Google announced changes that will allow advertisers and agencies to better measure their campaigns and reach their intended audience on YouTube (and in a multi-screen world).
The company indicated that over the course of the coming year it will be developing a new cloud-based measurement solution that will provide advertisers with access to more and better insights from their YouTube campaigns occurring across desktop and mobile devices. How do they plan to do that? The new offering will make it possible for advertisers to use information from activity associated with users' Google accounts (including demographic information and past searches) to influence the ads users see on YouTube.
Further, when this information is coupled with Customer Match initiatives, retail advertisers could, for instance, reach customers that signed up to receive special offers in their stores. It's a significant upgrade to what's available today and will likely be well received by brands.
This is an important step for YouTube, particularly as Facebook continues to make headway in the video space. While pixels and cookies are still a factor for advertisers in the broader digital ecosystem, these changes will make consistent measurement and more relevant ads a possibility for both advertisers and consumers.