YouTube Touts High-Profile Ad Formats Ahead of Super Bowl

YouTube logo on phone screen
(Image credit: Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The Super Bowl is not just a big moment for television. With the big game approaching YouTube has a few new tricks in its playbook for advertisers to engage its millions of viewers.

YouTube is offering First Position Moments, which ensure that a brand’s ad is the first one seen when audiences watch the platform at the times most relevant to its business.

Also: Why Wait For Kickoff? See Some Hot Super Bowl Commercials Here 

Advertisers can also employ Content Takeover to get a high share of voice of channels like New Heights, hosted by NFL stars Travis and Jason Kelce, or halftime show star Usher’s online content.

YouTube said is evolving its Content Takeover package to offer more inventory and faster speed to market.

“Millions are turning to YouTube to keep up with the Super Bowl — whether they’re watching the ads, the fan content, or the Big Game itself. YouTube’s high-impact sponsorship opportunities let brands get in front of both the relevant content and audiences during these massive pop-culture moments,” Kristen O’Hara, VP, agency and brand solutions at YouTube, said in a blog post.

YouTube said that Booking.com recently ran a successful campaign using First Position Moments. 

Booking.com wanted to take advantage of travel surges during the holiday season and amplified its ad — which is highly ranked on YouTube’s Adblitz site featuring Super Bowl Ads — through First Position Moments to deepen brand association and be top-of-mind for consumers during their vacation search. 

As a result, Booking.com saw a 21% relative lift in ad recall–more than 6% above its benchmark, according to the blog post.

Another advertiser,  IHG Hotels & Resorts, wanted to maximize awareness with luxury travelers and took advantage of both the First Position Moment project as well as a Takeover next to NFL and Formula One racing content.

The campaign delivered unique reach over linear TV and drove lifts in IHG brands for ad recall and brand awareness that achieved two times the YouTube benchmark, according to the blog post.

“YouTube is a prime destination for viewers during popular moments,” IHG Hotels & Resorts VP, paid media Chris Copp said. “We’re excited that Content Takeovers unlock more opportunities to easily align our brand to the culturally relevant content that viewers love.”

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.