Snoop Dogg and Desiigner rock out to Frank Sinatra, Melissa McCarthy saves the whales, and two very dedicated Samsung servicemen trek through Chandu’s sheep to help the most amazing kids ever. As 2017 comes to an end, these are the best moments from the top ads of the year.
In our annual year-end edition of the YouTube Ads Leaderboard, we’re celebrating the ads that got the most views, shares, and all around love from YouTube audiences across the globe. Together, they generated 539 million views, 14 million hours of watch time and 3.6 million likes (with an impressive 3 million of those going to YouTube’s Dude Perfect).
While each ad stood out for its own unique reason, inclusion, diversity and empowerment were the popular themes in this year’s list. Brands like adidas showed us a new generation of Originals, Budweiser told the inspiring story of founders Anheuser and Busch, and Samsung claimed the number one spot with a video that got 100 million views in its first seven weeks.
And we’ve got more. Starting today, you can vote for your favorite ads at #TheYouTubeAd of 2017. Tell us which ads made you laugh the hardest, cry the most, or inspired you to take a stand.
And now, we present the top ads of 2017.
Posted by Laura McClung, Head of Product Marketing, B2B YouTube
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A couple of weeks ago we announced our ninth annual AdBiltz program,1 where fans come each year to watch, share and vote for their favorite Big Game ads. As we approach the Big Game, we wanted to give you an idea of how much we’ve all been watching and enjoying the Big Game ads, some of the amazing trends we’re seeing, and we wanted to highlight the Top 10 Trending Big Game Ads and teasers so far.
More small screens watching Big Game ads
Big Game ads and teasers have been watched more than 140M2 times so far this year, with more than half of all views coming from mobile devices. In fact people have watched nearly 200 years worth of Big Game ads3 and teasers so far on YouTube, and while the Big Game is only half a century old, so far we’ve seen over a century’s worth of Big Game ads watched on mobile alone.
Live long and prosper
Close to 40 Big Game ads, and over 130 teasers and ads combined, have been posted to YouTube so far, representing nearly all of the brands who will be airing spots during the Big Game. And for good reason: brands that release their ad on YouTube before the game receive an average of 2.2x more views than those that waited until game day to post an ad.4
This year, Pokémon released their first ever Big Game ad a full two weeks before the game, and it has already amassed more than 12M views. And currently the fastest rising Big Game ad is from Hyundai. It has surpassed 15M views in the past three days to become the most watched ad or teaser so far this year.
“We use YouTube to jump-start the conversation around our commercials,” said Dean Evans, Chief Marketing Officer, Hyundai Motor America. “People need to see them, like them and want to talk about them. And that’s what YouTube allows us to do.”
It’s never too late for a first
In our many years of YouTube AdBlitz, we’re still able to see something we haven’t seen before. Every year, voting for your favorite ad begins immediately following the game, and we often see brands encouraging their fans to vote through ads and social media. This year, for the first time, a brand has incorporated a shout out in an exclusive teaser ad created just for AdBlitz. Well played, Shock Top!
And now, here are the top trending Big Game ads and teasers, so far:
Top trending Big Game ads and teasers on YouTube (by views) – through Feb. 3
Also don’t forget to check out our exclusive YouTube AdBlitz creator’s series, hosted by Jake and Amir with friends (MyLifeAsEva, Ten Second Songs, ScottDW, etc), as they teach fans at home how to become legends off the field for that special Sunday Big Game party through relevant tips spanning music, food, fashion, dance, and many others.
Of course, this is just the beginning – as people turn to YouTube for Big Game content before, during and after the game, there will be lot more to come.
Posted by Natalie Marchant, YouTube Sponsorships Program Manager, recently watched “DANCE BATTLE: DENVER vs CAROLINA! #YouTubeAdBlitz (4K).”
1 Full disclosure: Okay, so we announced it as our 8th year – for the second year in a row. We’re not afraid of aging, it’s just that we have so much fun with this program each year, we lost count!
