sleek design, innovative health tracking, or seamless connectivity — without showing the full product. Each Short ends with a countdown timer to the launch, sparking curiosity and excitement. 

    In theory, by the time the final Short reveals the launch, the audience is already primed and eager to purchase, significantly boosting sales from the get-go.

    Pro Tip: How to Make a Good Product Teaser Using YouTube Shorts 

    1. Start your teaser with a question or a mysterious glimpse of the product to spark curiosity 
    2. Focus on one standout feature of your product in each Short to keep viewers interested 
    3. Add dynamic visuals and compelling music to create an emotional connection for each Short 
    4. Include a visual countdown in your Shorts to build anticipation  
    5. End each Short with a good CTA — encouraging viewers to subscribe or visit your website for the full reveal 

    4. Plan Interactive Product Demonstrations and Tutorials

    The last must-try strategy for driving product sales with YouTube Shorts is interactive product demos and tutorials. Short video content is a great medium to offer engaging tutorials or how-to guides that demonstrate the practical uses and benefits of your products. 

    To capitalize on every second and ensure and ensure your videos are relatable, you want to highlight the problems your products solve in everyday scenarios. Then, you could add interactive elements — such as asking viewers to comment on how they would use the product or what they want to see next — to enhance engagement and drive interest toward making a purchase.

    This is a Shorts strategy that Selena Gomez’s makeup brand, Rare Beauty, is crushing with. Sure, it helps that she hosts the tutorials herself, but the concept is still easily duplicatable on a smaller scale. 

    brands using youtube shorts brands using youtube shorts

    Final Thoughts: Measuring Success with YouTube Shorts

    No matter which YouTube Shorts tip or hack you use for your short video planning, the metrics will matter in a big way. Not just for the success of your Shorts but your overall video marketing strategy. This goes for all your Shorts, even those posted in collaboration with your YouTube Shorts creators.

    From the time you (or a short creator) uploads YouTube Shorts to the app, you should be keeping track of their performance. Metrics such as view count, likes, comments, shares, and subscriber growth provide insights into how effectively Shorts are resonating with audiences. Additionally, monitoring the watch time and audience retention rates can help identify which short video content keeps viewers engaged the longest. 

    This data-driven approach ensures continuous improvement and maximization of the Shorts platform’s potential for growth and engagement.

    Tip: YouTube Analytics Metrics to Keep an Eye On 

    Here are some of the YouTube analytics data points you can use to measure the success of your Shorts videos: 

    • Views 
    • Likes and dislikes 
    • Comments 
    • Shares 
    • Subscriber growth 
    • Watch time
    • Traffic source 
    • CTR (of links in short video description) 
    • Audience demographics 

    Let’s say you’re a small business specializing in eco-friendly home goods, and you decide to leverage YouTube Shorts to showcase your products and share sustainability tips. After posting consistently for a month and seeing good daily metrics, you start analyzing your Shorts’ performance to gauge success.

    You pinpoint a short, 30-second clip demonstrating a zero-waste kitchen hack using one of your products that significantly outperforms others, with 20,000 views, 500 likes, and numerous shares and comments praising it. The analytics also show that this Short led to a 10% increase in channel subscribers and drove a noticeable spike in traffic to your product page linked in the video description.

    The success metrics — high view count, engagement rates, and direct impact on subscriber growth and website traffic — highlight the effectiveness of this Short, which you can, yes, use to plan content ideas in the future. But it’s useful for more than just content planning. Successful engagement and view feedback can also drive our product development and marketing strategies on other platforms — such as your Google video ads!! 

     

    Nicole Blanckenberg

    Nicole is a content writer at StoreYa with over sixteen years experience and flair for storytelling. She runs on a healthy dose of caffeine and enthusiasm. When she’s not researching the next content trend or creating informative small business content, she’s an avid beachgoer, coffee shop junkie and hangs out on LinkedIn.

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  • What the Latest Research Says About Affiliate Bonus Packages – AffiliateMarketing

    What the Latest Research Says About Affiliate Bonus Packages – AffiliateMarketing

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    Do affiliate bonus packages still work in 2024? Today I share what the latest research reveals about affiliate bonus packages. You’ll learn the truth behind common myths surrounding bonus packages and learn the secrets to crafting irresistible offers that drive results. Affiliates and affiliate managers, this episode could be worth millions, so listen up!

    Click Here for The Written Transcript of This Episode

    Not sure how much to pay your affiliates? Watch my free video tutorial on YouTube that walks you through step-by-step.

    how to determine the right affiliate commission youtube videohow to determine the right affiliate commission youtube video

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    Previous Episodes of The Affiliate Guy

    How to Give Your Affiliates What They Need to Succeed

    How to Build an Army of Loyal Affiliates

    Got a Low-Priced Product? Here’s How to Run an Affiliate Program

    How Top Affiliates are Closing Sales in 2024

    How to Find Affiliates Using Affiliate Program Leaderboards

    If Donald Trump Ran an Affiliate Program

    What the Latest Research Says About Affiliate Bonus Packages

    Do affiliate bonus packages still work in 2024? Today I share what the latest research reveals about affiliate bonus packages.

    You’ll learn some of the common myths surrounding these bonus packages, and you’ll learn the secrets to crafting irresistible offers that drive results. Affiliates and affiliate managers this episode could be worth millions, so listen up.

    So we’ve all seen these elaborate, some might say over the top bonus packages that come with affiliate offers, right?

    You’ll buy this course through my link and you’ll get $47,942 in bonuses. Right. But do they actually work?

    Almost a decade ago, back in 2015 or 16, I released the results of a study that I had done, the first of its kind that I know of that proved that, yes, they do work. Affiliate bonus packages worked to increase sales, but there were

    some pitfalls to avoid some best practices that we found. So about every four years I revisit this, and here we are, 2024. Do they still work?

    Are they going to continue to work for the next decade or so? You know, like I said, every few years I do this study and I do other topics as well. If you listen, you know that recently I released the findings of a And I do these studies periodically across a few different things just

    to quantitatively, not just qualitatively prove what’s working in affiliate marketing, what is working to increase sales. And affiliate bonus packages are one of those things. So this episode is not only for affiliates, but for you affiliate

    managers to share with your affiliates. Now let’s start with what I mean by, you know, these bonus packages.

    And how do bonus packages work? You may have used this strategy. You may have seen it.

    You’ve definitely seen it done, right? You offer an exclusive bonus if people buy a product through your link.

    Now I’m going to go into more detail about what makes a good bonus package in this episode. But for now, what you need to know is that an effective bonus is

    one that takes an on the fence buyer and turns them into an actual buyer. I always picture just, it takes somebody who’s literally got one leg on either side of the fence and they can’t decide, should I buy this thing or not.

    And then you present a bonus package that makes this an irresistible offer, and they say yes. In other words, it’s something attractive enough to cause a

    person to take action. That’s what we want people to do in affiliate promos. Now, as I mentioned earlier, I did my first study on this back in 2016, and it started with a personal test of mine.

    This is how I know that affiliate bonus packages work, because I not only surveyed others, but I tested it myself. And bonuses, one, having bonuses increased sales by 240%. Before that, the reason I actually did this study, my hypothesis was

    that they don’t increase sales. I actually went into the study believing that bonuses were a waste of time and I only offered them.

    And I did a couple of affiliate promos. You know, this is early on in my where I started doing more affiliate marketing. You know, I’d been an affiliate manager for over a decade at that point, but I started doing affiliate marketing and I’m like, well,

    everybody else is offering bonuses, let me test it or let me do it right. I never took the time to actually ask, do they work? And so I went into it with the hypothesis that they either did not

    lift sales or they lifted it so marginally that it wasn’t worth the hassle. And that’s what I was hoping to find. The scientific method, if you learn that in middle school, high school,

    you have a hypothesis, then you test it and you either prove or disprove the hypothesis. Well, I disprove the hypothesis. I went into it hoping that they would not work so that I didn’t

    have to put in the effort to create bonuses. I’m only going to increase sales 5%, 10%, no percent. So why would I even bother?

    So here’s what I found. Back in 2016, the first promo that I did was a $200 product. Having the bonuses, I made $9,000.

    Non bonuses, I made $4,500, almost exactly half, just a couple of dollars off from being exactly half. So I made twice as much money with the bonus. That was on a $200 product.

    On a $1000 product, the difference was huge. It was 13,000 versus $2,000 overall between those two promos. And then I found over the course of subsequent promos, subjectively, I would have people tell me that they purchased

    through my link specifically for my bonuses. So I knew they were making a difference. Again, that’s a subjective justification for bonuses.

    Now, since that first test back in 2016, I have noticed objectively that bonus packages work too. I’m going to share how the numbers line up in terms of

    commissions earned per click sent to an offer based on five random promotions without a bonus and five with a bonus. This is across numerous niches, different size list. I’m trying to think of the five different affiliates.

    There were two females, three males. Two of them were in similar niches. The other three were in completely different niches.

    You know, these are, again, different size audiences, different experience levels, even different types of audience, different price points. I mean, everything you could think of, there is a total variety here.

    The promotions with no bonuses earned the affiliate an average of click. The promotions with a bonus earned them an average of $1.

    18. And a crazy thing about the bonuses is they’re not even that elaborate.

    I remember one of them was simply that I would join them, that one of them was me, I would join their accountability group. Another was that they would get a 15 minutes coaching call.

    Not extravagant, right? And I’m going to share in a little bit why bonuses don’t have to be extra.

    In fact, they shouldn’t be extravagant. Other affiliates, as we. That reported to me in a little bit less scientific method, right.

    Just what they were reporting to me found that having bonuses increased sales little as 110% to as high as 320%, with the average falling right near what I found. I found 240%.

    The average among these affiliates was 225%. So that’s what I found over time. What about now, though?

    What about 2024? Well, here’s what the research found. Bonus packages are slightly more effective, marginally almost exactly

    the same as they were ten years ago, eight years ago. But there are some important caveats that I’ll cover, okay? There are some aspects of bonuses that are relevant in 2024 that weren’t relevant even four years ago.

    And the first important caveat, this has been true for a while, is that bonuses don’t have to be and shouldn’t be extravagant, as I mentioned. Now, if you look back at what’s worked, whether it be with me,

    with other affiliates that I’ve talked to, studied, people that were in the groups that I studied, the bonuses were super simple. I created a formula about eight years ago for coming up with bonuses, and I just really made it easy on myself. And so for me, more recently, like, none of them are that particularly complicated.

    They’re not difficult to put together. And so you’ve probably seen these extravagant bonus packages, right?

    And you’re like, I could never do that. I cannot put like, that’s a $45,000 bonus package. You don’t have to do that.

    You don’t have to do that. In fact, the effort you spend might literally be worth almost nothing I didn’t say earlier that like putting dealer bonuses as my hypothesis suggested is pointless.

    But there is a point of diminishing returns and ill talk about that in a little bit where theres a point where adding more bonuses does not add sales. You see this increase, that adding a little bonus doesnt actually

    increase sales that much. And then adding a little bit more, all of a sudden you start to see it go up and then when you get this sweet spot it goes up even more and then it levels off.

    It just completely levels off. And so crossing that point, it’s kind of like I was listening to a book the other day about running and I’m training for a half marathon and I was listening to this book and you know, for me, running a half

    marathon at my target rate, my age, my goal is to finish top five in my age group in this particular one. And so I know my target time. If you’re curious, it’s an hour 44 minutes and 48 seconds.

    That is my target time. It’s based on who’s entered in the past. I would finish in the top five every year for the past decade.

    So that’s my target time. If I happen to run that and finish in 6th place, so be it. I mean, it is what it is.

    So, you know, it’s literally 1 second under eight minute miles. And I was listening to this book and it talked about how in your weekly training for me at that distance, I want to be targeting 42 to 48 miles a week.

    And that running 52 will have no increase in anything. It will not make me faster, it will not make the 13. 1 mile easier.

    Like it will have no increase past that certain point. And so again, like getting up to that point, obviously if I’m going to run 13.

    1 mile at my sub eight minute miles, I need to be running at least 20. I’m not going to see much improvement going from zero to 5

    miles a week. You know, I’m going to see very, very little improvement there. I’m going to see a pretty good improvement from five to 20.

    I’m going to see a lot of improvement from five to like 35 and I’m gonna see a little bit more really fine tuning up until about 45 to 48. Then after that I’m not gonna see any improvement.

    Same is true with these bonuses. And so what I found in my research over the past decade is that back in the mid 2010s, those extravagant bonuses with lots of extra courses, you’re going to buy this one course from this one person, but you’re going to get this course and this course and this

    course and this course and this course. Having that $30,000 bonus package worked today, not so much.

    And I’m going to share some of those important findings that I found that work more recently. It’s just not working as well to put together those big bonus

    packages. People don’t, just don’t want the information as much. And so I’m going to talk about that in a little bit.

    But first, I want to share some of the basics of putting together a bonus package. And I’ve shared these in prior episode, I don’t remember when,

    but it’s been a long time. It was probably over four years ago. I shared these basics, but I’m going to cover them again just in case you missed them.

    It’s a three part formula when we promote affiliate offers that we use in our company, but we also share with our affiliate partners for our clients when we’re running their affiliate launches and their affiliate promos. The first one, first key, use what you have.

    Use what you have. Put together bonuses that you already have. If you look back to that very first promo where I ran that test, I

    created a special bonus just for that affiliate launch, I created a bonus, but I’ve used it over and over again since then. Robbie Miles, who’s our operations manager, he calls this stacking the Lego bricks. The way he looks at it is our products, our mini courses, our ebooks, our templates, our swipe files, our cheat sheets, our

    coaching, all of these things, these are Lego bricks within the company. And so to him, creating the right bonus stack is just all about combining those bricks into something appealing. So we have about 30 to 40 different Lego bricks, and we’ll be promoting something and we’ll bring in five of them for this

    particular offer because those are the five best Lego bricks. If I were to add a 6th, it would dilute the offer. We’ll talk about that later.

    And I’ve touched on it a little bit before. It would make the offer worse because that 6th thing is not perfectly relevant to this offer. And so what’s the right amount?

    It’s everything that should be in it and nothing more. You know, if anything above, beyond what needs to be in it, is too much. The second key, second principle that I’ve shared before is create nothing if at all possible.

