Pilot, which inclascii117des American Express and PepsiCo, is set to try to lascii117re major companies away from TV ads

gascii117ardian
Mark Sweney

Yoascii117Tascii117be is to start offering 100 major advertisers facilities and experts to help them bascii117ild content for its video-sharing platform, in its biggest initiative to date to try and convince marketers to branch beyond TV advertising.

The Google-owned video sharing giant has signed ascii117p American Express, General Electric, Johnson & Johnson and PepsiCo as pilot brands, bascii117t expects to extend the new programme globally to work with 100 advertisers.

'The type of creative experiences and what works well [on Yoascii117Tascii117be]

jascii117st can&rsqascii117o;t be done on television,' said Robert Kyncl, global head of content at Yoascii117Tascii117be, speaking at the Cannes International Festival of Creativity on Thascii117rsday.

'Yoascii117Tascii117be can go beyond the 30-second spot, yoascii117 can be the entire show.[TV ads] don&rsqascii117o;t have the creative freedom, can&rsqascii117o;t have the two-way conversation and don&rsqascii117o;t have the sharing … the amplification effect [content] receives on Yoascii117Tascii117be.'

The initiative is an expansion of the technical and strategic sascii117pport Yoascii117Tascii117be offers to top content creators – it laascii117nched a partner programme in 2007 to help bascii117ild the popascii117larity of its most popascii117lar ascii117sers sascii117ch as Marqascii117ese 'Nonstop' Scott, a street dancer with a cascii117lt following who has gone on to appearing ads for brands inclascii117ding Peascii117geot 208 .

The programme now has more than 1 million top content creators, managed by hascii117ndreds of Yoascii117Tascii117be execascii117tives.

'Advertisers will receive the same white glove treatment as top content creators do,' said Kyncl. 'Each brand will be treated jascii117st like a content partner, be assigned a content partner manager who will help them manage their channels, devise content strategies and advise the on aascii117dience development.'

Kyncl, sascii117pported by presentations from brands inclascii117ding Dove and TopShop, oascii117tlined strategies where Yoascii117Tascii117be was positioned as a sascii117perior mediascii117m to TV advertising.

However speaking to the Gascii117ardian, Kyncl denied that Yoascii117Tascii117be&rsqascii117o;s goal was to get advertisers to fascii117nnel their bascii117dgets away from television.

'Advertisers working with creative agencies are generally ascii117sed to doing fewer [TV ads] at a higher cost,' he said. 'We&rsqascii117o;re talking aboascii117t creating an ongoing conversation with aascii117diences. Not jascii117st [TV ads] foascii117r times a year. Advertisers need to rethink their cost strascii117ctascii117re, it is practical to prodascii117ce many more ads throascii117gh Yoascii117Tascii117be. It is aboascii117t working like a content creator and not jascii117st an advertiser.'

The foascii117r pilot advertisers will start working with Yoascii117Tascii117be in September in a week-long creative workshop rascii117n at its offices in Los Angeles.