YouTube ads management
YouTube ads that reach buyers before they search.
Demand Gen, in-stream and Shorts ads that put your business in front of likely buyers on YouTube, Discover and Gmail, then win them back when they search. Run next to your search campaigns and judged by the leads and sales that follow, not by views.
More sales, lower costs, in our clients' words.
A software company that moved from search-only PPC into YouTube, and clients whose Google Ads accounts run video and Demand Gen with us.
“He's helped us pivot from traditional PPC to advertising on YouTube and so far, it's proven successful.”
Jasmine CueGlassHive“Highly recommend using SmartSites for help on your ads. It's been great to clean up our account to create more efficiency and accurate tracking for each of our campaigns.”
Erin GutsteinAunt Flow“Our site traffic, ROAS, and order value has all increased exponentially since they took over our account last year.”
Sidney Castillospvparts.com“Solid sales, ROAS, good relationship, solid recommendations and optimizations.”
Stewart ArpEvolution Power Tools“He has managed to dramatically increase our sales and has kept me updated on everything going on with our campaigns.”
Jacob ShakedR & Y A/C Compressors“He updates me every month and my cost per click has been going down every month.”
Roland CavellManahawkin Kia
YouTube ad specialists judged on leads, not views.
YouTube advertising pays off when it is planned as part of your whole Google Ads account, not as a separate awareness line. Our PPC analysts build Demand Gen, in-stream, Shorts and bumper campaigns around the audiences most likely to buy: people searching for what you sell, visitors to your site, your customer lists and lookalikes of your best customers. We fit the format to the job, cut your footage to the lengths and shapes each placement needs, set frequency caps and brand-safety exclusions, and bid on conversions wherever the data supports it. Google Display and YouTube basics are a standing step in our PPC onboarding, and our social team covers YouTube best practices for your channel, so the ads and the channel people click through to work together. Every campaign is reported in your Client Hub next to your search campaigns, with the site visits, calls, forms and sales that follow each view.
Every YouTube ad format, matched to the job it does best.
Demand Gen is where most of our clients' video budget goes; the other formats each do one job well. Case cards show each account's overall results.
Demand Gen
Demand Gen runs your video and image ads across YouTube in-stream, in-feed and Shorts, plus Discover and Gmail, in one campaign aimed at people who look like your customers. It is the format most of our video budget runs through, because it can bid on conversions and pairs well with remarketing lists. Best for creating new demand and warming up past visitors. You see it in the PPC Performance report, with spend, clicks, conversions and cost per conversion next to search.
In-stream ads
In-stream ads play before or during YouTube videos. Skippable ads can be skipped after 5 seconds, so you pay when someone watches 30 seconds (or the whole ad, if shorter) or clicks; non-skippable ads of up to 15 seconds deliver the full message and are bought per 1,000 impressions. Best for an offer or product that needs a story. Measured in PPC Performance, with the visits and conversions that follow in Website Performance.
YouTube Shorts ads
Shorts ads appear between videos in the vertical Shorts feed on phones, served through Demand Gen or video campaigns. We cut your footage to 9:16 with captions and put the hook in the first seconds, where viewers decide whether to keep watching. Best for reaching mobile-first buyers. Measured in the Website Performance report: visits, engagement and conversions from GA4.
Video views campaigns
Video views campaigns spread one budget across in-stream, in-feed and Shorts placements to get the most views for the money. We use them to build an audience of viewers cheaply, then follow up with Demand Gen, remarketing and search. Measured in PPC Performance, and in Search Console, where search impressions and clicks show whether more people look for you while your video runs.
YouTube remarketing
YouTube remarketing shows your video to people who visited your site, watched your videos or are on your customer list, and leaves out people who already bought. These viewers already know you, which usually makes it the quickest video audience to turn into leads. Measured in Leads Overview, with every call and form tied to its campaign.
Bumper ads
Bumper ads are 6-second non-skippable ads bought per 1,000 impressions, made to repeat one message across many views at a low cost. They work as reminders next to a longer in-stream ad or Demand Gen campaign, not on their own. Measured by impressions and frequency in PPC Performance.
Video ads made for the feed, not for the skip button.
Recent video ads from clients' Google Ads accounts we manage: short vertical and square cuts built for phones, each with one clear offer. Tap one to play it.
1:12 Highway ProductsSquare video ad · 1:12 
0:22 LA DecksVertical video ad · 0:22 
0:10 Innovative RoofingVertical video ad · 0:10 
1:13 Garden State Spinal CareVertical video ad · 1:13 
1:20 Highway ProductsRemarketing video ad · 1:20 
0:10 Innovative RoofingVertical video ad · 0:10
Video ads that already earn for 100+ of our clients.
Our clients' YouTube, video and Demand Gen campaigns in Google Ads over the last 12 months.
- 100+client accounts running YouTube, video or Demand Gen campaigns with usLast 12 months, Google Ads
- 65M+YouTube, video and Demand Gen ad impressions for our clientsLast 12 months, Google Ads
- 850K+clicks from those ads to our clients' websitesLast 12 months, Google Ads
- 8,000+conversions from Demand Gen campaigns aloneCalls, forms and sales, as each account counts them
Google Ads reporting for the client accounts we manage, September 2025 to September 2026, with campaigns grouped by type (YouTube, video, Demand Gen) and our own accounts left out. Figures are rounded down. Conversions are counted the way each client's Google Ads account is set up to count them.
23 clients running video ads. More leads and sales, not just views.
Published case studies from clients whose Google Ads accounts ran YouTube, video or Demand Gen campaigns with us in the last 12 months. The numbers are each account's overall results, not video alone.