    And so I found that a great way to offer a really amazing bonus package is to go through the course with them or to do some bonus coaching calls or something like that. We’ll do four bonus coaching calls.

    Or, or I mentioned earlier, I joined their accountability group. I promoted my friend Alan Thomas’s weight loss offer. And one of the things is that each person, they create an accountability group.

    And I said I will be in your accountability group. If you join Alan’s program through my link, I will be in your accountability group.

    And that’s valuable to people because I mean I’ve been in a couple for over two years now and I’m in there cheering them on. Not every day, but it takes me, you know, 1015 seconds a week to

    cheer them on. And people love that. And essentially like the group coaching, that’s small group coaching.

    They can ask me questions and stuff. I’m, I’m going to be with them for 4 hours over the course of eight weeks.

    But I’m not creating anything on the front end. And I just, I mean frankly all I have to do is show up and answer questions. That’s super easy.

    The third key is to aim for an equal value or higher. Equal value or higher. So in other words, if you’re promoting something that’s

    $1,000, your bonuses should be $1000 to $4,000. If you’re promoting something that’s $2,000 it should be about $2000 to $8,000.

    If you go higher than this 8000, this is what we’ve begun to see and I’ll cover more later. It starts to seem ridiculous.

    Destroys the effectiveness of offering a bonus. And the only exception to this that we found is if you do offer a single bonus that happens to be worth five, six, seven times the value of the product, that’s okay.

    The issue is when you’re stacking like 10, 12, 13 bonuses and the value is $20,000 on a $2,000 product. The fourth thing is it needs to fit the offer. Your bonus has to fit the offer.

    It cannot be this random thing. Like I mentioned Alan’s thing earlier. It would be ridiculous if I said, hey, join Alan’s weight loss program and get my free course on copywriting.

    Get my course on copywriting that normally sells for $1,000 for free. Like what? Thats ridiculous.

    Now if I offered my bonus about overcoming your limiting self beliefs, that makes sense. Thats a bonus that fits weight loss, right?

    And the two best ways to fit an offer to complement and what we call compliment and close the gaps. Compliment is if youre promoting a course, for example, lets say it is about copywriting, then good bonus that complements a copywriting course is the sales page tactics sales page layout software tool that allows you to create landing pages.

    That makes sense. With a copywriting program. Closing the gap means that the course is missing something that’s specific to your audience or it doesn’t go in depth.

    I mentioned years ago, I worked with a company, we sold a course on guitar and we had an affiliate that had a blues guitar course. And so when they purchased our course right through him, he gave them his blues guitar mini course. Not his full blues guitar course, but his blues guitar mini course as a bonus.

    Why? Cause we only had one lesson, an hour long lesson on blues guitar. He had a two hour mini course that took it to the next level.

    So if you teach social media marketing, for example, and then you’ve got like a book that’s all about social media headlines to go viral, offer something like that. That’s a really good example.

    All right, the last key here that I want to share, the key to effective bonuses, good bonuses that actually work is this. You gotta sell your bonuses.

    You gotta sell your bonuses. Like seriously play them up big time. Talk about them in every email.

    Yeah, I mentioned a few episodes ago, I talked about how top affiliates are closing sales. They are using these bonuses.

    And when we studied what the top converting affiliates were doing, we found that they were mentioning their bonuses in every single email. They mentioned them.

    Every single email they mentioned them. Every single cart close email. They had dedicated emails, at least one about all about their bonuses.

    Most of them recorded a video explaining their bonuses. Most of them created a special page for their bonuses. All of these things to really play up and sell their bonuses.

    If a tree falls in the forest and no one’s around to hear, does it make you sound the same? Is true with your bonus. You have the best bonus package in the world and if you don’t sell it,

    it doesn’t work. And offering a great bonus package is one of the five things that I found that all the top converting affiliates did consistently.

    On that note, really getting clear about the benefits of each bonus that’s part of selling. How does each bonus add value to the main product? Why is it a must have?

    And this helps in justifying that overall package, right? It really helps people make a decision. So don’t just say, hey, you’re going to get this, this, this and this.

    Well, okay, no, tell them what the benefit is so in that blues guitar example, it’s like, hey, go buy, learn and master guitar. You’re going to learn all about guitar and you’re going to get my

    mini course on blues guitar. So when you come out of this experience, you’ll have a bass in guitar, but you’ll also have that next step, little bit of extra on blues guitar, which of course, to Dan Dinley, the maker of the blues

    guitar course, is like, well, that sets him up to buy his main product, too. So that’s another great thing. But you want to really sell the bonuses and the value and the

    benefits. What’s in it for them, getting those bonuses? And then one last note before we get into the big differences that I’ve seen over the last eight to ten years, make sure you don’t deliver

    your bonuses until after the refund period has ended. So you deliver them after the refund period. Simple reason, people, otherwise, they might buy through you just for the bonuses and then return the course.

    It’s just like, I don’t get how people do stuff like that. I just think that’s so lame. And they think that they’re justified in doing it.

    You know, it’s kind of dumb, but it happens. And so you deliver the bonuses. If they buy it on May 1 and the return period is 15 days, then you

    deliver the bonuses on the 17th, 16th, 17th, whatever the date would be. So that’s when you deliver the bonuses after the refund period is over. Okay, what are the big differences?

    I’ve been alluding to these from when I first did the study in 2016. Today, number one, I touched on this a little bit earlier. Less is more.

    Less is more. It used to be that when you hit about that 400% mark, it leveled off.

    What we’ve actually found is that when you hit about 300%, it levels off and at about 700%, it begins to actually go down. It begins to go down.

    We used to not notice that more did not mean less sales. More bonuses just meant equal sales to roughly two to three times as, you know, the value.

    Now, we actually find that when you really start to add on, it can lower your sales because people are turned off by it feels, to use a term that my, you know, my ex client friend Jeff goins used to say feels smarmy.

    He would use that word, smarmy. Yeah, it’s just a red flag. So the keys here, quality over quantity.

    Now, I’ll talk about this in a second. People want solutions and ease, not more information. So quality, it is better to offer a few high quality, highly relevant bonuses than just start stacking on a bunch of low value, irrelevant

    extras. Quality over quantity. This not only is it a credibility issue, but it’s a perceived value issue.

    Some of my best affiliate promotions had two bonuses, $2,000 course, we had a $3,000 bonus and a $2,000 bonus, and that was it. And they were perfectly matched.

    They either close the gap or complemented what we were offering. They filled in that gap. They perfectly fit with the offer.

    The value was so high because these were such relevant bonuses. So, number one, again, less is typically more quality over quantity and focus on perceived value.

    Okay. The bonuses should have a high perceived value. Doesn’t mean they have to sell for a lot.

    Does it have to be something that would necessarily be expensive to produce? Again, you know, show up for four group coaching calls? What’s the value of four group coaching calls?

    I immediately. $2,000 is the number to me. Immediately, it’s $2,000.

    What? I’m going to spend an hour in a group of. Probably only 15 people are going to show up.

    Well, I mean, if you look at what people pay for that in a month in our small group coaching program, that’s about that much. So, boom, you know, that’s exactly what it’s worth. So you don’t have to be super expensive.

    You just want something that your audience is going to find genuinely valuable and would probably pay for separately. That’s the key. Is this bonus something that they would pay for separately?

    I’ve told you, I said earlier, so many people are like, oh, my gosh. The reason I bought that thing was because you offered this thing. And if I offered this $3,000 bonus on a $2,000 course, I’ve had people who didn’t even want the $2,000 thing because the

    perceived value of the $3,000 thing was so high. They bought the $2,000 thing and I got to give them this amazing thing.

    So it needs to be something they would pay for separately, not be like, why are they adding this? There was a.

    It’s probably not who you’re thinking, but I read that there’s a website I was on recently, I was looking at buying this product, and if you spent dollar 50 or more, they sent you a hat. I’m going to be honest, this hat was cheap.

    It was a total dad hat. Nobody under the age of 70, and that’s not their audience. Their audience is 30 to 54 year old man.

    Nobody under 70 would wear this hat. And it just looked like the hat you buy at the dollar effect. Somebody wrote that this looks like a hat I buy at a convenience

    store that has, like, the fake logo of the university because they can’t get authorization to use the real one or just says, like, New York. And it kind of looks like the New York Yankees logo, but not exactly, you know, that kind of thing. You know what I’m talking about?

    And so they wrote on here, like somebody wrote a comment, like, I didn’t want this hat. Why are you sitting people, multiple people were like, I don’t

    know what to do with this. I don’t want to create more waste in the environment. Like, I had to donate it to goodwill.

    This, they’re probably just going to take up space there that, you definitely don’t want that with your bonuses. All right.

    The second thing that I’ve seen change, this has impacted everything in our businesses. People want solutions. People want ease, not more information.

    People don’t want more information. Ten years ago, people wanted more information. Ten years ago, nobody knew how to do anything.

    So they needed information. Now, information is so abundant, they don’t want more information. They want solutions.

    They want ease. And this is primarily, I think this is due to Netflix and Cha GPT. Netflix, everything’s right there.

    Everything’s on demand. I mean, outside of sporting events, when’s the last time you’re like, you know, I really want to watch this thing? And then you check to see when it came on.

    Yeah, we’ll go to the movies every now and again because, you know, that’s an experience. We’ll go see a play if we know somebody who’s in it or whatever,

    but otherwise, everything’s on demand. I want to watch this movie. Cool.

    I will start, I will watch the first 45 minutes tonight and I’ll watch the next 30 minutes tomorrow, and then I’ll, I won’t watch it for two days, and then I’ll watch the last half hour. And that’s how I’m going to watch that movie.

    Why? Because that’s the world we live in. With chat GPT, you can get the information really quickly.

    So we want solutions and ease. So what kind of bonus can you offer that makes implementation or use of the product that makes it easier or faster?

    This is why I like that done with you model where I meet with them in a small group. Because Chadgpt can’t offer that.

    Netflix can’t offer that. Nobody else can offer that. Only I can offer the done with you model.

    Because even if it’s done with you, you and not me, some people want the done with Matt model. They want done with Matt.

    They want Matt’s coaching, not Craig’s coaching. And so that’s something that only I can offer. That’s one of the reasons why I love that.

    And it’s not about more information, it’s about getting questions answered so you can implement quicker and faster and easier. So the done with you is one way.

    Adding a software, adding cheat sheets. You know, if you have notes from a course and you add them. This is one of the things that I found years ago is we just gave

    them our notes. Does that mean you shouldn’t go through the main course? No, but having my notes, you go, well, that’s more information.

    No, my notes are seeing it in action. So, like, I gave them my scripts. There’s one particular course where one of the lessons is about

    how to write a particular script. I gave them my script, my notes, and actually I gave them an additional video that walk them through how I did it.

    And it wasn’t meant for more information, it was about showing them actually how to implement it. So I made the implementation faster, and then I actually took

    pictures. This is one of the cool things we did. We’d scan my original handwritten.

    This 20 to 25 page script was originally handwritten on like 75 legal pads with all my scratch outs and margin notes, like some of the stuff you can’t even read. Sorry.

    We took that and scanned it and actually gave that to them. It was a really cool way so they could see the process. So again, what can you do to make it easier and faster for them?

    And then the last big change that we’re seeing is the use of scarcity and urgency more. So using elements of scarcity, which is, you know, limited time, limited numbers, and then the urgency, which is. These are specifically time bound.

    Right. Scarcity is just more different. Like it’s going to literally going to run out.

    And urgency is like, this bonus is only available during this period of time, really making things more into a quick decision making process. So bonuses, like the bonuses available for the first 50 customers

    or this bonus expires in 48 hours. If something is a fast action bonus and it’s about fast implementation, it’s great to expire that soon.

    You know, the done with you example, I can only let 50 people in. I can’t have 200 people showing up on that.

    So we limit the first x number of buyers or a bonus. It’s only available for the first three days of a five day open cart. So now you have a middle of the cart bump.

    You get the first day where you get 25, 30% of sales. They typically last, say, 50 or 60% in that middle three days is like Now you can get like Wednesday if it’s Monday through Friday, and get a little Wednesday bump because you have something expiring so doing things like that using scarcity and urgency more.

    So these are the things that we’ve seen. Again, the principles still apply, bonuses still work. So affiliate manager share this with your affiliates so they know they need to know this and affiliates apply this to your

    promotions. So yeah, you can go, yeah, I need to add bonuses and you can just throw stuff in and they can be really crappy bonuses that don’t move the needle or actually even have a negative effect.

    But if you follow what I’ve shared in this episode, both the principles and some of the new stuff, the three new things that I talked about, less is more, people want solutions and ease, not more information and really leaning into scarcity and urgency. These are things that are really move the needle for you to make more affiliate sales.

    So if you have any questions about this or anything else, I’d love to hear from you. Share me your biggest takeaway as well. You can text me at 260-217-4619 I would love to hear from you.

    subscribe so you don’t miss any of our upcoming episodes. The next episode I’m going to talk about how to solve the 15 biggest challenges for all affiliate programs.

    These are the same 15 problems I’ve seen for every affiliate program we’ve ever run, we’ve ever coached, we’ve ever been a part of. I’ve seen these same challenges so you don’t want to miss that.

    So make sure you hit subscribe if you haven’t yet and I will see you in the next episode. Thank you so much for listening today.

     

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  • April 28, 2024 – Advertise

    April 28, 2024 – Advertise

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    The process of creating advertising is not as easy as it might look to the outside world. Creative ads are those which still get noticed despite challenges like vague briefs, whimsical approval system and such like. My weekly compilation of creative ads is a small tribute to agencies & brand teams. This week, views on current advertising trends and a collection of creative ads.

    The moment marketing bug

    The moment marketing trend is driven by FOMO, some inexplicable need to associate a brand (often in a tenuous manner) to a news event or cause in the hope that it will generate buzz in favour of the brand – building affinity or helping it gain stature.

    In that context, caught up on the reaction to the ‘Bombae’ ad, apparently in support of UP Board topper Prachi Nigam who got trolled for her looks. One of those ‘this ad is not about our brand‘ but is exactly that. How often to tell brands that not everything that’s happening in this world – is an opportunity for them to advertise?

