- Choose the campaign type from your goal: Demand Gen for leads and sales, Video views for consideration, Video reach for low-cost awareness.
- Video action campaigns no longer exist; Google upgraded them to Demand Gen in 2025.
- Every video ad must be hosted on YouTube, and the formats you get depend on the campaign subtype.
- Make the same message in horizontal, vertical and square versions, because Shorts and feeds favour vertical video.
- Judge awareness campaigns by reach and lift, and conversion campaigns by tracked conversions, not by YouTube view counts.
Which YouTube campaign type should a small brand start with?
Pick the campaign type from what you want people to do. If you want leads, sales or site visits, start with a Demand Gen campaign. If you want people to watch your video and consider your brand, use a Video views campaign. If you want as many people as possible to see a short message at a low cost, use Video reach. Most small brands with a website that sells or captures leads start with Demand Gen, because its results can be judged on conversions they already track.
YouTube ad types have changed a lot in the last two years, so older guides often name campaigns that no longer exist. This is how the options look in Google Ads today, and how our Google Ads management team decides between them for a new account.
What changed in YouTube campaign types recently?
- Video action campaigns are gone. As of September 2025, accounts that had spent on them that year had them upgraded to Demand Gen, and unused ones were removed.
- The video objective was renamed. "Awareness and consideration" is now "YouTube reach, views, and engagements" for new campaigns.
- Views were renamed. Since October 2025 the paid "Views" metric is called "TrueView views", with no change to billing.
- Display is moving into Demand Gen. Google says Display campaigns are moving to Demand Gen, with a voluntary migration tool from June 2026.
How do the main campaign types compare?
| Campaign | Best for | Where ads show |
|---|---|---|
| Demand Gen | Conversions, leads and site visits, plus clicks or conversion value bidding | YouTube including Shorts, Discover, Gmail, Maps and the Google Display Network |
| Video views | Consideration: people watching your video | Skippable in-stream, in-feed and Shorts ads |
| Video reach: Efficient reach | Most unique viewers for the budget | Bumper, skippable in-stream, in-feed and Shorts ads |
| Video reach: Non-skippable reach | Making sure the whole short message is seen | Bumper and 15-second non-skippable in-stream ads |
| Video reach: Target frequency | Showing the same people your ad a set number of times | Bumper, skippable and non-skippable in-stream |
If you are weighing one campaign for every Google channel instead, our comparison of Performance Max and Search campaigns explains the trade-off between automation and control.
Expect more change here. Google says Video views campaigns will soon use only multi-format video ads with a TrueView target CPV bid strategy, where you set what you are willing to pay per view and Google spreads the video across in-stream, in-feed and Shorts placements.
Which ad formats will your video run as?
- Skippable in-stream: plays before, during or after other videos; viewers can skip after 5 seconds. No maximum length, with under three minutes recommended.
- In-feed: a thumbnail with text in YouTube search results, the home feed and Watch Next; the video autoplays in the feed or opens when people click it.
- Bumper: 6 seconds or less and cannot be skipped.
- Non-skippable in-stream: the full message is shown; the allowed length depends on the campaign subtype.
- Shorts: vertical ads in the Shorts feed, with under 60 seconds recommended.
Two rules shape your planning. Video ad content must be hosted on YouTube. And you can build remarketing lists from people who saw skippable, in-feed or Shorts ads, but not from bumper or non-skippable ads.
What creative do you need before you launch?
Demand Gen accepts horizontal, square and vertical video, plus images in landscape 1.91:1, square 1:1 and portrait 4:5 formats with a logo. Plan one message in all three video shapes: vertical for Shorts and mobile feeds, horizontal for in-stream. Show the brand and the main point in the first seconds, use captions because many people watch without sound, and end with one clear action. Paid social teams can often reuse their best vertical ads here, which is where our paid social and Google Ads work overlap.
No video yet? Google Ads has tools to create a video in the Asset library and to add a voice-over, which is enough for a first test. If the test works, invest in a proper edit of the version that performed best instead of producing several expensive videos up front.
What should you test first?
- The opening of the video. Two versions of the same ad with different first seconds teach you more than two different ads.
- Audiences. Demand Gen supports Lookalike segments built from past purchasers, site visitors or channel viewers, as well as interests and custom segments.
- Channels. Channel controls are set per ad group and let you choose where your ads appear across YouTube, Gmail, Discover, Maps and the Display Network. Start broad, then compare the channel breakdown.
Change one thing at a time and give each test enough budget to show a difference. Our guide to a starting Google Ads budget explains how to size that.
How do you measure YouTube results honestly?
Know what a "view" means before you report one. On skippable in-stream ads, a TrueView view needs the viewer to watch for at least 30 seconds or to the end, or to engage; in-feed and Shorts ads use 10 seconds or an interaction such as a click. For conversion campaigns, set up conversion tracking before launch and look at both click and view-through conversions, since many viewers buy later without clicking. For awareness, use reach, frequency and Google's brand and search lift measurement tools, instead of judging the campaign by last-click sales.
Frequently asked questions
Do we need a YouTube channel to run YouTube ads?
Your video ads have to be hosted on YouTube, so in practice yes. A channel for your brand is the cleaner route, because you control the videos and their details. Google Ads can create a basic channel for you if you make a video inside Google Ads, but those videos are unlisted and some features, such as ad sequences, are not available.
How long should a YouTube ad be?
It depends on the format. Bumper ads are six seconds or less, non-skippable lengths depend on the campaign subtype, and skippable ads can be longer, though Google recommends keeping them under three minutes. Whatever the length, put your brand and the main point in the first few seconds, before anyone can skip.
Should we use Performance Max instead?
Performance Max can show your videos on YouTube alongside Search, Display and other Google channels, which suits brands that want one campaign for everything. If you want to control what runs on YouTube, see results per channel and test video creative clearly, a separate Demand Gen or Video campaign gives you more room to learn.
Do paid views count towards our video's public view count?
They can. Google's format table shows that each video ad format can add to the YouTube public view count, but paid views are counted in Google Ads as TrueView views with their own rules. Report the two separately so a paid campaign does not get mistaken for organic interest.
Is YouTube a good first ad channel for a small brand?
Only if you already have video that explains your product well and conversion tracking on your website. Without those, Search ads usually teach you more for the same budget. YouTube tends to work best as a second step, warming up people who later search for you or come back to your site.
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