Digital Marketing Masterclass

Last Thursday, I had the honor of participating as a panelist at the Digital Marketing Masterclass event in Dallas, and can honestly say this was one of my favorite events to date. With great insights prompted by equally great questions from the crowd, the event covered a wide range of topics and trends affecting the digital marketing space today, from YouTube best practices to overall trends in crafting impactful campaigns in an ever-changing digital landscape. With top brands like Mary Kay, Billboard, At Home, Texas Rangers, Dickey’s, Stanley Black & Decker, and Six Flags in attendance, the variety and depth of the conversation was thoughtful and insightful from start to finish. 

One theme I was repeatedly asked about was YouTube’s TV screen options. I realized there’s still some confusion on YouTube TV (YouTube’s subscription-based broadcast & cable streaming service) versus YouTube Connected TV (YouTube app playing on TV screens). Upon outlining this difference, and sharing that Nielsen confirms YouTube CTV has the highest reach on all of Connected TV – higher than Netflix, Prime Hulu, Disney+ or any other platform – there were plenty of oos and ahhs to go around. The discussion evolved from there, with many asking how to make their campaigns on CTV more interactive with their viewers. I provided some solutions like adding QR codes on screen, including clear and creative CTAs, and “gamifying” viewer engagement overall. 

Outside of YouTube CTV/TV, YouTube Shorts also captured much of the conversation. I explained the ways in which Shorts’ capabilities and use cases are actually quite similar to TikTok’s, and noticed the surprised looks on many of the GenZer and Millennial faces in the audience. When I was asked “why Shorts vs. TikTok”, I explained that we’re continuously seeing Shorts outperform TikTok in driving a lift in awareness. This is due, in part, to YouTube’s ability to scale so quickly as an already trusted and established platform, vs. TikTok which was a standalone, and was built fresh. I noted that YouTube also drives the best attention out of all other mediums aside from cinema, which was yet another shocking statistic for the audience to take in. These are just some of the reasons why adopting Shorts into current digital marketing strategies in addition to or in place of TikTok is, as I like to say, like shooting fish in a barrel – incredibly easy.  

Another recurring theme surrounded brand suitability, and how an increasing emphasis on performance is now vying for equal importance. While everyone seemed aligned to the continued importance of brand suitability and avoiding impression waste, when I brought performance into the conversation and explained how achieving suitability and performance together has become more crucial than ever, nods and murmurs of agreement around the room surged. I especially felt the crowd’s excitement when I shared that for premium content, it’s this combination of suitability and performance that drives a 40% higher CTR, 54% higher CVR, and 20% higher view rates. 

Another hot topic was shoppable options on YouTube, and where those resources live. For example, one of the brand leads from Mary Kay asked how they might go about adding shoppable links directly to their YouTube campaigns. I explained that just like TikTok, Instagram, and Amazon, YouTube gives users the option to work with affiliate influencers and add shoppable links that take you to Google’s merchant center, offering an easy and direct point of purchase that many don’t realize is already a baked-in option on YouTube.

I was thrilled to be asked several Pixability-specific questions, too. In addition to our managed and self-services offerings, many wanted to know more about Pix’s channel management service. I explained how our channel management service is ideal for those looking to increase their organic traffic to YouTube, and help paid + earned media work better together. I was also asked about the many kinds of insights we offer. For instance, a rep from the At Home team wanted to understand more about what their competitors are spending and doing creatively. I emphasized that our insights can absolutely help answer these kinds of questions. I noted that Pixability has an ample, ever-growing library of insights we’re always happy to share, and gave examples from past clients like Puma, Bose, and KIND, whose YouTube paid + channel management campaign proved to be the #1 driver of return on ad spend of all of their marketing channels. 

It was both exciting and encouraging to see folks so shocked to learn just how many offerings YouTube has, and how important the platform has become. The crowd’s reaction alone when I shared that 500 hours of videos are uploaded to YouTube every minute (the equivalent of an entire Netflix-worth of content every hour), was enough to know that few realized the true presence YouTube has in this space. It was also promising to see the appreciation for Pixability’s YouTube platform knowledge, especially from a more strategic partner/consultant POV, and less of a sales POV. Our passion for YouTube was definitely palpable at Masterclass, and seemed to convince many to put more focus and investment into YouTube overall.