    We hope you never get bullied into using our razor‘. Pretty convoluted way of promoting the brand in the guise of not promoting the brand, but batting for a cause. This will sound harsh to the copywriter who came up with the line (BTW, this was ‘approved’?) but this is not good brand thinking or writing. Maybe a lot of those who entered advertising in the recent years (last 5-7 years?) have only been exposed to ‘digital’ advertising (images & ideas for social media posts mainly, and the occasional web film or TV script) and not to the classic print or TV work from say 1990-2000s?

    Industry gurus also repeat stuff like ‘more than ever before consumers seek deep meaningful relationships with the brands they use‘ (really? I just want a product to work as advertised and if it makes me happy or proud using it, that’s a bonus) which leads to warped thinking on faux brand purpose and some random ‘social cause’ leading brand thinking. The rationale seems to be ‘let’s build affinity with the youth by associating our brand with a social cause‘. Yes, maybe the youngsters view brands which ‘do good’ in favourable light but they can see through fakery too or just lip service. And in such a scenario pegging everything on ‘you should prefer my brand because it believes in <insert cause of the day>’ will not make product anchored, benefit-driven advertising as the first, preferred approach. Sadly many business leaders and startup founders think that this is the way to go.

    VOOM Nutrition: power of plants

    It’s good fun when there’s a delicious twist in the tale – be it in a movie or an ad. A new ad for plant based food brand dramatises the impact of a mere plant in our lives. Great build and a hilarious climax.

    Agency: McCann Bristol

    Dutchie Yogurt: gut health

    A majority of ads everywhere are beyond mediocre. They are just ignored – a fate worse than being disliked. Maybe that’s the case with advertising in Thailand too. But going by what bubbles up as latest advertising on social media from there, they seem to have a far better strike rate at crafting compelling advertising. Unlike India, where an idea has to cut across several language and cultural differences, Thailand has the advantage of a single language across the country. A common thread in their advertising seems to be humour – and that too, over-the-top, zany humour. Also, ads poke fun at the tactics of advertising itself and hence have a self-deprecating tone. It’s a clever ploy to solve the branding issue – as we see in this hilarious ad for Dutchie Yogurt – where a character holding the pack is randomly inserted across situations.

    Agency: Ogilvy. See English subtitles here.

    Persil: Guess who won

    When I saw this new campaign from Persil (sold as Surf in India) I was reminded of two things: consistency of a brand property and the right use of exaggeration in advertising. It is said that advertising is ‘suspension of disbelief’ for a few seconds. No one takes it seriously if an ad shows a protagonist securing a job after using a shampoo. The second aspect is about consistently pursuing and taking forward a brand idea.

    The ‘dirt is good’ platform has the ability to shock you into paying attention (coming from a detergent brand) but also makes the reader ‘connect the dots’. I don’t one should take the scenarios portrayed below literally. Cricket fans would know that the representation is no guarantee of victory but it does drive forward the original message of encouraging us all to not let worry of soiling clothes prevent us from outdoor activity. As an aside – don’t you think such campaigns work because of the platform already set by the previous efforts?

    Agency: LOLA MullenLowe

    Coca-Cola: recycled logo – green washing?

    Is this creative thinking? Yes. One could say its bold. Who would maim their own logo (the only element in the ad) to risk not being recognised as to who the advertiser is? But Coca-Cola is among the rare brands who have distinct brand assets which are recognisable globally – even when as subtle as simply showing the outline of the bottle shape. A new campaign from the brand has put up billboards which show their logo crushed. The intent is to urge people to recycle the Coca-Cola cans. While being environment friendly and sustainability are critical issues which need extensive work, will just one billboard trigger a behavioural change in large numbers? Clearly, no. Also, a do-good message from a brand which contributes to a unhealthy lifestyle is a bit much. But that’s the magic of cola marketing – create endearing little campaigns which make the brand attractive – brighten the halo around it.

    Agency: WPP Open X



    MakeMyTrip: international trips

    I liked both the strategy and the creative expression for this new ad campaign for a travel aggregator, MakeMyTrip. In a cluttered market where real product or service differentiation is hard to come by chances of a brand getting into the consideration set are higher by resonating with a consumer need. In that context it is smart to slice the market and consider ‘first time international travellers’ and convey that the brand understands them. In India, there is a significant group who are considering (and can afford) an international trip but will have anxiety over travel arrangements, food and sight seeing. The ad doesn’t answer how the brand is uniquely placed to address those concerns as it lists some generic features but the build up is good fun.

    Streeteasy: odyssey

    Finding a real-estate property you like – either for rent or purchase can be an adventure, an epic saga. In a big city like New York it can be even more challenging. A new campaign for Streeteasy literally depicts it as an odyssey – remnant of art forms.

    Old world meets new world in the brand’s 2024 campaign, “Let The Journey Begin,” mixing Renaissance flair and classical art with the modernity of life in the city to reach would-be buyers no matter where they are in their journey

    Source

    Agency: Mother

    Mother Dairy: mother’s love

    It’s actually quite refreshing to see a feel-good ad which steers clear from a lofty brand purpose, ’cause advertising’ or solving a problem for millions of Indians. The brand name helps to claim ‘motherly love’ depicted by small acts of care which bring a smile.

    Agency: Ogilvy

    Heinz: helping reduce food waste

    Adding ketchup to unlikely food combinations – not just fries, is a thing. A heritage brand like Heinz can then lay claim to ‘helping reduce food waste since 1869’ since many avoid wasting food by finishing the last bits off with some Heinz ketchup.

    Agency: Fitzroy Amsterdam

    Times: Power of Print

    In association with the Election Commission of India, Times Power of Print – an initiative by Times of India to celebrate creativity in print mounted a contest for a voter awareness initiative. A team from Havas won the contest by creating a page – not just ad, printed in purple (instead of the usual pink) to ‘remind people of unused ink’.

    Agency: Havas

    Burger King: You’ll always be King

    Here’s a clever tactical idea anchored on the brand name. Sibling jealousy is common especially when the attention shifts from a elder child to a newborn. An Easter promo in UK capitalises on it through a TVC and outdoor.

    Which one was your favourite? Do comment in.

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  • Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

    Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

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    As more people opt for quick and engaging visuals that instantly capture attention, so does the number of brands who include short-form video content (or shorts) in their digital marketing strategies. YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce businesses a powerful platform for capitalizing on these bite-sized video consumption trends. 

    The bottom line is this format is versatile for storytelling, showcasing products, and driving audience engagement, making it a critical digital marketing tool.

    But is it for everyone? 

    This post will answer exactly that! We will explain everything you need to know about using YouTube Shorts videos for your brand and why you absolutely should, and include some inspiring YouTube Shorts examples throughout. 

    Let’s jump in!

    Understanding YouTube Shorts

    Similar to TikTok, YouTube Shorts cater to the growing demand for quick, engaging content and provide a new way for users to connect and share on the platform. 

    Simply put, they are short-form videos on YouTube that allow creators and brands to upload content up to 60 seconds in length. And unlike regular YouTube videos, Shorts include vertical video perspectives, unlike the horizontal mode of longer videos on the platform. 

    Integrated within YouTube’s vast ecosystem, Shorts are no more than a minute long and were designed to enhance visibility and reach, particularly among younger audiences. They can be viewed on YouTube’s homepage, the app’s Shorts tab, and on channel homepages.

    Debuted as a beta in India in September 2020, YouTube Shorts is riding the wave of rising popularity for short-form video content. Following its success, the feature went global, with an extensive rollout that started in March 2021. Since then, brands such as Fashion Nova have been jumping onto the YouTube Shorts video bandwagon. 

    eCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion NovaeCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion Nova

    YouTube Shorts Statistics 

    • By the end of 2023, YouTube Shorts hit 70 billion daily views
    • The average time spent per day on YouTube increased since adding Shorts, which is now around 48.7 minutes 
    • The largest age group using YouTube is between 25 and 34
    • YouTube has the highest average session duration compared to other platforms 

    average session time for YouTube average session time for YouTube

    [Source: Data Reportal

    Talking about comparing…

    YouTube Shorts vs. TikTok vs. Instagram Reels 

    YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels each carve out their niche in the growing consumption of short-form video content, targeting different audiences with various content styles. While TikTok is designed to captivate with highly creative, trend-setting content, Instagram Reels’ integration with its social media features capitalizes on an established user base. 

    YouTube Shorts, on the other hand, leverages the extensive YouTube ecosystem, offering videos up to 60 seconds that benefit from YouTube’s powerful search and recommendation algorithms.

    Let’s take a quick look at each of its main distinguishing features.

    YouTube Shorts 

    1. Unique features. Being part of YouTube means users get long-form and short-form content on one platform.
    2. Content style. Matches YouTube’s wide-ranging vibe and is less about casual clips and more about variety. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Access to YouTube’s well-established, unique audience and the ability to use Shorts to promote long-form content without needing to send users to another platform.
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. Most (21.3%) Shorts viewers are aged 25 to 34. 

    Gymshark is a brand that understands the advantages of YouTube Shorts and dominates with them. Take a look at the view metrics for some of their latest Shorts

    YouTube Shorts for businesses example YouTube Shorts for businesses example

    TikTok 

    1. Unique features. From green-screen effects to image carousels, TikTok is packed with unique features. 
    2. Content style. Although content styles change a lot with changing trends, authenticity is a key content must. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Significantly boosts brand visibility and engagement through viral Shopping content
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The majority of TikTok users are aged between 18 and 34. 

    You can read more about TikTok in the following guides: 

    Instagram Reels 

    1. Unique features. From easy-to-use text, AR filters, creative tools and audio, to Meta’s powerful reach, Instagram Reels are a quick way to get branded, short-form content. 
    2. Content style. Generates more refined content than, say, TikTok, but still veers toward authenticity.  
    3. Marketing advantages. Instagram Reels’ direct shopping capabilities (such as tagged product videos) offers advanced product discovery.  
    4. Video length. Up to 90 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The biggest pools of users are between 18–24 and 25–34 years old.

    You can read more about Instagram Reels in the following guides: Instagram Reels for Business: Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples and 9+ High-Performing Instagram Ads Examples to Steal.

    YouTube Shorts Benefits 

    Now, let’s quickly explore the distinctive features and opportunities YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce marketers! 

    A Gateway to Richer Content

    Being part of YouTube means that Shorts serve as a gateway for discovering long-form videos — allowing eCommerce brands to blend short and long videos. This enables you to accommodate varying consumer interests, turning short video viewers into channel lovers, and, ultimately, product buyers. 

    More Evergreen Content Opportunities

    Unlike other, more momentary channels, Shorts remain accessible indefinitely, enhancing long-term visibility. This means that your evergreen Shorts will continue to attract views and other content engagements months after posting. 

    Broader Audience Reach

    Launching within YouTube’s massive user base, Shorts instantly tapped into a broader audience spectrum. By leveraging this reach, you can pinpoint and engage specific segments to refine your targeting strategies and ensure content consistency that resonates with existing subscribers while appealing to potential customers.

    Wider Audience Engagement 

    The wide demographic reach highlighted above also means that brands have the opportunity to engage with broad audiences, from younger short-form enthusiasts to older audiences that other platforms (like Reels or TikTok) may not appeal to. This enables more tailored content strategies that appeal to professionals, older generations, or specific consumer interests.

    Stability and Trustworthiness

    Lastly, because YouTube is a well-established platform with a longstanding reputation, Shorts is a stable and trustworthy channel for eCommerce marketing. The lower risk of unexpected restrictions or disruptions allows for a more secure investment in content development.

    How to Get Started with YouTube Shorts

    To start your YouTube Shorts strategy off right, you need a blend of creativity and strategy. Let’s outline the key steps you need to take to kickstart your journey, from establishing your presence with a dedicated YouTube channel to crafting and sharing your first engaging Short.  

    1. Create a YouTube channel. If you haven’t already set one up, you will need a YouTube channel to post Shorts. (You can follow our guide on doing just that, here.) 
    2. Download the YouTube app. You will want to ensure you have the latest version of the YouTube app to take advantage of the newest Shorts features. Use the Shorts camera in the YouTube app for easy recording, video editing, and music uploading.
    3. Build your YouTube Shorts content plan. Here, you can identify critical product features, upcoming promotions, trending topics, and customer success stories that align with your brand’s narrative, and build your content plan accordingly. 
    4. Record your Short. Your YouTube app’s Shorts camera allows you to record video. Ideally, record in segments, adding each part to create a complete video.   
    5. Edit your video and add tags. Next, you will use the YouTube app video editing tool to trim videos, add text overlays, or incorporate music. Then craft compelling titles that include keywords and hashtags to boost discoverability.
    6. Publish your Short. Finally, you are ready to publish, monitor, and engage with audience comments. 

    Here’s a comprehensive video made by YouTube creators on how you can create Shorts. 

    But you don’t have to start shooting everything from scratch — you can also make Shorts from your existing videos. Let’s quickly run through how. 

    How to Make YouTube Shorts from Existing YouTube Videos 

    To craft a YouTube Short from an existing video or livestream, whether it’s your creation or someone else’s, start by clicking the “Create” button beneath the video. Decide if you want to “Cut” a clip to maintain the original audio or create a fresh “Sound” for a personalized audio touch. 

    After selecting and refining your segment:

    • Hit “Next”
    • Input your Short’s specifics
    • Upload YouTube Shorts to share your snippet with the world

    Tips for Creating Engaging YouTube Shorts

    When you start creating YouTube Shorts from scratch, how do you best do it to boost engagement, brand awareness, and, ultimately, sales? In this section, we give you a few YouTube Shorts creation tips to get you started! 

    1. Grab Attention from the First Second 

    As with any short video content, you need to hook your audience early. For YouTube Shorts, this could mean starting with an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a compelling visual within the first few seconds to grab attention immediately. 

    You also want to use engaging thumbnails to make your content stand out and elicit that click-to-view. Cosmetic giants Lush are experts at this. Here’s one of their most popular videos that catches your attention right away.

    2. Get Creative with Music and Effects 

    Other important elements of Shorts are royalty-free background music and sound effects. While it is essential to assume some viewers mute tvideos, you still want to make sure you create a vibe for those who do. A catchy tune or comedic sounds can go a long way to doing just that. 