2 YouTube Data Jan. 1 – Feb. 3, 2016. Global. Big Game ads are based on publicly available information and may not account for every such ad on YouTube.
3 YouTube Data Jan. 1 – Feb. 3, 2016. Global. Big Game ads are based on publicly available information and may not account for every such ad on YouTube.
4 Pixability Industry Study. Super Bowl 2015 YouTube Ads.
From a “super brawl” to a giant lion, yesterday’s big game was filled with many notable moments. That’s true on YouTube and Google too—people watched more game day ads and teaser videos on YouTube than ever before, YouTube hosted its first-ever halftime show, and a throwback PSA became a top trending search term. Here’s a look at the top trending searches, videos and more across Google and YouTube:
Battle of the brands
As the battle for football supremacy was taking place on the field, a very different battle was raging across the country: Which ad would reign supreme? Whether via smartphone, tablet or laptop, people spent nearly 4 million hours watching game-day ads and teaser videos on YouTube—up from 2.2 million hours from this time last year.
This year’s most popular ads came from a wide range of advertisers—newcomers and veterans alike. But one thing’s for certain—puppies, pranks, and Kim Kardashian continue to “break the Internet.” Here are the ads that scored big on YouTube so far:
YouTube has evolved to become the place brands go to engage with their audience before, during, and after the big game. That’s why revenue from our AdBlitz program set a new record this year, with brands investing more on YouTube around the big game than years past. And, we’ve hit a new record in watchtime across YouTube—the growth rate at which people are watching YouTube has nearly doubled in the last year, leading to the fastest growth we’ve seen in years.
Tom Brady and Missy Elliott dominate on search
While people turned to YouTube to watch the ads, people turned to Google to search for everything from “how old is Tom Brady” to “buffalo chicken dip recipes” to “Katy Perry Halftime performance.” Before kickoff, people asked Google “Why did John Travolta call Idina ‘Adele’?”—a throwback to John Travolta’s infamous mispronunciation of National Anthem performer Idina Menzel’s name at the 2014 Oscars. Searchers were also interested in Menzel’s performance (or researching prop bets), asking “How long will it take Idina to sing the National Anthem?”
Tom Brady, Marshawn Lynch and Russell Wilson were the top three searched players before, during and after the game. Thanks to some standout in-game performances, by the end they were sharing the spotlight: Rob Gronkowski and Chris Matthews (replacing Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor). And MVP Tom Brady wasn’t just an MVP on the field—he captured the title of “Most Searched Quarterback” in every state except for the Seahawks’ home Washington.
Of course, for many people the halftime show is the highlight of the night, and Katy Perry’s performance delivered. She came in on a lion, danced with sharks and went out on a star—one that was, for some, reminiscent of NBC’s old “The More You Know” PSAs. The phrase “The More You Know” spiked 190x in search for the 10 minutes after Katy’s starry flight. And although Missy Elliott was a late addition to the halftime lineup, she was a popular topic in search. Top questions related to Missy Elliott included “When was Missy Elliott popular?” and “How does Katy Perry know Missy Elliott?”
A very YouTube halftime show
For the first time ever, this year YouTube hosted a Halftime Show produced by Collective Digital Studio, with the help of more than 25 YouTube creators including Epic Meal Time’s Harley Morenstein as host, Rhett & Link, Toby Turner, Freddie Wong and Tyler Ward. From Kurt Hugo Schneider’s “Epic Patty Cake Song” to the “Elephant’s Toothpaste” science experiment with Science Bob, the show delivered a one-of-a-kind experience for YouTube fans.
With the last touchdown scored, we’re taking votes for your favorite ad, so visit our AdBlitz channel to cast your ballot before voting ends on February 9 at 11:59pm ET. Thanks for making this year our biggest game ever.
Whether you’re a loyal 12th man or a Boston fan for life, chances are you turned to YouTube and Google to watch your favorite ads, answer your questions or witness a new generation of halftime entertainment. We’re happy we could be a part of your game.
Posted by Riki Nakasuji, Sports & Gaming Sponsorships Manager, recently watched “Top 10 Super Bowl games of all time.”