In its bid to capture a portion of television advertising revenues, Google’s YouTube has finally launched an option to run campaigns on TV screens. Labeled “TV screens device type” on the Google Ads platform, the option will allow advertisers to target engaged viewers watching YouTube content on their TVs.

It’s not surprising that YouTube has added TV to its list of devices for video ads, along with computers, tablets, and mobile phones. Based on the video giant’s estimates, people watch an average of 180 million hours of YouTube on TV screens daily.

The next step for digital platforms taking over TV ad budgets #smm https://t.co/0tnl4ktJN1

— Social Media Today (@socialmedia2day) October 19, 2018

The considerable shift isn’t harming mobile device viewership, though, as many viewers use their tablets and smartphones to stream content onto their TV screens.

The availability of set-top boxes Roku and Apple TV, devices like Chromecasts, video game consoles, and smart TVs have paved the way for video streaming and changed viewing behavior. YouTube saw the potential and allowed marketers to develop ads tailored for TV viewing. Advertisers will also receive television-focused analytics to determine an ad’s impact on their overall campaign mix, so they can make tweaks wherever necessary.

With the flexibility and affordability of Google Ads, YouTube advertisers can optimize and set specific bidding prices for campaigns or ad groups on different devices. After all, viewing habits tend to change depending on the platform being used. Mobile viewers, on average, watch videos in 60-minutes increments, while the watching duration for TV screens is about 4.5 hours.

Brand awareness and ad recall may also be different on TV and mobile, but on both platforms, high-quality content on ads remains essential.

For companies that already created amazing TV commercial ads, it’s cost-effective for them to post the video on YouTube as a way to spark more interest in their brand. They can tap into new markets while keeping their existing customers engaged. And, by uploading the video ad on YouTube, companies get the added benefit of easily uploading it to the company’s website for more views and sustained interest.

[Featured image via YouTube TV]