    Here’s a YouTube Shorts example from Warby Parker’s YouTube channel

    3. Jump on Trends and Challenges

    Unlike longer videos, trends and viral content aren’t in short supply with short-form content! 

    Participating in trends is a good way to get traction with your Shorts. To keep your content plans relevant, you need to stay up to date with the latest trends and challenges on YouTube and other social media platforms. 

    You could create your own YouTube Shorts challenge to encourage community participation and sharing. Here are some of the more popular challenges: 

    • Ghost pepper challenges
    • Pancake art challenges
    • Random exercise challenges 
    • Try-not-to-laugh challenges
    • 7-second challenges
    • 24-hour challenges 
    • The-floor-is-lava challenges
    • Blindfolded makeup challenges

    You might also want to take advantage of some of YouTube Shorts’ newer features, such as COLLAB, to collaborate with creators, like-minded brands, and your customers for challenges. 

    Pro Tip: What Kind of Shorts Do Well on YouTube?

    Good news for eCommerce marketers: some of the most popular YouTube Shorts topics line up perfectly for product sellers and influencer marketing campaigns. These include makeup and beauty, entertainment, food and drink, video games, and sports. 

    Here’s a YouTube video breaking down some popular YouTube Shorts niches and how you can monetize them (as a creator) or steal them (as a brand). 

    4. Add Text for Clarity 

    Another Short video tip is using text and graphics for effect. 

    Text overlays are vital to emphasize important points or add context where audio can’t be used. In addition, including captions will make your YouTube Shorts more accessible to a wider audience, including those who prefer to watch videos without sound or those who are hearing impaired.

    In fact, more and more people report that they prefer videos with subtitles, with captions said to dramatically increase video engagement. One study found that as many as 80% of viewers are more likely to watch a video to the end if it has subtitles! 

    5. End with a Strong CTA 

    Like with any marketing element, you need a strong CTA to encourage interaction. You want your YouTube Shorts video to be clear, directing your viewers to like, comment, share, or subscribe, fostering engagement and building your community.

    And the more engagement and response your Shorts get, the more significantly you can boost conversions. They also help you gain invaluable insights into specific actions that you can use for other marketing elements. Here are a few examples to get you started. 

    CTA ideas for YouTube shorts CTA ideas for YouTube shorts

    Sometimes, your message needs just a few more words! Take Sephora, for instance. Even though this whole YouTube Short is a call to action to recycle beauty product containers, it still ends with a CTA note. 

    6. Experiment, Analyze, and Tweak 

    When it comes to any successful content marketing strategy, you want to continuously test, tweak, and analyze. This means experimenting with different content types and analyzing their results to mine for vital insights you can use to drive content ideas further down the line. 

    And don’t be afraid to experiment with different styles or types of content to see what resonates most with your audience. Then regularly review your Shorts’ performance analytics to understand viewer preferences and refine your content strategy. 

    Hacks to Maximize Your YouTube Shorts’ Reach

    Expanding your YouTube Shorts’ visibility is crucial to broadening your content’s reach and ensuring your Shorts captivate as many viewers as possible. Let’s look at some of the top ways you can do that. 

    1. Invest in a YouTube Video PPC Strategy 

    Last year, YouTube started rolling out Shorts placement for video action campaigns. They then started showing product feeds connected to these campaigns in Shorts, making them shoppable. This means that if you’re running YouTube video campaigns, you should already be seeing Shorts placement. 

    youtube short example youtube short example

    If you haven’t yet invested in eCommerce YouTube ads, now is the time. Not only to improve the reach of your Shorts, but to help boost traffic to your online store. 

    Looking to scale your business?

    Get Google Ads hacks for free (used by our 500K customers)

    2. Optimize for Discoverability

    You can put all the effort you can muster into your Shorts, but if you aren’t reaching the right viewer, you’re missing the mark. This is where discoverability optimization comes in. Here are a few ways you can do that: 

    1. Exploit keyword-rich titles and descriptions to improve visibility in YouTube search results 
    2. Add trending and relevant hashtags to increase the chances of being discovered by a wider audience 
    3. Interact with comments to boost engagement metrics and improve chances for YouTube’s algorithm to recommend your content 
    4. Leverage YouTube Stories and community posts to promote Shorts to existing subscribers and increase content engagement 
    5. Partner with other brands and YouTube creators to tap into new niche audiences 

    Talking about creators…

    3. Collaborate with Creators or Brands 

    Another way to get more eyes on your content is by collaborating with other people or brands. 

    By working with creators or influencers, or partnering with other brands, you can tap into their audiences and introduce your brand channel to potential new subscribers — and shoppers. Here are a few ideas to get you started: 

    1. Host a joint giveaway or contest with creators or brands whereby viewers need to engage with both channels 
    2. Leverage cross-promotion on social media to share behind-the-scenes content, teaser clips, or to simply promote the collaboration across your Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook profiles to maximize reach 
    3. Create a collaborative series of Shorts where you tackle topics, challenges, or create content that is relevant to both audiences

    Let’s say you’re a fashion brand. You could partner with a beauty influencer to create a series of “Complete the Look” Shorts. In each Short, you could feature the influencer styling a fashion item from your store with their makeup tips. This type of collaboration not only helps you reach new audiences. It helps you showcase your products while adding real value for your audiences and establishing your brand as an expert in fashion. 

    4. Leverage the Power of Thumbnails

    YouTube Shorts thumbnails may be small, but they are often the first thing a potential viewer will see. By creating captivating custom thumbnails for your Shorts, you are able to grab attention on and off the social media platform. 

    They also play a role in ensuring that the Shorts page of your channel is inviting and that all your content is easy to discover. Therefore, you want to ensure that you maintain a consistent style or branding across your thumbnails to make your content instantly recognizable and enticing for the view-click. Additionally, you may want to consider incorporating brief, compelling text overlays that tease the content of the Short or highlight the value within, further encouraging clicks. 

    Or not! The best approach is one that perfectly fits your specific brand, vibe, and market. Take a look at eCommerce giant ASOS’s Shorts feed, which does just that. 

    brand youtube shorts example brand youtube shorts example

    5. Consistent Posting Schedule

    Like with any marketing platform, consistency is key! By maintaining a regular posting schedule, you keep your audience engaged. The more engaged your audience is, the more likely YouTube will recommend your content. 

    If your aim is to quickly boost your account and catch that viral wave with your short-form videos, you may want to consider ramping up your posting frequency to two or three times daily. This may sound daunting — but you can start by repurposing your existing video content instead of starting from scratch. 

    According to SocialPilot, the best times to post on YouTube are displayed in the chart below. Of course, these are average estimates, so you should test and tweak optimum post times for your specific brand and audience. 

    best time of day to post on YouTube best time of day to post on YouTube

    Strategies for Driving Product Sales with YouTube Shorts

    This part of our guide is dedicated to outlining actionable strategies that can turn your YouTube viewers into customers. This means being able to capitalize on the dynamic and engaging nature of Shorts to boost your eCommerce success. 

    Through a mix of affiliate marketing, user-generated content, product teasers, and interactive demonstrations, these strategies are designed to not only capture attention but also to convert that attention into sales. 

    Let’s dive in. 

    1. Leverage Influencer Marketing and Affiliate Programs

    Influencer marketing and affiliate programs can be good ways to drive product sales from YouTube Shorts. Both enable you to leverage the vast reach and credibility of established online personalities and platforms.

    By partnering with YouTube influencers with niche audiences, you are tapping into their fans — fans who will trust their product recommendations. This also enables you to include more authentic endorsements in YouTube Shorts, which helps build product and brand trust while increasing visibility. 

    Similarly, offering an affiliate program for your brand helps you to promote products. Because it’s permanence-based, this can be a cost-effective strategy. It also gives you additional (valuable) data that you can use to drive our marketing strategies beyond just YouTube optimization. 

    Let’s say you’re an eCommerce brand specializing in sustainable fashion. You could collaborate with eco-conscious fashion influencers on YouTube to create Shorts videos showcasing how to style different pieces for different occasions. These influencers could then use your affiliate links in their video descriptions, directing viewers to purchase the outfits directly from the brand’s website. 

    This approach not only highlights the versatility and appeal of the products but also aligns the brand with the values of both the influencer and their audience, driving targeted traffic and increasing sales conversions.

    New to affiliate marketing? Here’s a guide from Shopify. 

    2. Showcase User-Generated Content and Testimonials

    Another way you can use YouTube Shorts to push product conversions is with UGC (user-generated content) or testimonials. This doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking. 

    For instance, you could encourage your customers to share their own Shorts using your products with a specific hashtag. Perhaps for an incentive like a promotional code or a free gift? Then, you could select the best Shorts to feature on your channel and/or offer further incentives for sharing. 

    This not only provides social proof but also builds a community around your brand, increasing trust and driving sales.

    For example, let’s say you are a beauty eCommerce store launching a new line of skincare products

    You could run a campaign asking your followers to post YouTube Shorts of their skincare routines featuring these new products, using a dedicated hashtag. You could offer a prize for the best video, like a month’s supply of skincare. You could then highlight these UGC Shorts on your feed and on other social media platforms to showcase real-life examples of product effectiveness, while cultivating brand loyalty and building trust.  

    3. Use YouTube Shorts for Product Teasers and Countdown Launches

    Short-form video content is a great element you can use to create anticipation and excitement around new product launches. By sharing teaser Shorts that highlight key features or unique selling points, it can be extremely effective. 

    Even better if it’s paired with a countdown series leading up to a launch date, which encourages viewers to subscribe and stay tuned for the reveal. This strategy not only generates buzz on your channel but primes audiences to cash out their carts on release day. 

    Let’s imagine that you are a tech eCommerce brand gearing up to launch your latest smartwatch. In the weeks leading up to the launch, you could release a series of YouTube Shorts, each unveiling a sneak peek of a smartwatch feature — like its sleek design, innovative health tracking, or seamless connectivity — without showing the full product. Each Short ends with a countdown timer to the launch, sparking curiosity and excitement. 

    In theory, by the time the final Short reveals the launch, the audience is already primed and eager to purchase, significantly boosting sales from the get-go.

    Pro Tip: How to Make a Good Product Teaser Using YouTube Shorts 

    1. Start your teaser with a question or a mysterious glimpse of the product to spark curiosity 
    2. Focus on one standout feature of your product in each Short to keep viewers interested 
    3. Add dynamic visuals and compelling music to create an emotional connection for each Short 
    4. Include a visual countdown in your Shorts to build anticipation  
    5. End each Short with a good CTA — encouraging viewers to subscribe or visit your website for the full reveal 

    4. Plan Interactive Product Demonstrations and Tutorials

    The last must-try strategy for driving product sales with YouTube Shorts is interactive product demos and tutorials. Short video content is a great medium to offer engaging tutorials or how-to guides that demonstrate the practical uses and benefits of your products. 

    To capitalize on every second and ensure and ensure your videos are relatable, you want to highlight the problems your products solve in everyday scenarios. Then, you could add interactive elements — such as asking viewers to comment on how they would use the product or what they want to see next — to enhance engagement and drive interest toward making a purchase.

    This is a Shorts strategy that Selena Gomez’s makeup brand, Rare Beauty, is crushing with. Sure, it helps that she hosts the tutorials herself, but the concept is still easily duplicatable on a smaller scale. 

    brands using youtube shorts brands using youtube shorts

    Final Thoughts: Measuring Success with YouTube Shorts

    No matter which YouTube Shorts tip or hack you use for your short video planning, the metrics will matter in a big way. Not just for the success of your Shorts but your overall video marketing strategy. This goes for all your Shorts, even those posted in collaboration with your YouTube Shorts creators.

    From the time you (or a short creator) uploads YouTube Shorts to the app, you should be keeping track of their performance. Metrics such as view count, likes, comments, shares, and subscriber growth provide insights into how effectively Shorts are resonating with audiences. Additionally, monitoring the watch time and audience retention rates can help identify which short video content keeps viewers engaged the longest. 

    This data-driven approach ensures continuous improvement and maximization of the Shorts platform’s potential for growth and engagement.

    Tip: YouTube Analytics Metrics to Keep an Eye On 

    Here are some of the YouTube analytics data points you can use to measure the success of your Shorts videos: 

    • Views 
    • Likes and dislikes 
    • Comments 
    • Shares 
    • Subscriber growth 
    • Watch time
    • Traffic source 
    • CTR (of links in short video description) 
    • Audience demographics 

    Let’s say you’re a small business specializing in eco-friendly home goods, and you decide to leverage YouTube Shorts to showcase your products and share sustainability tips. After posting consistently for a month and seeing good daily metrics, you start analyzing your Shorts’ performance to gauge success.

    You pinpoint a short, 30-second clip demonstrating a zero-waste kitchen hack using one of your products that significantly outperforms others, with 20,000 views, 500 likes, and numerous shares and comments praising it. The analytics also show that this Short led to a 10% increase in channel subscribers and drove a noticeable spike in traffic to your product page linked in the video description.

    The success metrics — high view count, engagement rates, and direct impact on subscriber growth and website traffic — highlight the effectiveness of this Short, which you can, yes, use to plan content ideas in the future. But it’s useful for more than just content planning. Successful engagement and view feedback can also drive our product development and marketing strategies on other platforms — such as your Google video ads!! 

     

    Nicole Blanckenberg

    Nicole is a content writer at StoreYa with over sixteen years experience and flair for storytelling. She runs on a healthy dose of caffeine and enthusiasm. When she’s not researching the next content trend or creating informative small business content, she’s an avid beachgoer, coffee shop junkie and hangs out on LinkedIn.

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  • April 28, 2024 – Advertise

    April 28, 2024 – Advertise

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    The process of creating advertising is not as easy as it might look to the outside world. Creative ads are those which still get noticed despite challenges like vague briefs, whimsical approval system and such like. My weekly compilation of creative ads is a small tribute to agencies & brand teams. This week, views on current advertising trends and a collection of creative ads.

    The moment marketing bug

    The moment marketing trend is driven by FOMO, some inexplicable need to associate a brand (often in a tenuous manner) to a news event or cause in the hope that it will generate buzz in favour of the brand – building affinity or helping it gain stature.

