The Impact of Video Unlock For Reed.co.uk

Find out how Kinase doubled Reed.co.uk's average watch time and achieved a 43% view rate using Video Unlock.

Challenge

Reed.co.uk had consistently experienced engagement rates exceeding industry norms over an extended period, boasting view rates of 20% and CTRs of 0.18% on YouTube. However, following the findings of a brand lift study, which revealed that a significant portion of users were already well-acquainted with Reed.co.uk, there emerged a pressing demand for compelling creative content. This need became particularly apparent after almost a year of using nearly identical assets.

Solution

Kinase proposed Video Unlock as a solution. Currently in a testing stage, Video Unlock is an opportunity for advertisers partnering with Google to receive a custom YouTube-first video ad that follows YouTube best practices.

Video Unlock not only generates highly effective assets but also leverages Google's capabilities, enabling the client to adapt and repurpose these assets across various social media platforms. This not only results in cost savings but also significantly boosts cross-channel synergy for the client.

Results

As part of Video Unlock, there was a minimum spend commitment with Google which was already within Reed.co.uk’s media plan. Due to this they received the assets at no added cost. This strategic move led to a significant surge in view rates, enabling Reed.co.uk to fully leverage their creative refresh.

The results were remarkable, with a view rate of 43%, tripling the industry average, and doubling the average watch time. Moreover, over 50% of viewers engaged with the content until the very end, showcasing the effectiveness of this approach.

Integrated Brand Awareness for the Watches of Switzerland Group

Kinase drove Watches of Switzerland Group’s brand awareness in the US by optimising video and display for the Anytime Anywhere story - more than doubling revenue year on year

Challenge

Watches of Switzerland Group wanted to increase brand awareness in the US. The retailer needed a digital campaign to engage a new audience whilst also doubling revenue year on year.

Solution

Taking a set of distinctively British brands and devising a campaign to achieve measurable break-through in the US market over six months was a brief which needed a flexible strategy based on clear targeting of audiences and channels.

Search, YouTube, Discovery and Display were selected to cover the range of formats and funnel stages needed to portray the Anytime Anywhere story. 

Kinase’s International Growth team used in house data and Google’s Market Explorer tool to map out channel reach across each US region. This was cross-referenced against indices of Brand and Category penetration. This enabled the budget plan to be split across regions, platforms, and audiences, ensuring that all were in line with the biggest opportunities for brand growth.

To make the biggest impact, 13 key states were shortlisted for the geographical reach of the campaign - rather than spreading campaigns too thinly for real brand awareness across the whole of the US at once. 

Ensuring that the budget was then intelligently placed, a combination of Google, Skai and the agency’s own machine learning and automation was used to tie each ad auction and placement to the campaign’s branding and sales KPIs. Over the course of six months, this optimisation process at scale had plenty of data to refine and push performance as the period culminated in Thanksgiving and then Christmas gifting periods.

Results

The campaign achieved a 596% increase in year on year conversions.

264% increase in revenue (breaking through the target of doubling revenue).

25% of the market was reached, with a total watch time of 11.7 years.

As a measure of the impact the campaign had for Watches of Switzerland Group's brands in the US, Google’s Brand Uplift study of the campaign returned 1 million lifted users (defined as ‘new users who are now actively considering your brand or product after seeing your ads’). The cost per lifted user scored a best in class level against Google’s benchmarks for a new integrated brand awareness campaign.

Watch ‘Anytime. Anywhere’ By Watches of Switzerland

Eight luxury timepiece brands, eight change makers at the pinnacle of their craft, captured in eight different locations across the great American landscape to form the most extensive, multi branded timepiece campaign the industry has ever seen.

“Working with the digital team as early as the storyboarding stage allowed us to get the most from YouTube platform and ensure our creative was best in class. This was reflected in the results of the campaign with engagement metrics well ahead of industry benchmarks.”

-James Thompson, Group Digital Marketing Manager at The Watches of Switzerland Group