Volvo Brings Twitter Feed to YouTube Display Ad

Ad was largest expanding unit ever placed on YouTube's homepage.

Volvo on Wednesday became the first advertiser to host a live Twitter feed inside a display ad on YouTube, making novel use of a tool that’s been available to the site’s advertisers since 2006.

The ad, part of the campaign to introduce the Volvo XC60, carried the tweets of EuroRSCG executives attending a demonstration of the car’s safety features outside the New York International Auto Show at Manhattan’s Javits Center. The feed was brought to the ad unit via DoubleClick’s rich media dynamic data feed capability, which is most often used to stream product or weather news within display ads.

“It’s never been used for a Twitter feed before,” said Rachel Nearnberg, a Google spokeswoman. “That was the agency’s creative innovation.”

The ad was also the largest expandable unit ever placed on YouTube’s home page. Initially a 960×250 masthead unit, it expanded to more than twice that size, filling about half the page when rolled over by a user. It included video, photos, a 360 degree view of the car and a video game that highlighted the XC60’s “City Safety” feature, which prevents collisions at speeds under 10 miles per hour.

Alyson Yaffe, Volvo account director at Havas Digital’s Media Contacts, said Volvo wanted to do something special with its first YouTube front-page ad, as Google had not been offering them for long — only since late last year — and users weren’t yet inured to them.

“They don’t have one every day, so the cool thing about it from the media perspective is that users aren’t accustomed to seeing an ad there, so it stands out more than it would on a Yahoo home page or MSN’s home page,” she said.

Sites like YouTube have been increasing the functionality and size of their display ads in recent months as online ad spending has slowed. Nearnberg stressed that while YouTube could offer the tools, it depended on the agencies “to bring their vision to the technology.”

Subscribe to get your daily business insights

Whitepapers

US Mobile Streaming Behavior
Whitepaper | Mobile

US Mobile Streaming Behavior

5y

US Mobile Streaming Behavior

Streaming has become a staple of US media-viewing habits. Streaming video, however, still comes with a variety of pesky frustrations that viewers are ...

View resource
Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics for Media Groups
Whitepaper | Analyzing Customer Data

Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics for Media Groups

5y

Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics f...

Data is the lifeblood of so many companies today. You need more of it, all of which at higher quality, and all the meanwhile being compliant with data...

View resource
Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its people
Whitepaper | Digital Marketing

Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its peopl...

2y

Learning to win the talent war: how digital market...

This report documents the findings of a Fireside chat held by ClickZ in the first quarter of 2022. It provides expert insight on how companies can ret...

View resource
Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Experience Economy
Report | Digital Transformation

Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Experience Economy

1m

Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Exp...

Customers decide fast, influenced by only 2.5 touchpoints – globally! Make sure your brand shines in those critical moments. Read More...

View resource