    In that context, caught up on the reaction to the ‘Bombae’ ad, apparently in support of UP Board topper Prachi Nigam who got trolled for her looks. One of those ‘this ad is not about our brand‘ but is exactly that. How often to tell brands that not everything that’s happening in this world – is an opportunity for them to advertise?

    We hope you never get bullied into using our razor‘. Pretty convoluted way of promoting the brand in the guise of not promoting the brand, but batting for a cause. This will sound harsh to the copywriter who came up with the line (BTW, this was ‘approved’?) but this is not good brand thinking or writing. Maybe a lot of those who entered advertising in the recent years (last 5-7 years?) have only been exposed to ‘digital’ advertising (images & ideas for social media posts mainly, and the occasional web film or TV script) and not to the classic print or TV work from say 1990-2000s?

    Industry gurus also repeat stuff like ‘more than ever before consumers seek deep meaningful relationships with the brands they use‘ (really? I just want a product to work as advertised and if it makes me happy or proud using it, that’s a bonus) which leads to warped thinking on faux brand purpose and some random ‘social cause’ leading brand thinking. The rationale seems to be ‘let’s build affinity with the youth by associating our brand with a social cause‘. Yes, maybe the youngsters view brands which ‘do good’ in favourable light but they can see through fakery too or just lip service. And in such a scenario pegging everything on ‘you should prefer my brand because it believes in <insert cause of the day>’ will not make product anchored, benefit-driven advertising as the first, preferred approach. Sadly many business leaders and startup founders think that this is the way to go.

    VOOM Nutrition: power of plants

    It’s good fun when there’s a delicious twist in the tale – be it in a movie or an ad. A new ad for plant based food brand dramatises the impact of a mere plant in our lives. Great build and a hilarious climax.

    Agency: McCann Bristol

    Dutchie Yogurt: gut health

    A majority of ads everywhere are beyond mediocre. They are just ignored – a fate worse than being disliked. Maybe that’s the case with advertising in Thailand too. But going by what bubbles up as latest advertising on social media from there, they seem to have a far better strike rate at crafting compelling advertising. Unlike India, where an idea has to cut across several language and cultural differences, Thailand has the advantage of a single language across the country. A common thread in their advertising seems to be humour – and that too, over-the-top, zany humour. Also, ads poke fun at the tactics of advertising itself and hence have a self-deprecating tone. It’s a clever ploy to solve the branding issue – as we see in this hilarious ad for Dutchie Yogurt – where a character holding the pack is randomly inserted across situations.

    Agency: Ogilvy. See English subtitles here.

    Persil: Guess who won

    When I saw this new campaign from Persil (sold as Surf in India) I was reminded of two things: consistency of a brand property and the right use of exaggeration in advertising. It is said that advertising is ‘suspension of disbelief’ for a few seconds. No one takes it seriously if an ad shows a protagonist securing a job after using a shampoo. The second aspect is about consistently pursuing and taking forward a brand idea.

    The ‘dirt is good’ platform has the ability to shock you into paying attention (coming from a detergent brand) but also makes the reader ‘connect the dots’. I don’t one should take the scenarios portrayed below literally. Cricket fans would know that the representation is no guarantee of victory but it does drive forward the original message of encouraging us all to not let worry of soiling clothes prevent us from outdoor activity. As an aside – don’t you think such campaigns work because of the platform already set by the previous efforts?

    Agency: LOLA MullenLowe

    Coca-Cola: recycled logo – green washing?

    Is this creative thinking? Yes. One could say its bold. Who would maim their own logo (the only element in the ad) to risk not being recognised as to who the advertiser is? But Coca-Cola is among the rare brands who have distinct brand assets which are recognisable globally – even when as subtle as simply showing the outline of the bottle shape. A new campaign from the brand has put up billboards which show their logo crushed. The intent is to urge people to recycle the Coca-Cola cans. While being environment friendly and sustainability are critical issues which need extensive work, will just one billboard trigger a behavioural change in large numbers? Clearly, no. Also, a do-good message from a brand which contributes to a unhealthy lifestyle is a bit much. But that’s the magic of cola marketing – create endearing little campaigns which make the brand attractive – brighten the halo around it.

    Agency: WPP Open X



    MakeMyTrip: international trips

    I liked both the strategy and the creative expression for this new ad campaign for a travel aggregator, MakeMyTrip. In a cluttered market where real product or service differentiation is hard to come by chances of a brand getting into the consideration set are higher by resonating with a consumer need. In that context it is smart to slice the market and consider ‘first time international travellers’ and convey that the brand understands them. In India, there is a significant group who are considering (and can afford) an international trip but will have anxiety over travel arrangements, food and sight seeing. The ad doesn’t answer how the brand is uniquely placed to address those concerns as it lists some generic features but the build up is good fun.

    Streeteasy: odyssey

    Finding a real-estate property you like – either for rent or purchase can be an adventure, an epic saga. In a big city like New York it can be even more challenging. A new campaign for Streeteasy literally depicts it as an odyssey – remnant of art forms.

    Old world meets new world in the brand’s 2024 campaign, “Let The Journey Begin,” mixing Renaissance flair and classical art with the modernity of life in the city to reach would-be buyers no matter where they are in their journey

    Source

    Agency: Mother

    Mother Dairy: mother’s love

    It’s actually quite refreshing to see a feel-good ad which steers clear from a lofty brand purpose, ’cause advertising’ or solving a problem for millions of Indians. The brand name helps to claim ‘motherly love’ depicted by small acts of care which bring a smile.

    Agency: Ogilvy

    Heinz: helping reduce food waste

    Adding ketchup to unlikely food combinations – not just fries, is a thing. A heritage brand like Heinz can then lay claim to ‘helping reduce food waste since 1869’ since many avoid wasting food by finishing the last bits off with some Heinz ketchup.

    Agency: Fitzroy Amsterdam

    Times: Power of Print

    In association with the Election Commission of India, Times Power of Print – an initiative by Times of India to celebrate creativity in print mounted a contest for a voter awareness initiative. A team from Havas won the contest by creating a page – not just ad, printed in purple (instead of the usual pink) to ‘remind people of unused ink’.

    Agency: Havas

    Burger King: You’ll always be King

    Here’s a clever tactical idea anchored on the brand name. Sibling jealousy is common especially when the attention shifts from a elder child to a newborn. An Easter promo in UK capitalises on it through a TVC and outdoor.

    Which one was your favourite? Do comment in.

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  • Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

    Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

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    As more people opt for quick and engaging visuals that instantly capture attention, so does the number of brands who include short-form video content (or shorts) in their digital marketing strategies. YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce businesses a powerful platform for capitalizing on these bite-sized video consumption trends. 

    The bottom line is this format is versatile for storytelling, showcasing products, and driving audience engagement, making it a critical digital marketing tool.

    But is it for everyone? 

    This post will answer exactly that! We will explain everything you need to know about using YouTube Shorts videos for your brand and why you absolutely should, and include some inspiring YouTube Shorts examples throughout. 

    Let’s jump in!

    Understanding YouTube Shorts

    Similar to TikTok, YouTube Shorts cater to the growing demand for quick, engaging content and provide a new way for users to connect and share on the platform. 

    Simply put, they are short-form videos on YouTube that allow creators and brands to upload content up to 60 seconds in length. And unlike regular YouTube videos, Shorts include vertical video perspectives, unlike the horizontal mode of longer videos on the platform. 

    Integrated within YouTube’s vast ecosystem, Shorts are no more than a minute long and were designed to enhance visibility and reach, particularly among younger audiences. They can be viewed on YouTube’s homepage, the app’s Shorts tab, and on channel homepages.

    Debuted as a beta in India in September 2020, YouTube Shorts is riding the wave of rising popularity for short-form video content. Following its success, the feature went global, with an extensive rollout that started in March 2021. Since then, brands such as Fashion Nova have been jumping onto the YouTube Shorts video bandwagon. 

    eCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion NovaeCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion Nova

    YouTube Shorts Statistics 

    • By the end of 2023, YouTube Shorts hit 70 billion daily views
    • The average time spent per day on YouTube increased since adding Shorts, which is now around 48.7 minutes 
    • The largest age group using YouTube is between 25 and 34
    • YouTube has the highest average session duration compared to other platforms 

    average session time for YouTube average session time for YouTube

    [Source: Data Reportal

    Talking about comparing…

    YouTube Shorts vs. TikTok vs. Instagram Reels 

    YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels each carve out their niche in the growing consumption of short-form video content, targeting different audiences with various content styles. While TikTok is designed to captivate with highly creative, trend-setting content, Instagram Reels’ integration with its social media features capitalizes on an established user base. 

    YouTube Shorts, on the other hand, leverages the extensive YouTube ecosystem, offering videos up to 60 seconds that benefit from YouTube’s powerful search and recommendation algorithms.

    Let’s take a quick look at each of its main distinguishing features.

    YouTube Shorts 

    1. Unique features. Being part of YouTube means users get long-form and short-form content on one platform.
    2. Content style. Matches YouTube’s wide-ranging vibe and is less about casual clips and more about variety. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Access to YouTube’s well-established, unique audience and the ability to use Shorts to promote long-form content without needing to send users to another platform.
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. Most (21.3%) Shorts viewers are aged 25 to 34. 

    Gymshark is a brand that understands the advantages of YouTube Shorts and dominates with them. Take a look at the view metrics for some of their latest Shorts

    YouTube Shorts for businesses example YouTube Shorts for businesses example

    TikTok 

    1. Unique features. From green-screen effects to image carousels, TikTok is packed with unique features. 
    2. Content style. Although content styles change a lot with changing trends, authenticity is a key content must. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Significantly boosts brand visibility and engagement through viral Shopping content
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The majority of TikTok users are aged between 18 and 34. 

    You can read more about TikTok in the following guides: 

    Instagram Reels 

    1. Unique features. From easy-to-use text, AR filters, creative tools and audio, to Meta’s powerful reach, Instagram Reels are a quick way to get branded, short-form content. 
    2. Content style. Generates more refined content than, say, TikTok, but still veers toward authenticity.  
    3. Marketing advantages. Instagram Reels’ direct shopping capabilities (such as tagged product videos) offers advanced product discovery.  
    4. Video length. Up to 90 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The biggest pools of users are between 18–24 and 25–34 years old.

    You can read more about Instagram Reels in the following guides: Instagram Reels for Business: Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples and 9+ High-Performing Instagram Ads Examples to Steal.

    YouTube Shorts Benefits 

    Now, let’s quickly explore the distinctive features and opportunities YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce marketers! 

    A Gateway to Richer Content

    Being part of YouTube means that Shorts serve as a gateway for discovering long-form videos — allowing eCommerce brands to blend short and long videos. This enables you to accommodate varying consumer interests, turning short video viewers into channel lovers, and, ultimately, product buyers. 

    More Evergreen Content Opportunities

    Unlike other, more momentary channels, Shorts remain accessible indefinitely, enhancing long-term visibility. This means that your evergreen Shorts will continue to attract views and other content engagements months after posting. 

    Broader Audience Reach

    Launching within YouTube’s massive user base, Shorts instantly tapped into a broader audience spectrum. By leveraging this reach, you can pinpoint and engage specific segments to refine your targeting strategies and ensure content consistency that resonates with existing subscribers while appealing to potential customers.

    Wider Audience Engagement 

    The wide demographic reach highlighted above also means that brands have the opportunity to engage with broad audiences, from younger short-form enthusiasts to older audiences that other platforms (like Reels or TikTok) may not appeal to. This enables more tailored content strategies that appeal to professionals, older generations, or specific consumer interests.

    Stability and Trustworthiness

    Lastly, because YouTube is a well-established platform with a longstanding reputation, Shorts is a stable and trustworthy channel for eCommerce marketing. The lower risk of unexpected restrictions or disruptions allows for a more secure investment in content development.

    How to Get Started with YouTube Shorts

    To start your YouTube Shorts strategy off right, you need a blend of creativity and strategy. Let’s outline the key steps you need to take to kickstart your journey, from establishing your presence with a dedicated YouTube channel to crafting and sharing your first engaging Short.  

    1. Create a YouTube channel. If you haven’t already set one up, you will need a YouTube channel to post Shorts. (You can follow our guide on doing just that, here.) 
    2. Download the YouTube app. You will want to ensure you have the latest version of the YouTube app to take advantage of the newest Shorts features. Use the Shorts camera in the YouTube app for easy recording, video editing, and music uploading.
    3. Build your YouTube Shorts content plan. Here, you can identify critical product features, upcoming promotions, trending topics, and customer success stories that align with your brand’s narrative, and build your content plan accordingly. 
    4. Record your Short. Your YouTube app’s Shorts camera allows you to record video. Ideally, record in segments, adding each part to create a complete video.   
    5. Edit your video and add tags. Next, you will use the YouTube app video editing tool to trim videos, add text overlays, or incorporate music. Then craft compelling titles that include keywords and hashtags to boost discoverability.
    6. Publish your Short. Finally, you are ready to publish, monitor, and engage with audience comments. 

    Here’s a comprehensive video made by YouTube creators on how you can create Shorts. 

    But you don’t have to start shooting everything from scratch — you can also make Shorts from your existing videos. Let’s quickly run through how. 

    How to Make YouTube Shorts from Existing YouTube Videos 

    To craft a YouTube Short from an existing video or livestream, whether it’s your creation or someone else’s, start by clicking the “Create” button beneath the video. Decide if you want to “Cut” a clip to maintain the original audio or create a fresh “Sound” for a personalized audio touch. 

    After selecting and refining your segment:

    • Hit “Next”
    • Input your Short’s specifics
    • Upload YouTube Shorts to share your snippet with the world

    Tips for Creating Engaging YouTube Shorts

    When you start creating YouTube Shorts from scratch, how do you best do it to boost engagement, brand awareness, and, ultimately, sales? In this section, we give you a few YouTube Shorts creation tips to get you started! 

    1. Grab Attention from the First Second 

    As with any short video content, you need to hook your audience early. For YouTube Shorts, this could mean starting with an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a compelling visual within the first few seconds to grab attention immediately. 

    You also want to use engaging thumbnails to make your content stand out and elicit that click-to-view. Cosmetic giants Lush are experts at this. Here’s one of their most popular videos that catches your attention right away.