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+326%more revenue
Auto Parts · Auto Metal Direct
+167% orders+102% ROAS
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+117%more leads
Medical Products · Aunt Flow
43% improved Cost Per Lead+55% conversion Rate
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+42%higher ROAS
Auto Parts · Top Flight Automotive
+35% revenue+23% orders
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+42%more leads
Flooring · Guardian Garage Floors
34% improved Cost Per Lead+29% conversion Rate
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+711%more revenue
Home and Garden · Dio Candle Company
+109% ROAS38% improved Cost Per Order
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+388%more leads
Personal Injury · Henningsen Injury Attorneys
66% improved Cost Per Lead+1470% paid clicks
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+3,524%higher ROAS
Gifts & Personalization · Bullion Exchanges
+296% revenue38% improved Cost Per Order
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+2,765%more revenue from Meta Ads
Auto Parts · Recon Recovery
+988% ROAS+2497% revenue
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+2,258%more leads
Car Dealership · DiFeo Kia
85% improved Cost Per Lead+190% conversion Rate
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+2,111%more revenue
SAAS · MasterWriter
+1931% orders+438% conversions from Meta Ads
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+1,931%more orders
Fashion · Eagle Leather
+372% revenue59% improved Cost Per Order
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+1,299%more revenue
Auto Parts · R & Y A/C Compressors
+155% ROAS+632% orders
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+975%higher ROAS
Auto Parts · Specialty Performance Parts
+576% revenue39% improved Cost Per Order
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+833%more leads
Staffing Agencies · The Calendar Group
90% improved Cost Per Lead+525% conversion Rate
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+603%higher ROAS
Fashion · Fame Accessories
+463% revenue71% improved Cost Per Order
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+407%higher ROAS
Fire Protection & Safety · Firepenny Firefighter Equipment
+148% revenue26% improved Cost Per Order
YouTube, CTV or search: use each where it wins.
Video creates demand and search captures it, so YouTube works best alongside your search campaigns, not instead of them.
| YouTube ads | CTV (streaming TV) | Search ads | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Reaching people before they search: new demand, launches and following up with site visitors. | Full-screen brand reach on the TV in a set area, for businesses that already think in TV spots. | Catching people at the moment they search for what you sell. |
| Where it runs | YouTube on phones, computers and TVs, plus Discover and Gmail with Demand Gen. | Streaming apps on smart TVs, such as Roku, Paramount+, Samsung TV Plus and Tubi, through Microsoft Advertising. | Google and Bing search results and Maps. |
| How you pay | Per view, per click or per 1,000 impressions, depending on the format and bidding. | Per 1,000 impressions, in monthly flights. | Per click, or per lead with Local Services Ads. |
| Leads straight from the ad | Yes. Viewers can click through, and Demand Gen can bid on conversions. | Rarely. TV screens can't be clicked, so we report CTV next to your calls, leads and site traffic. | Yes. For most clients it is the most direct source of leads. |
| Reported in your Client Hub | PPC Performance, Website Performance and Search Console. | Impressions, completed views and cost per 1,000, next to your calls and leads. | PPC Performance, Leads Overview and Phone Calls. |
Know what your video ads lead to.
Spend and impressions sit next to the site visits, calls, forms and sales that follow, updated every day and explained in plain language.
PPC PerformanceSpend, impressions, clicks, conversions and cost per conversion for every video and search campaign, with the monthly trend. Website PerformanceWhat viewers did after the ad: visits, engagement and conversions from GA4, in plain English. Leads OverviewEvery call, form and message in one list, with the campaign behind it. Google Search ConsoleSearch impressions and clicks, so you can see whether more people look for you while your video runs. 
Phone CallsRecordings, AI call summaries and outcomes: booked, qualified, missed or vendor pitch. 
Form SubmissionsVerified leads vs junk, with the source, campaign and UTM behind each one.
YouTube ads questions, answered
You set the budget, and Google charges by the format: per view (when someone watches 30 seconds of a skippable ad, or all of it if shorter, or clicks), per 1,000 impressions for bumper and non-skippable ads, or per click and per conversion with Demand Gen. Across our clients' YouTube, video and Demand Gen campaigns over the last 12 months, the median account paid about $8 per 1,000 impressions and about $1.20 per click. Your costs depend on the audience, the format and the season.
Ideally a finished video of 15 to 30 seconds, plus your logo, a few product or team photos and the offer you want to lead with. We cut it into the lengths and shapes each placement needs: 16:9 for in-stream, 9:16 for Shorts, square for in-feed and 6 seconds for bumpers, and add captions and an end card. If you have no video yet, Demand Gen can start with image ads while video is produced, and our video production team can shoot or edit one.
A view-through conversion is someone who saw your ad without clicking and converted later. Google Ads reports them separately from click conversions, and we keep them that way: we judge campaigns first on click conversions, calls and sales, and read view-throughs as a sign of influence, not as leads. Your Client Hub also shows site visits, search clicks and leads over the same weeks, so you can see what changed while the video ran.
We set content suitability for every campaign: the inventory level, excluded content types and labels, and exclusions for topics, keywords and channels that don't fit your brand. We also review where your ads ran and add exclusions from those placement reports as the campaign runs.
Google has no minimum, but a campaign needs enough budget to learn which audiences respond. Across our clients over the last 12 months, the median account spent about $450 a month on YouTube, video and Demand Gen, and half spent between about $200 and $1,200. Most run it next to a larger search budget, and we recommend a starting budget from your market, audience size and goals.
They do different jobs. YouTube ads can be clicked, can bid on conversions and reach people on phones, computers and TVs, so they suit most businesses as a way to create demand and follow up with visitors. CTV puts a full-screen, unskippable spot on streaming apps such as Roku and Tubi on the TV itself, bought per 1,000 impressions, and suits brands that want TV-style reach in a set area. For streaming TV, see our CTV management page.