YouTube's latest foray into advertising, Pause Ads, has ignited a debate within the industry. The concept, simple on paper – displaying ads when viewers pause content – has sparked both optimism and skepticism.
Advocates of YouTube 's Pause Ads argue that this format presents a unique opportunity for brands to connect with audiences. Experts break it down and say that when users voluntarily pause a video, they're often in a receptive state, potentially making them more open to advertising messages. Furthermore, the static nature of the ad format could lead to increased ad recall and engagement, as viewers have ample time to process the information. Some even speculate that Pause Ads could become a premium ad placement, commanding higher rates due to their potential effectiveness.
However, some industry players also point out that people pause videos for various reasons, many of which involve distractions or breaks from the screen. In such scenarios, an ad is unlikely to capture attention.
Magicbricks’ Prasun Kumar agrees that when a user is pausing a video, it is often because at that moment they cannot give attention to the content on the screen as they may have something else to attend to. “This will necessarily make the ad viewership very passive. So, it may not be suitable for all kinds of messaging,” he added.
Furthermore, from a brand perspective, Deep Bajaj, Co-founder of Sirona, feels that for brands, while uplift might seem high, the question is how many viewers would end up being potential buyers. “Those who can pay & are most likely customers of premium brands, would move to ad-free options. I am not sure how effective it would be to show ads to those who can’t pay or won’t pay for an ad-free experience,” he said.
While concerns about ad fatigue and passive viewership persist, some industry experts believe that Pause Ads could still offer value for brands. The key, they say, lies in carefully targeting the right audience with the right ad creative. By understanding viewer behaviour and preferences, advertisers can potentially increase the chances of capturing attention and driving engagement.
Preetham Venkky, Chief Digital Officer, DDB Mudra Group, explained that if one looks at most of the advertising today, especially on digital, they follow a very specific format – they will introduce the product and the logo in the first three seconds and then the rest of the story flows. “When you pause something, you pay attention for those three seconds for sure, so some brand lift will happen,” he added.
Additionally, this format becomes useful for both aided and unaided brand awareness.
“In unaided brand awareness, when you have repeatability or high frequency of the brand logo, the product and the packaging, then automatically you are getting influenced. Because that's how many times you're seeing it all around you. You're seeing it almost like a screensaver in the background on your television when you pause the video,” Venkky said.
However, the point of excessive Pause Ads potentially irritating viewers, leading to a negative brand perception is also a concern. Bajaj mentioned that YouTube anyway is flooded with ads. “I believe this would irk viewers more and YouTube will see a spike in Premium subscribers (who pay a monthly fee for no ads experience). Hence, it would be a win-win for YouTube.”
Venkky also adds that this might get annoying for users. “But if the company has taken a call, it's based on data which suggests that people may still not move out of the platform despite another intrusion. While this is being launched for connected TV, I have a feeling it will also come up on mobile as banners,” he mentioned.
Barring some concerns around user experience and ad effectiveness, the offering seems to be well received by the industry. Shradha Agarwal, CEO and Co-founder of Grapes says that the agency is rather looking forward to Pause Ads specifically from a perspective in case this can become a lot more contextual.
“Another thing we are looking forward to with regards to this, is a lot more sponsored integrated Pause Ads. For example, in the movie Dil Dhadakne Do, Koovs had sponsored the clothes of the entire movie. Now imagine if I am watching Dil Dhadakne Do and as soon as we pause, I am able to see the clothes that the person is wearing in the pause ads and then I am able to buy it. That will become the next level of integration for Pause Ads,” Agarwal explained.
YouTube’s reach now rivals that of popular television channels, highlighted Sajal Gupta, Chief Executive, Kiaos Marketing. According to him, with the introduction of Pause Ads, YouTube has effectively adapted its offerings to align with traditional TV ad formats familiar to the market.
“Beyond the familiarity of this ad format, YouTube will continue to leverage the inherent advantages of digital media, such as enhanced audience targeting and comprehensive measurement capabilities—areas where traditional television often falls short. Given these advantages, the shift of advertising budgets from large television advertisers to YouTube is likely to be seamless," Gupta added.
As with any new advertising format, the true impact of Pause Ads will only become clear over time, as brands and consumers adapt to this novel approach.