    2. Get Creative with Music and Effects 

    Other important elements of Shorts are royalty-free background music and sound effects. While it is essential to assume some viewers mute tvideos, you still want to make sure you create a vibe for those who do. A catchy tune or comedic sounds can go a long way to doing just that. 

    Here’s a YouTube Shorts example from Warby Parker’s YouTube channel

    3. Jump on Trends and Challenges

    Unlike longer videos, trends and viral content aren’t in short supply with short-form content! 

    Participating in trends is a good way to get traction with your Shorts. To keep your content plans relevant, you need to stay up to date with the latest trends and challenges on YouTube and other social media platforms. 

    You could create your own YouTube Shorts challenge to encourage community participation and sharing. Here are some of the more popular challenges: 

    • Ghost pepper challenges
    • Pancake art challenges
    • Random exercise challenges 
    • Try-not-to-laugh challenges
    • 7-second challenges
    • 24-hour challenges 
    • The-floor-is-lava challenges
    • Blindfolded makeup challenges

    You might also want to take advantage of some of YouTube Shorts’ newer features, such as COLLAB, to collaborate with creators, like-minded brands, and your customers for challenges. 

    Pro Tip: What Kind of Shorts Do Well on YouTube?

    Good news for eCommerce marketers: some of the most popular YouTube Shorts topics line up perfectly for product sellers and influencer marketing campaigns. These include makeup and beauty, entertainment, food and drink, video games, and sports. 

    Here’s a YouTube video breaking down some popular YouTube Shorts niches and how you can monetize them (as a creator) or steal them (as a brand). 

    4. Add Text for Clarity 

    Another Short video tip is using text and graphics for effect. 

    Text overlays are vital to emphasize important points or add context where audio can’t be used. In addition, including captions will make your YouTube Shorts more accessible to a wider audience, including those who prefer to watch videos without sound or those who are hearing impaired.

    In fact, more and more people report that they prefer videos with subtitles, with captions said to dramatically increase video engagement. One study found that as many as 80% of viewers are more likely to watch a video to the end if it has subtitles! 

    5. End with a Strong CTA 

    Like with any marketing element, you need a strong CTA to encourage interaction. You want your YouTube Shorts video to be clear, directing your viewers to like, comment, share, or subscribe, fostering engagement and building your community.

    And the more engagement and response your Shorts get, the more significantly you can boost conversions. They also help you gain invaluable insights into specific actions that you can use for other marketing elements. Here are a few examples to get you started. 

    CTA ideas for YouTube shorts CTA ideas for YouTube shorts

    Sometimes, your message needs just a few more words! Take Sephora, for instance. Even though this whole YouTube Short is a call to action to recycle beauty product containers, it still ends with a CTA note. 

    6. Experiment, Analyze, and Tweak 

    When it comes to any successful content marketing strategy, you want to continuously test, tweak, and analyze. This means experimenting with different content types and analyzing their results to mine for vital insights you can use to drive content ideas further down the line. 

    And don’t be afraid to experiment with different styles or types of content to see what resonates most with your audience. Then regularly review your Shorts’ performance analytics to understand viewer preferences and refine your content strategy. 

    Hacks to Maximize Your YouTube Shorts’ Reach

    Expanding your YouTube Shorts’ visibility is crucial to broadening your content’s reach and ensuring your Shorts captivate as many viewers as possible. Let’s look at some of the top ways you can do that. 

    1. Invest in a YouTube Video PPC Strategy 

    Last year, YouTube started rolling out Shorts placement for video action campaigns. They then started showing product feeds connected to these campaigns in Shorts, making them shoppable. This means that if you’re running YouTube video campaigns, you should already be seeing Shorts placement. 

    youtube short example youtube short example

    If you haven’t yet invested in eCommerce YouTube ads, now is the time. Not only to improve the reach of your Shorts, but to help boost traffic to your online store. 

    Looking to scale your business?

    Get Google Ads hacks for free (used by our 500K customers)

    2. Optimize for Discoverability

    You can put all the effort you can muster into your Shorts, but if you aren’t reaching the right viewer, you’re missing the mark. This is where discoverability optimization comes in. Here are a few ways you can do that: 

    1. Exploit keyword-rich titles and descriptions to improve visibility in YouTube search results 
    2. Add trending and relevant hashtags to increase the chances of being discovered by a wider audience 
    3. Interact with comments to boost engagement metrics and improve chances for YouTube’s algorithm to recommend your content 
    4. Leverage YouTube Stories and community posts to promote Shorts to existing subscribers and increase content engagement 
    5. Partner with other brands and YouTube creators to tap into new niche audiences 

    Talking about creators…

    3. Collaborate with Creators or Brands 

    Another way to get more eyes on your content is by collaborating with other people or brands. 

    By working with creators or influencers, or partnering with other brands, you can tap into their audiences and introduce your brand channel to potential new subscribers — and shoppers. Here are a few ideas to get you started: 

    1. Host a joint giveaway or contest with creators or brands whereby viewers need to engage with both channels 
    2. Leverage cross-promotion on social media to share behind-the-scenes content, teaser clips, or to simply promote the collaboration across your Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook profiles to maximize reach 
    3. Create a collaborative series of Shorts where you tackle topics, challenges, or create content that is relevant to both audiences

    Let’s say you’re a fashion brand. You could partner with a beauty influencer to create a series of “Complete the Look” Shorts. In each Short, you could feature the influencer styling a fashion item from your store with their makeup tips. This type of collaboration not only helps you reach new audiences. It helps you showcase your products while adding real value for your audiences and establishing your brand as an expert in fashion. 

    4. Leverage the Power of Thumbnails

    YouTube Shorts thumbnails may be small, but they are often the first thing a potential viewer will see. By creating captivating custom thumbnails for your Shorts, you are able to grab attention on and off the social media platform. 

    They also play a role in ensuring that the Shorts page of your channel is inviting and that all your content is easy to discover. Therefore, you want to ensure that you maintain a consistent style or branding across your thumbnails to make your content instantly recognizable and enticing for the view-click. Additionally, you may want to consider incorporating brief, compelling text overlays that tease the content of the Short or highlight the value within, further encouraging clicks. 

    Or not! The best approach is one that perfectly fits your specific brand, vibe, and market. Take a look at eCommerce giant ASOS’s Shorts feed, which does just that. 

    brand youtube shorts example brand youtube shorts example

    5. Consistent Posting Schedule

    Like with any marketing platform, consistency is key! By maintaining a regular posting schedule, you keep your audience engaged. The more engaged your audience is, the more likely YouTube will recommend your content. 

    If your aim is to quickly boost your account and catch that viral wave with your short-form videos, you may want to consider ramping up your posting frequency to two or three times daily. This may sound daunting — but you can start by repurposing your existing video content instead of starting from scratch. 

    According to SocialPilot, the best times to post on YouTube are displayed in the chart below. Of course, these are average estimates, so you should test and tweak optimum post times for your specific brand and audience. 

    best time of day to post on YouTube best time of day to post on YouTube

    Strategies for Driving Product Sales with YouTube Shorts

    This part of our guide is dedicated to outlining actionable strategies that can turn your YouTube viewers into customers. This means being able to capitalize on the dynamic and engaging nature of Shorts to boost your eCommerce success. 

    Through a mix of affiliate marketing, user-generated content, product teasers, and interactive demonstrations, these strategies are designed to not only capture attention but also to convert that attention into sales. 

    Let’s dive in. 

    1. Leverage Influencer Marketing and Affiliate Programs

    Influencer marketing and affiliate programs can be good ways to drive product sales from YouTube Shorts. Both enable you to leverage the vast reach and credibility of established online personalities and platforms.

    By partnering with YouTube influencers with niche audiences, you are tapping into their fans — fans who will trust their product recommendations. This also enables you to include more authentic endorsements in YouTube Shorts, which helps build product and brand trust while increasing visibility. 

    Similarly, offering an affiliate program for your brand helps you to promote products. Because it’s permanence-based, this can be a cost-effective strategy. It also gives you additional (valuable) data that you can use to drive our marketing strategies beyond just YouTube optimization. 

    Let’s say you’re an eCommerce brand specializing in sustainable fashion. You could collaborate with eco-conscious fashion influencers on YouTube to create Shorts videos showcasing how to style different pieces for different occasions. These influencers could then use your affiliate links in their video descriptions, directing viewers to purchase the outfits directly from the brand’s website. 

    This approach not only highlights the versatility and appeal of the products but also aligns the brand with the values of both the influencer and their audience, driving targeted traffic and increasing sales conversions.

    New to affiliate marketing? Here’s a guide from Shopify. 

    2. Showcase User-Generated Content and Testimonials

    Another way you can use YouTube Shorts to push product conversions is with UGC (user-generated content) or testimonials. This doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking. 

    For instance, you could encourage your customers to share their own Shorts using your products with a specific hashtag. Perhaps for an incentive like a promotional code or a free gift? Then, you could select the best Shorts to feature on your channel and/or offer further incentives for sharing. 

    This not only provides social proof but also builds a community around your brand, increasing trust and driving sales.

    For example, let’s say you are a beauty eCommerce store launching a new line of skincare products

    You could run a campaign asking your followers to post YouTube Shorts of their skincare routines featuring these new products, using a dedicated hashtag. You could offer a prize for the best video, like a month’s supply of skincare. You could then highlight these UGC Shorts on your feed and on other social media platforms to showcase real-life examples of product effectiveness, while cultivating brand loyalty and building trust.  

    3. Use YouTube Shorts for Product Teasers and Countdown Launches

    Short-form video content is a great element you can use to create anticipation and excitement around new product launches. By sharing teaser Shorts that highlight key features or unique selling points, it can be extremely effective. 

    Even better if it’s paired with a countdown series leading up to a launch date, which encourages viewers to subscribe and stay tuned for the reveal. This strategy not only generates buzz on your channel but primes audiences to cash out their carts on release day. 

    Let’s imagine that you are a tech eCommerce brand gearing up to launch your latest smartwatch. In the weeks leading up to the launch, you could release a series of YouTube Shorts, each unveiling a sneak peek of a smartwatch feature — like its sleek design, innovative health tracking, or seamless connectivity — without showing the full product. Each Short ends with a countdown timer to the launch, sparking curiosity and excitement. 

    In theory, by the time the final Short reveals the launch, the audience is already primed and eager to purchase, significantly boosting sales from the get-go.

    Pro Tip: How to Make a Good Product Teaser Using YouTube Shorts 

    1. Start your teaser with a question or a mysterious glimpse of the product to spark curiosity 
    2. Focus on one standout feature of your product in each Short to keep viewers interested 
    3. Add dynamic visuals and compelling music to create an emotional connection for each Short 
    4. Include a visual countdown in your Shorts to build anticipation  
    5. End each Short with a good CTA — encouraging viewers to subscribe or visit your website for the full reveal 

    4. Plan Interactive Product Demonstrations and Tutorials

    The last must-try strategy for driving product sales with YouTube Shorts is interactive product demos and tutorials. Short video content is a great medium to offer engaging tutorials or how-to guides that demonstrate the practical uses and benefits of your products. 

    To capitalize on every second and ensure and ensure your videos are relatable, you want to highlight the problems your products solve in everyday scenarios. Then, you could add interactive elements — such as asking viewers to comment on how they would use the product or what they want to see next — to enhance engagement and drive interest toward making a purchase.

    This is a Shorts strategy that Selena Gomez’s makeup brand, Rare Beauty, is crushing with. Sure, it helps that she hosts the tutorials herself, but the concept is still easily duplicatable on a smaller scale. 

    brands using youtube shorts brands using youtube shorts

    Final Thoughts: Measuring Success with YouTube Shorts

    No matter which YouTube Shorts tip or hack you use for your short video planning, the metrics will matter in a big way. Not just for the success of your Shorts but your overall video marketing strategy. This goes for all your Shorts, even those posted in collaboration with your YouTube Shorts creators.

    From the time you (or a short creator) uploads YouTube Shorts to the app, you should be keeping track of their performance. Metrics such as view count, likes, comments, shares, and subscriber growth provide insights into how effectively Shorts are resonating with audiences. Additionally, monitoring the watch time and audience retention rates can help identify which short video content keeps viewers engaged the longest. 

    This data-driven approach ensures continuous improvement and maximization of the Shorts platform’s potential for growth and engagement.

    Tip: YouTube Analytics Metrics to Keep an Eye On 

    Here are some of the YouTube analytics data points you can use to measure the success of your Shorts videos: 

    • Views 
    • Likes and dislikes 
    • Comments 
    • Shares 
    • Subscriber growth 
    • Watch time
    • Traffic source 
    • CTR (of links in short video description) 
    • Audience demographics 

    Let’s say you’re a small business specializing in eco-friendly home goods, and you decide to leverage YouTube Shorts to showcase your products and share sustainability tips. After posting consistently for a month and seeing good daily metrics, you start analyzing your Shorts’ performance to gauge success.

    You pinpoint a short, 30-second clip demonstrating a zero-waste kitchen hack using one of your products that significantly outperforms others, with 20,000 views, 500 likes, and numerous shares and comments praising it. The analytics also show that this Short led to a 10% increase in channel subscribers and drove a noticeable spike in traffic to your product page linked in the video description.

    The success metrics — high view count, engagement rates, and direct impact on subscriber growth and website traffic — highlight the effectiveness of this Short, which you can, yes, use to plan content ideas in the future. But it’s useful for more than just content planning. Successful engagement and view feedback can also drive our product development and marketing strategies on other platforms — such as your Google video ads!! 

     

    Nicole Blanckenberg

    Nicole is a content writer at StoreYa with over sixteen years experience and flair for storytelling. She runs on a healthy dose of caffeine and enthusiasm. When she’s not researching the next content trend or creating informative small business content, she’s an avid beachgoer, coffee shop junkie and hangs out on LinkedIn.

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  • April 28, 2024 – Advertise

    April 28, 2024 – Advertise

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    The process of creating advertising is not as easy as it might look to the outside world. Creative ads are those which still get noticed despite challenges like vague briefs, whimsical approval system and such like. My weekly compilation of creative ads is a small tribute to agencies & brand teams. This week, views on current advertising trends and a collection of creative ads.

