YouTube launching global ad campaign to promote Shorts directly on TikTok, Snapchat, more

Abner Li | Aug 10 2021 - 9:00 am PT

As of last month, YouTube Shorts is available in over 100 countries as Google’s TikTok and short-form viral video competitor. The company now wants to ramp up Shorts awareness with a global ad campaign “introducing the shorter side of YouTube.”

There’s a 30-second “anthem spot” that starts playing The Weeknd’s “Take My Breath” inside the YouTube mobile app. It then shows tapping the “Create” button to take that song and put it in your own Short.

Other examples include “Permissions to Dance” by BTS and Camila Cabello’s — who was a big part of YouTube Music’s initial advertising campaign — “Don’t Go Yet.” The company is heavily leveraging content that’s on its platform:

“YouTube Shorts gives everyone the opportunity to have all the fun of short form video in a way that can only be done on YouTube. In one of our biggest brand marketing campaigns to date, we are leaning into ‘The shorter side of YouTube’ to show just how easy and fun it is to watch and make YouTube Shorts. Anyone can create Shorts using music from today’s leading artists like The Weeknd and Doja Cat in addition to other videos only on YouTube.”
Jodi Ropert, Vice President, YouTube Marketing

They will be accompanied by shorter 15-second spots from more artists, including Doja Cat. Google is going after Gen Z fans and creators with this campaign running primarily on YouTube, YouTube TV (it will be curious to see how the portrait format fits with television’s landscape format), and social media platforms. This does — boldly and directly — include TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter.

This Shorts ad was created by YouTube’s internal creative team and outside agency Interesting Development. As of last month, YouTube Shorts are getting 15 billion daily views.