YouTube made the case for it's unique positioning in the total video landscape on Thursday evening, landing a slick pitch that showcased results seen by some of Australia's biggest brands.

“YouTube is the #1 video service viewers in Australia and New Zealand say they watch the most. It’s still at the forefront of a new era of entertainment, still the place that fans deeply engage with their favourite Creators and unique worlds of content, and still the platform where you can drive the business and brand outcomes you care about," said Managing Director of Google Australia and New Zealand, Mel Silva. "When you put YouTube at the heart of your media plan and really start to dig deeper into what it can do, you can do incredible things for your brand. You can put the focus back on storytelling, long or short. You can put your message in front of millions of people, who are positively engaged more often than they are on any other platform. And you can drive higher return on investment.”

'There's only one YouTube', was the theme of the evening, with significant time also given to the concept of 'Flow State' - representing engaged, interest audiences that translate to high return on investment, according to Google Research Manager, Consumer and Market Insights, Dr Deborah Ko.

“On YouTube you can reach your audiences while they’re in these deeply engaged states, at numerous points across a range of unique and intersecting journeys. You can connect with people at different times and contexts, while they’re watching on their own, or when they're watching with family and friends around the big screen - and you can do it at scale," said Ko.

The video platform also debuted new Ipsos Iris data that confirmed YouTube now reached 97% of Australian adults online, or 19.5 million adult Australians, as of June 2024. Meanwhile, new research from Kantar showed that YouTube is the most-watched video service among adult viewers in Australia and New Zealand.

Views on YouTube via Connected TV more than doubled in the three years to 2023, reaching more than 14.8 million, or almost three-in-four, adult Australians in June 2024. Analytic Partners' Return on Investment (ROI) Genome research showed that YouTube delivers 2.2 times the long-term brand impact compared to other platforms.

YouTube also claimed to have the highest ROI of all Connected TV providers, outperforming the nearest competitor by 23%.

Head of Creative Partnerships at Google Australia, Victoria Berthinussen, said that YouTube helped brands tell their stories across a variety of formats, from creator collaborations to sequential bumper ads. A recent Ekimetrics report found that creative contributes 60% of overall YouTube impact, and brands could expect to lift ROI by 2.2 times by improving creative quality.

New product updates were announced to help brands and advertisers tap into highly engaged audiences and achieve their campaign objectives. This included Meridian, YouTube’s own open-sourced marketing mix model (MMM), which was launched to empower the industry to build best-in-class MMMs and drive better business outcomes.

Other new updates include a new Video Reach Campaign non-skips which combine 6-second bumper ads with 15-second non-skip ads. This AI-powered format is optimised for delivery on Connected TV. In addition, Demand Gen which helps convert demand into action and drive leads, with immersive, relevant and visual creatives, will be accessible via Display & Video 360 from October.

There is also a new Creator Takeover feature which will allow an advertiser to take over a Creator’s channel and roadblock all advertising, while Partnership Ads powered by BrandConnect will let advertisers use authentic creator videos, repurposing existing branded content as advertising.

Head of YouTube and Programmatic Media at Google Australia, Caroline Oates, said: “Whatever outcome you care about, YouTube can help you achieve it. Google AI has been at the core of our ads solutions for years. As we make advances, our ability to help brands drive ROI keeps getting better.”

Case studies from brands like MECCA, eBay Australia, and McDonald's were shared, showcasing how they used YouTube's diverse ad formats and data insights to increase brand awareness and sales.

Across the night, YouTube creators Michelle Khare and Nick and Carrie took the stage to share their experiences with the platform. “Today’s YouTube Creators are so much more than just Creators. We get to set the standard and tone for the next generation of entertainment studios," said Khare.

“Our fans on YouTube are more loyal than anywhere else. We tell them when we’re dropping videos, and they will watch with their families on their TVs at home," said Nick and Carrie.