    The moment marketing bug

    The moment marketing trend is driven by FOMO, some inexplicable need to associate a brand (often in a tenuous manner) to a news event or cause in the hope that it will generate buzz in favour of the brand – building affinity or helping it gain stature.

    In that context, caught up on the reaction to the ‘Bombae’ ad, apparently in support of UP Board topper Prachi Nigam who got trolled for her looks. One of those ‘this ad is not about our brand‘ but is exactly that. How often to tell brands that not everything that’s happening in this world – is an opportunity for them to advertise?

    We hope you never get bullied into using our razor‘. Pretty convoluted way of promoting the brand in the guise of not promoting the brand, but batting for a cause. This will sound harsh to the copywriter who came up with the line (BTW, this was ‘approved’?) but this is not good brand thinking or writing. Maybe a lot of those who entered advertising in the recent years (last 5-7 years?) have only been exposed to ‘digital’ advertising (images & ideas for social media posts mainly, and the occasional web film or TV script) and not to the classic print or TV work from say 1990-2000s?

    Industry gurus also repeat stuff like ‘more than ever before consumers seek deep meaningful relationships with the brands they use‘ (really? I just want a product to work as advertised and if it makes me happy or proud using it, that’s a bonus) which leads to warped thinking on faux brand purpose and some random ‘social cause’ leading brand thinking. The rationale seems to be ‘let’s build affinity with the youth by associating our brand with a social cause‘. Yes, maybe the youngsters view brands which ‘do good’ in favourable light but they can see through fakery too or just lip service. And in such a scenario pegging everything on ‘you should prefer my brand because it believes in <insert cause of the day>’ will not make product anchored, benefit-driven advertising as the first, preferred approach. Sadly many business leaders and startup founders think that this is the way to go.

    VOOM Nutrition: power of plants

    It’s good fun when there’s a delicious twist in the tale – be it in a movie or an ad. A new ad for plant based food brand dramatises the impact of a mere plant in our lives. Great build and a hilarious climax.

    Agency: McCann Bristol

    Dutchie Yogurt: gut health

    A majority of ads everywhere are beyond mediocre. They are just ignored – a fate worse than being disliked. Maybe that’s the case with advertising in Thailand too. But going by what bubbles up as latest advertising on social media from there, they seem to have a far better strike rate at crafting compelling advertising. Unlike India, where an idea has to cut across several language and cultural differences, Thailand has the advantage of a single language across the country. A common thread in their advertising seems to be humour – and that too, over-the-top, zany humour. Also, ads poke fun at the tactics of advertising itself and hence have a self-deprecating tone. It’s a clever ploy to solve the branding issue – as we see in this hilarious ad for Dutchie Yogurt – where a character holding the pack is randomly inserted across situations.

    Agency: Ogilvy. See English subtitles here.

    Persil: Guess who won

    When I saw this new campaign from Persil (sold as Surf in India) I was reminded of two things: consistency of a brand property and the right use of exaggeration in advertising. It is said that advertising is ‘suspension of disbelief’ for a few seconds. No one takes it seriously if an ad shows a protagonist securing a job after using a shampoo. The second aspect is about consistently pursuing and taking forward a brand idea.

    The ‘dirt is good’ platform has the ability to shock you into paying attention (coming from a detergent brand) but also makes the reader ‘connect the dots’. I don’t one should take the scenarios portrayed below literally. Cricket fans would know that the representation is no guarantee of victory but it does drive forward the original message of encouraging us all to not let worry of soiling clothes prevent us from outdoor activity. As an aside – don’t you think such campaigns work because of the platform already set by the previous efforts?

    Agency: LOLA MullenLowe

    Coca-Cola: recycled logo – green washing?

    Is this creative thinking? Yes. One could say its bold. Who would maim their own logo (the only element in the ad) to risk not being recognised as to who the advertiser is? But Coca-Cola is among the rare brands who have distinct brand assets which are recognisable globally – even when as subtle as simply showing the outline of the bottle shape. A new campaign from the brand has put up billboards which show their logo crushed. The intent is to urge people to recycle the Coca-Cola cans. While being environment friendly and sustainability are critical issues which need extensive work, will just one billboard trigger a behavioural change in large numbers? Clearly, no. Also, a do-good message from a brand which contributes to a unhealthy lifestyle is a bit much. But that’s the magic of cola marketing – create endearing little campaigns which make the brand attractive – brighten the halo around it.

    Agency: WPP Open X



    MakeMyTrip: international trips

    I liked both the strategy and the creative expression for this new ad campaign for a travel aggregator, MakeMyTrip. In a cluttered market where real product or service differentiation is hard to come by chances of a brand getting into the consideration set are higher by resonating with a consumer need. In that context it is smart to slice the market and consider ‘first time international travellers’ and convey that the brand understands them. In India, there is a significant group who are considering (and can afford) an international trip but will have anxiety over travel arrangements, food and sight seeing. The ad doesn’t answer how the brand is uniquely placed to address those concerns as it lists some generic features but the build up is good fun.

    Streeteasy: odyssey

    Finding a real-estate property you like – either for rent or purchase can be an adventure, an epic saga. In a big city like New York it can be even more challenging. A new campaign for Streeteasy literally depicts it as an odyssey – remnant of art forms.

    Old world meets new world in the brand’s 2024 campaign, “Let The Journey Begin,” mixing Renaissance flair and classical art with the modernity of life in the city to reach would-be buyers no matter where they are in their journey

    Source

    Agency: Mother

    Mother Dairy: mother’s love

    It’s actually quite refreshing to see a feel-good ad which steers clear from a lofty brand purpose, ’cause advertising’ or solving a problem for millions of Indians. The brand name helps to claim ‘motherly love’ depicted by small acts of care which bring a smile.

    Agency: Ogilvy

    Heinz: helping reduce food waste

    Adding ketchup to unlikely food combinations – not just fries, is a thing. A heritage brand like Heinz can then lay claim to ‘helping reduce food waste since 1869’ since many avoid wasting food by finishing the last bits off with some Heinz ketchup.

    Agency: Fitzroy Amsterdam

    Times: Power of Print

    In association with the Election Commission of India, Times Power of Print – an initiative by Times of India to celebrate creativity in print mounted a contest for a voter awareness initiative. A team from Havas won the contest by creating a page – not just ad, printed in purple (instead of the usual pink) to ‘remind people of unused ink’.

    Agency: Havas

    Burger King: You’ll always be King

    Here’s a clever tactical idea anchored on the brand name. Sibling jealousy is common especially when the attention shifts from a elder child to a newborn. An Easter promo in UK capitalises on it through a TVC and outdoor.

    Which one was your favourite? Do comment in.

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  • Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

    Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples – Advertise

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    As more people opt for quick and engaging visuals that instantly capture attention, so does the number of brands who include short-form video content (or shorts) in their digital marketing strategies. YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce businesses a powerful platform for capitalizing on these bite-sized video consumption trends. 

    The bottom line is this format is versatile for storytelling, showcasing products, and driving audience engagement, making it a critical digital marketing tool.

    But is it for everyone? 

    This post will answer exactly that! We will explain everything you need to know about using YouTube Shorts videos for your brand and why you absolutely should, and include some inspiring YouTube Shorts examples throughout. 

    Let’s jump in!

    Understanding YouTube Shorts

    Similar to TikTok, YouTube Shorts cater to the growing demand for quick, engaging content and provide a new way for users to connect and share on the platform. 

    Simply put, they are short-form videos on YouTube that allow creators and brands to upload content up to 60 seconds in length. And unlike regular YouTube videos, Shorts include vertical video perspectives, unlike the horizontal mode of longer videos on the platform. 

    Integrated within YouTube’s vast ecosystem, Shorts are no more than a minute long and were designed to enhance visibility and reach, particularly among younger audiences. They can be viewed on YouTube’s homepage, the app’s Shorts tab, and on channel homepages.

    Debuted as a beta in India in September 2020, YouTube Shorts is riding the wave of rising popularity for short-form video content. Following its success, the feature went global, with an extensive rollout that started in March 2021. Since then, brands such as Fashion Nova have been jumping onto the YouTube Shorts video bandwagon. 

    eCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion NovaeCommerce youtube shorts example brand Fashion Nova

    YouTube Shorts Statistics 

    • By the end of 2023, YouTube Shorts hit 70 billion daily views
    • The average time spent per day on YouTube increased since adding Shorts, which is now around 48.7 minutes 
    • The largest age group using YouTube is between 25 and 34
    • YouTube has the highest average session duration compared to other platforms 

    average session time for YouTube average session time for YouTube

    [Source: Data Reportal

    Talking about comparing…

    YouTube Shorts vs. TikTok vs. Instagram Reels 

    YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels each carve out their niche in the growing consumption of short-form video content, targeting different audiences with various content styles. While TikTok is designed to captivate with highly creative, trend-setting content, Instagram Reels’ integration with its social media features capitalizes on an established user base. 

    YouTube Shorts, on the other hand, leverages the extensive YouTube ecosystem, offering videos up to 60 seconds that benefit from YouTube’s powerful search and recommendation algorithms.

    Let’s take a quick look at each of its main distinguishing features.

    YouTube Shorts 

    1. Unique features. Being part of YouTube means users get long-form and short-form content on one platform.
    2. Content style. Matches YouTube’s wide-ranging vibe and is less about casual clips and more about variety. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Access to YouTube’s well-established, unique audience and the ability to use Shorts to promote long-form content without needing to send users to another platform.
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. Most (21.3%) Shorts viewers are aged 25 to 34. 

    Gymshark is a brand that understands the advantages of YouTube Shorts and dominates with them. Take a look at the view metrics for some of their latest Shorts

    YouTube Shorts for businesses example YouTube Shorts for businesses example

    TikTok 

    1. Unique features. From green-screen effects to image carousels, TikTok is packed with unique features. 
    2. Content style. Although content styles change a lot with changing trends, authenticity is a key content must. 
    3. Marketing advantage. Significantly boosts brand visibility and engagement through viral Shopping content
    4. Video length. 15–60 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The majority of TikTok users are aged between 18 and 34. 

    You can read more about TikTok in the following guides: 

    Instagram Reels 

    1. Unique features. From easy-to-use text, AR filters, creative tools and audio, to Meta’s powerful reach, Instagram Reels are a quick way to get branded, short-form content. 
    2. Content style. Generates more refined content than, say, TikTok, but still veers toward authenticity.  
    3. Marketing advantages. Instagram Reels’ direct shopping capabilities (such as tagged product videos) offers advanced product discovery.  
    4. Video length. Up to 90 seconds. 
    5. Demographics. The biggest pools of users are between 18–24 and 25–34 years old.

    You can read more about Instagram Reels in the following guides: Instagram Reels for Business: Tips, Hacks, Strategies & Examples and 9+ High-Performing Instagram Ads Examples to Steal.

    YouTube Shorts Benefits 

    Now, let’s quickly explore the distinctive features and opportunities YouTube Shorts offer eCommerce marketers! 

    A Gateway to Richer Content

    Being part of YouTube means that Shorts serve as a gateway for discovering long-form videos — allowing eCommerce brands to blend short and long videos. This enables you to accommodate varying consumer interests, turning short video viewers into channel lovers, and, ultimately, product buyers. 

    More Evergreen Content Opportunities

    Unlike other, more momentary channels, Shorts remain accessible indefinitely, enhancing long-term visibility. This means that your evergreen Shorts will continue to attract views and other content engagements months after posting. 

    Broader Audience Reach

    Launching within YouTube’s massive user base, Shorts instantly tapped into a broader audience spectrum. By leveraging this reach, you can pinpoint and engage specific segments to refine your targeting strategies and ensure content consistency that resonates with existing subscribers while appealing to potential customers.

    Wider Audience Engagement 

    The wide demographic reach highlighted above also means that brands have the opportunity to engage with broad audiences, from younger short-form enthusiasts to older audiences that other platforms (like Reels or TikTok) may not appeal to. This enables more tailored content strategies that appeal to professionals, older generations, or specific consumer interests.

    Stability and Trustworthiness

    Lastly, because YouTube is a well-established platform with a longstanding reputation, Shorts is a stable and trustworthy channel for eCommerce marketing. The lower risk of unexpected restrictions or disruptions allows for a more secure investment in content development.

    How to Get Started with YouTube Shorts

    To start your YouTube Shorts strategy off right, you need a blend of creativity and strategy. Let’s outline the key steps you need to take to kickstart your journey, from establishing your presence with a dedicated YouTube channel to crafting and sharing your first engaging Short.  

    1. Create a YouTube channel. If you haven’t already set one up, you will need a YouTube channel to post Shorts. (You can follow our guide on doing just that, here.) 
    2. Download the YouTube app. You will want to ensure you have the latest version of the YouTube app to take advantage of the newest Shorts features. Use the Shorts camera in the YouTube app for easy recording, video editing, and music uploading.
    3. Build your YouTube Shorts content plan. Here, you can identify critical product features, upcoming promotions, trending topics, and customer success stories that align with your brand’s narrative, and build your content plan accordingly. 
    4. Record your Short. Your YouTube app’s Shorts camera allows you to record video. Ideally, record in segments, adding each part to create a complete video.   
    5. Edit your video and add tags. Next, you will use the YouTube app video editing tool to trim videos, add text overlays, or incorporate music. Then craft compelling titles that include keywords and hashtags to boost discoverability.
    6. Publish your Short. Finally, you are ready to publish, monitor, and engage with audience comments. 

    Here’s a comprehensive video made by YouTube creators on how you can create Shorts. 

    But you don’t have to start shooting everything from scratch — you can also make Shorts from your existing videos. Let’s quickly run through how. 

    How to Make YouTube Shorts from Existing YouTube Videos 

    To craft a YouTube Short from an existing video or livestream, whether it’s your creation or someone else’s, start by clicking the “Create” button beneath the video. Decide if you want to “Cut” a clip to maintain the original audio or create a fresh “Sound” for a personalized audio touch. 

    After selecting and refining your segment:

    • Hit “Next”
    • Input your Short’s specifics
    • Upload YouTube Shorts to share your snippet with the world

    Tips for Creating Engaging YouTube Shorts

    When you start creating YouTube Shorts from scratch, how do you best do it to boost engagement, brand awareness, and, ultimately, sales? In this section, we give you a few YouTube Shorts creation tips to get you started! 

