Custom Video Creative Yields Three Times Click-Through, YuMe CEO

Online video ad network YuMe is generating engagement rates that are as much as three to four times higher or custom spots than for pre-rolls. That's what YuMe's CEO Michael Mathieu told Beet.TV during a recent interview in New York.

The company served up more than three billion video ads through the third quarter of this year and custom spots are generating as high as a 5% click-through rate, or engagement rate.

That compares to pre-rolls, which generate a bit higher than one percent interaction, YuMe found. On average the engagement for customized spots is double a pre-roll. However, pre-rolls are still the dominant ad format in online video and account for 95% of the ads YuMe delivers. Some of the clients YuMe has served up tailored ads for include Axe, Dove, Vitamin Water, Universal Pictures, and LandRover. The company recently released a study detailing click-through rates for various types of video ads.

"We can customize so the ad envelopes the whole screen and you're not just watching within the player," he said. "We see up to 5% click yields when people really take the time to develop creative that is online-specific and have the opportunity to engage the audience versus taking a TV ad and sticking it in front of the content."

Because of the success with tailored ads, YuMe is exploring additional types of online video ad formats such as embedding ad units in the video. "If someone is watching Beet.TV there might be a white space to the right of you and there could be an ad there selling a product. We will see more embeddable ads within video that is contextually relevant and focuses on the user. Ads around the video player will start to disappear," he said.

Daisy Whitney, Senior Producer

Disclaimer:  YuMe was the sponsor of the Beet.TV Online Video Roundtable.