To create a YouTube advertising campaign, you'll use the Google Ads platform. Here is a step-by-step guide based on information from multiple sources:

1. Set up Your Accounts
First, you must have a YouTube channel and a Google Ads account. If you don't have a Google Ads account, you can create one by visiting the Google Ads website.

Once you have both, link your YouTube channel to your Google Ads account. This is a crucial step to enable you to promote your videos through ads.

2. Create a New Campaign
Log in to your Google Ads account and navigate to the "Campaigns" section.

Click on the "+ New Campaign" button.

Google Ads will prompt you to choose a goal for your campaign (e.g., "Sales," "Leads," "Website traffic," "Brand awareness and reach"). Select the goal that aligns with your business objectives.

Next, select "Video" as the campaign type.

3. Define Your Campaign Settings
Campaign Name: Give your campaign a clear, descriptive name.

Budget: Set your budget. You can choose a "Daily budget" to maintain a consistent spend or a "Campaign total" for a fixed lifetime budget.

Bidding Strategy: Select a bidding strategy. For beginners, a good starting point is usually "Maximum CPV" (Cost-per-view) or a similar automated strategy based on your goal.

Networks: Decide where you want your ad to appear. Options include Youtube results, YouTube videos, and video partners on the Google Display Network. It is often recommended to create separate campaigns for "Youtube results" and "YouTube videos" to better track performance.

Locations and Languages: Choose the geographic locations and languages of the audience you want to target.

Content Exclusions: You can prevent your ads from showing on certain types of content (e.g., sensitive topics, embedded videos, live streams) using content exclusions.

4. Create Ad Groups and Ads
Ad Group Name: Create an ad group and give it a name. Ad groups allow you to organize your ads and targeting settings.

Audience and Demographics: This is where you define who will see your ads. You can target based on demographics (age, gender), audience segments (interests, behaviors), keywords, and specific placements (YouTube channels or videos).

Create Your Video Ad: You can use an existing video from your YouTube channel or upload a new one. Paste the YouTube URL of the video you want to use.

Ad Format: Choose your ad format. Common formats include:

Skippable in-stream ads: Play before, during, or after videos and can be skipped after 5 seconds.

Non-skippable in-stream ads: Play before, during, or after videos and are 15 seconds or less.

Bumper ads: Short, non-skippable ads that are 6 seconds or less.

Call-to-Action (CTA): Write a compelling final URL, display URL, and a clear call-to-action to encourage viewers to take a specific action.

5. Monitor and Optimize
After launching your campaign, regularly monitor its performance in your Google Ads account.

Look at key metrics like views, impressions, click-through rate (CTR), and conversions.

Use this data to adjust your targeting, bids, and ad creatives to improve your campaign's effectiveness. A/B testing different ad creatives or audience segments is a great way to optimize.

For a more detailed, step-by-step video guide, you may find the following videos helpful:

How to Run YOUTUBE ADS | YouTube Ads Tutorial for Beginners (Step-by-Step)

How To Run YouTube Ads Step-by-Step Tutorial (2024)

How to Create YouTube VIDEO ADS in 2025 | Google Ads Video Ads Tutorial for Beginners


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YouTube Ads Tutorial for Beginners: A Step-By-Step Guide to Running Ads

How to Run YOUTUBE ADS | YouTube Ads Tutorial for Beginners (Step-by-Step)
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YouTube ads can be a powerful way to reach your target audience and grow your business. Get FREE starter access to my ...
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How To Run YouTube Ads Step-by-Step Tutorial (2024)
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Download our FREE YouTube Ads + Business Templates now: https://clickhubspot.com/74w You don't need a robust YouTube ...
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YouTube video views will be stored in your YouTube History, and your data will be stored and used by YouTube according to its Terms of ServiceOpens in a new window