    1. Grab Attention from the First Second 

    As with any short video content, you need to hook your audience early. For YouTube Shorts, this could mean starting with an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a compelling visual within the first few seconds to grab attention immediately. 

    You also want to use engaging thumbnails to make your content stand out and elicit that click-to-view. Cosmetic giants Lush are experts at this. Here’s one of their most popular videos that catches your attention right away.

    2. Get Creative with Music and Effects 

    Other important elements of Shorts are royalty-free background music and sound effects. While it is essential to assume some viewers mute tvideos, you still want to make sure you create a vibe for those who do. A catchy tune or comedic sounds can go a long way to doing just that. 

    Here’s a YouTube Shorts example from Warby Parker’s YouTube channel

    3. Jump on Trends and Challenges

    Unlike longer videos, trends and viral content aren’t in short supply with short-form content! 

    Participating in trends is a good way to get traction with your Shorts. To keep your content plans relevant, you need to stay up to date with the latest trends and challenges on YouTube and other social media platforms. 

    You could create your own YouTube Shorts challenge to encourage community participation and sharing. Here are some of the more popular challenges: 

    • Ghost pepper challenges
    • Pancake art challenges
    • Random exercise challenges 
    • Try-not-to-laugh challenges
    • 7-second challenges
    • 24-hour challenges 
    • The-floor-is-lava challenges
    • Blindfolded makeup challenges

    You might also want to take advantage of some of YouTube Shorts’ newer features, such as COLLAB, to collaborate with creators, like-minded brands, and your customers for challenges. 

    Pro Tip: What Kind of Shorts Do Well on YouTube?

    Good news for eCommerce marketers: some of the most popular YouTube Shorts topics line up perfectly for product sellers and influencer marketing campaigns. These include makeup and beauty, entertainment, food and drink, video games, and sports. 

    Here’s a YouTube video breaking down some popular YouTube Shorts niches and how you can monetize them (as a creator) or steal them (as a brand). 

    4. Add Text for Clarity 

    Another Short video tip is using text and graphics for effect. 

    Text overlays are vital to emphasize important points or add context where audio can’t be used. In addition, including captions will make your YouTube Shorts more accessible to a wider audience, including those who prefer to watch videos without sound or those who are hearing impaired.

    In fact, more and more people report that they prefer videos with subtitles, with captions said to dramatically increase video engagement. One study found that as many as 80% of viewers are more likely to watch a video to the end if it has subtitles! 

    5. End with a Strong CTA 

    Like with any marketing element, you need a strong CTA to encourage interaction. You want your YouTube Shorts video to be clear, directing your viewers to like, comment, share, or subscribe, fostering engagement and building your community.

    And the more engagement and response your Shorts get, the more significantly you can boost conversions. They also help you gain invaluable insights into specific actions that you can use for other marketing elements. Here are a few examples to get you started. 

    CTA ideas for YouTube shorts CTA ideas for YouTube shorts

    Sometimes, your message needs just a few more words! Take Sephora, for instance. Even though this whole YouTube Short is a call to action to recycle beauty product containers, it still ends with a CTA note. 

    6. Experiment, Analyze, and Tweak 

    When it comes to any successful content marketing strategy, you want to continuously test, tweak, and analyze. This means experimenting with different content types and analyzing their results to mine for vital insights you can use to drive content ideas further down the line. 

    And don’t be afraid to experiment with different styles or types of content to see what resonates most with your audience. Then regularly review your Shorts’ performance analytics to understand viewer preferences and refine your content strategy. 

    Hacks to Maximize Your YouTube Shorts’ Reach

    Expanding your YouTube Shorts’ visibility is crucial to broadening your content’s reach and ensuring your Shorts captivate as many viewers as possible. Let’s look at some of the top ways you can do that. 

    1. Invest in a YouTube Video PPC Strategy 

    Last year, YouTube started rolling out Shorts placement for video action campaigns. They then started showing product feeds connected to these campaigns in Shorts, making them shoppable. This means that if you’re running YouTube video campaigns, you should already be seeing Shorts placement. 

    youtube short example youtube short example

    If you haven’t yet invested in eCommerce YouTube ads, now is the time. Not only to improve the reach of your Shorts, but to help boost traffic to your online store. 

    Looking to scale your business?

    Get Google Ads hacks for free (used by our 500K customers)

    2. Optimize for Discoverability

    You can put all the effort you can muster into your Shorts, but if you aren’t reaching the right viewer, you’re missing the mark. This is where discoverability optimization comes in. Here are a few ways you can do that: 

    1. Exploit keyword-rich titles and descriptions to improve visibility in YouTube search results 
    2. Add trending and relevant hashtags to increase the chances of being discovered by a wider audience 
    3. Interact with comments to boost engagement metrics and improve chances for YouTube’s algorithm to recommend your content 
    4. Leverage YouTube Stories and community posts to promote Shorts to existing subscribers and increase content engagement 
    5. Partner with other brands and YouTube creators to tap into new niche audiences 

    Talking about creators…

    3. Collaborate with Creators or Brands 

    Another way to get more eyes on your content is by collaborating with other people or brands. 

    By working with creators or influencers, or partnering with other brands, you can tap into their audiences and introduce your brand channel to potential new subscribers — and shoppers. Here are a few ideas to get you started: 

    1. Host a joint giveaway or contest with creators or brands whereby viewers need to engage with both channels 
    2. Leverage cross-promotion on social media to share behind-the-scenes content, teaser clips, or to simply promote the collaboration across your Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook profiles to maximize reach 
    3. Create a collaborative series of Shorts where you tackle topics, challenges, or create content that is relevant to both audiences

    Let’s say you’re a fashion brand. You could partner with a beauty influencer to create a series of “Complete the Look” Shorts. In each Short, you could feature the influencer styling a fashion item from your store with their makeup tips. This type of collaboration not only helps you reach new audiences. It helps you showcase your products while adding real value for your audiences and establishing your brand as an expert in fashion. 

    4. Leverage the Power of Thumbnails

    YouTube Shorts thumbnails may be small, but they are often the first thing a potential viewer will see. By creating captivating custom thumbnails for your Shorts, you are able to grab attention on and off the social media platform. 

    They also play a role in ensuring that the Shorts page of your channel is inviting and that all your content is easy to discover. Therefore, you want to ensure that you maintain a consistent style or branding across your thumbnails to make your content instantly recognizable and enticing for the view-click. Additionally, you may want to consider incorporating brief, compelling text overlays that tease the content of the Short or highlight the value within, further encouraging clicks. 

    Or not! The best approach is one that perfectly fits your specific brand, vibe, and market. Take a look at eCommerce giant ASOS’s Shorts feed, which does just that. 

    brand youtube shorts example brand youtube shorts example

    5. Consistent Posting Schedule

    Like with any marketing platform, consistency is key! By maintaining a regular posting schedule, you keep your audience engaged. The more engaged your audience is, the more likely YouTube will recommend your content. 

    If your aim is to quickly boost your account and catch that viral wave with your short-form videos, you may want to consider ramping up your posting frequency to two or three times daily. This may sound daunting — but you can start by repurposing your existing video content instead of starting from scratch. 

    According to SocialPilot, the best times to post on YouTube are displayed in the chart below. Of course, these are average estimates, so you should test and tweak optimum post times for your specific brand and audience. 

    best time of day to post on YouTube best time of day to post on YouTube

    Strategies for Driving Product Sales with YouTube Shorts

    This part of our guide is dedicated to outlining actionable strategies that can turn your YouTube viewers into customers. This means being able to capitalize on the dynamic and engaging nature of Shorts to boost your eCommerce success. 

    Through a mix of affiliate marketing, user-generated content, product teasers, and interactive demonstrations, these strategies are designed to not only capture attention but also to convert that attention into sales. 

    Let’s dive in. 

    1. Leverage Influencer Marketing and Affiliate Programs

    Influencer marketing and affiliate programs can be good ways to drive product sales from YouTube Shorts. Both enable you to leverage the vast reach and credibility of established online personalities and platforms.

    By partnering with YouTube influencers with niche audiences, you are tapping into their fans — fans who will trust their product recommendations. This also enables you to include more authentic endorsements in YouTube Shorts, which helps build product and brand trust while increasing visibility. 

    Similarly, offering an affiliate program for your brand helps you to promote products. Because it’s permanence-based, this can be a cost-effective strategy. It also gives you additional (valuable) data that you can use to drive our marketing strategies beyond just YouTube optimization. 

    Let’s say you’re an eCommerce brand specializing in sustainable fashion. You could collaborate with eco-conscious fashion influencers on YouTube to create Shorts videos showcasing how to style different pieces for different occasions. These influencers could then use your affiliate links in their video descriptions, directing viewers to purchase the outfits directly from the brand’s website. 

    This approach not only highlights the versatility and appeal of the products but also aligns the brand with the values of both the influencer and their audience, driving targeted traffic and increasing sales conversions.

    New to affiliate marketing? Here’s a guide from Shopify. 

    2. Showcase User-Generated Content and Testimonials

    Another way you can use YouTube Shorts to push product conversions is with UGC (user-generated content) or testimonials. This doesn’t have to be a huge undertaking. 

    For instance, you could encourage your customers to share their own Shorts using your products with a specific hashtag. Perhaps for an incentive like a promotional code or a free gift? Then, you could select the best Shorts to feature on your channel and/or offer further incentives for sharing. 

    This not only provides social proof but also builds a community around your brand, increasing trust and driving sales.

    For example, let’s say you are a beauty eCommerce store launching a new line of skincare products

    You could run a campaign asking your followers to post YouTube Shorts of their skincare routines featuring these new products, using a dedicated hashtag. You could offer a prize for the best video, like a month’s supply of skincare. You could then highlight these UGC Shorts on your feed and on other social media platforms to showcase real-life examples of product effectiveness, while cultivating brand loyalty and building trust.  

    3. Use YouTube Shorts for Product Teasers and Countdown Launches

    Short-form video content is a great element you can use to create anticipation and excitement around new product launches. By sharing teaser Shorts that highlight key features or unique selling points, it can be extremely effective. 

    Even better if it’s paired with a countdown series leading up to a launch date, which encourages viewers to subscribe and stay tuned for the reveal. This strategy not only generates buzz on your channel but primes audiences to cash out their carts on release day. 

    Let’s imagine that you are a tech eCommerce brand gearing up to launch your latest smartwatch. In the weeks leading up to the launch, you could release a series of YouTube Shorts, each unveiling a sneak peek of a smartwatch feature — like its sleek design, innovative health tracking, or seamless connectivity — without showing the full product. Each Short ends with a countdown timer to the launch, sparking curiosity and excitement. 

    In theory, by the time the final Short reveals the launch, the audience is already primed and eager to purchase, significantly boosting sales from the get-go.

    Pro Tip: How to Make a Good Product Teaser Using YouTube Shorts 

    1. Start your teaser with a question or a mysterious glimpse of the product to spark curiosity 
    2. Focus on one standout feature of your product in each Short to keep viewers interested 
    3. Add dynamic visuals and compelling music to create an emotional connection for each Short 
    4. Include a visual countdown in your Shorts to build anticipation  
    5. End each Short with a good CTA — encouraging viewers to subscribe or visit your website for the full reveal 

    4. Plan Interactive Product Demonstrations and Tutorials

    The last must-try strategy for driving product sales with YouTube Shorts is interactive product demos and tutorials. Short video content is a great medium to offer engaging tutorials or how-to guides that demonstrate the practical uses and benefits of your products. 

    To capitalize on every second and ensure and ensure your videos are relatable, you want to highlight the problems your products solve in everyday scenarios. Then, you could add interactive elements — such as asking viewers to comment on how they would use the product or what they want to see next — to enhance engagement and drive interest toward making a purchase.

    This is a Shorts strategy that Selena Gomez’s makeup brand, Rare Beauty, is crushing with. Sure, it helps that she hosts the tutorials herself, but the concept is still easily duplicatable on a smaller scale. 

    brands using youtube shorts brands using youtube shorts

    Final Thoughts: Measuring Success with YouTube Shorts

    No matter which YouTube Shorts tip or hack you use for your short video planning, the metrics will matter in a big way. Not just for the success of your Shorts but your overall video marketing strategy. This goes for all your Shorts, even those posted in collaboration with your YouTube Shorts creators.

    From the time you (or a short creator) uploads YouTube Shorts to the app, you should be keeping track of their performance. Metrics such as view count, likes, comments, shares, and subscriber growth provide insights into how effectively Shorts are resonating with audiences. Additionally, monitoring the watch time and audience retention rates can help identify which short video content keeps viewers engaged the longest. 

    This data-driven approach ensures continuous improvement and maximization of the Shorts platform’s potential for growth and engagement.

    Tip: YouTube Analytics Metrics to Keep an Eye On 

    Here are some of the YouTube analytics data points you can use to measure the success of your Shorts videos: 

    • Views 
    • Likes and dislikes 
    • Comments 
    • Shares 
    • Subscriber growth 
    • Watch time
    • Traffic source 
    • CTR (of links in short video description) 
    • Audience demographics 

    Let’s say you’re a small business specializing in eco-friendly home goods, and you decide to leverage YouTube Shorts to showcase your products and share sustainability tips. After posting consistently for a month and seeing good daily metrics, you start analyzing your Shorts’ performance to gauge success.

    You pinpoint a short, 30-second clip demonstrating a zero-waste kitchen hack using one of your products that significantly outperforms others, with 20,000 views, 500 likes, and numerous shares and comments praising it. The analytics also show that this Short led to a 10% increase in channel subscribers and drove a noticeable spike in traffic to your product page linked in the video description.

    The success metrics — high view count, engagement rates, and direct impact on subscriber growth and website traffic — highlight the effectiveness of this Short, which you can, yes, use to plan content ideas in the future. But it’s useful for more than just content planning. Successful engagement and view feedback can also drive our product development and marketing strategies on other platforms — such as your Google video ads!! 

     

    Nicole Blanckenberg

    Nicole is a content writer at StoreYa with over sixteen years experience and flair for storytelling. She runs on a healthy dose of caffeine and enthusiasm. When she’s not researching the next content trend or creating informative small business content, she’s an avid beachgoer, coffee shop junkie and hangs out on LinkedIn.

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