How to Setup YouTube Call to Action (CTA) Ads

YouTube Call to Action (CTA) overlay ads allow you to send viewers to any website you want ! The overlay is semitransparent and appears at the bottom of the video window:

The best part is that you PAY NOTHING if a viewer clicks on your ad ! So now there’s finally a way to drive video viewers to your website to make a purchase, become a member, signup for a newsletter, or any other action. The possibilities are endless ! Are you jazzed or what ?

So without further ado, here’s how to set up a CTA overlay and change your life:

Step One

First thing first, in order to add a call to action overlay, you must have your video entered into YouTube’s Promotion program. I’ll be discussing all the finer points of the YouTube Promotion program in another post, but this gist is that you bid on keywords to have your video appear in YouTube search results (think Adwords, but for video). So, you must be willing to spend a small amount of money to promote your video if you would like to add call to action overlays.

The good news is that you don’t have to spend much. I was able to set a daily budget of $1 (~$30 a month) and bid on a few keywords for $.10 a click. Hey I know times are tough, but that ain’t bad ! Plus, your overlay ad will appear for ALL VIEWERS, not just those who clicked on your promotional link.

Step Two

Once your promotion is approved and live, login to your YouTube account, click ‘My Videos’, and edit the video that you are promoting:





You’ll notice that along with the usual editing options (title, description, thumbnail, etc.) you now see a call to action dialog box:







Which brings us to….

Step 3

Craft your overlay ad !
Those who are familiar with paid search (ppc) should find this oddly familiar. Write a title, two description lines, then add a display and destination URL.

Keep in mind that all standard editorial guidelines apply, so you can’t litter your ad with exclamation points and ALL CAPS !!!!!!!!!!!

Once you’re happy with your ad, simply click save and your overlay ad will go live immediately.

FYI: Overlay ads will appear at about the 10 second mark in your video.

Conclusion

YouTube Call to Action Overlay ads are a wicked cool game changer in the video marketing world. What are your thoughts, and how are you planning on using them ?