As one of the Big 4 streaming video services, YouTube captures about one-quarter (21%) of the time OTT-households spend with video, making it a platform where some two-fifths of marketers expect to increase their advertising activities in the near future. That’s not to say that advertisers aren’t already investing their ad dollars in the platform, with a report [download page] from Pathmatics finding that PayPal is the top advertiser on YouTube so far this year.
As of August 19, PayPal has spent an estimated $150 million in advertising on the video platform, per the report, which is based on Pathmatics’ proprietary panel and spend methodology. In fact, the report reveals that PayPal’s YouTube ad budget more than doubled between Q1 ($39 million) and Q2 ($88 million). This investment resulted in 16.8 billion impressions.
The second-biggest advertiser on YouTube so far this year is Apple, which has spent $101.2 million year-to-date. Apple, which Pathmatics notes “is nowhere to be seen on other top social platforms,” is followed by the two top-spending advertisers on Facebook in the first half of 2020, Disney ($91.9 million) and Procter & Gamble ($63.6 million).
Rounding out the top 5 is Hulu, which has invested some $58.3 million so far.
That said, Hulu is itself an advertising platform. As another one of the Big 4 streaming services, Hulu attracted spending from advertisers such as Carvana ($11.2 million), Geico ($7.9 million) and FOX Broadcasting Company ($6 million), as of July 2020.
The report points out the difference in overall budgets for the top 2 advertisers on Hulu. In July alone, Carvana allocated about three-quarters of its ad placement budget to Hulu, while Geico allocated a mere 9% of its total advertising budget to the platform.
TikTok Ad Spend
Although Pathmatics does not currently track ads on TikTok’s platform (and its use as an advertising platform pales in comparison to the likes of Facebook, Instagram and YouTube) it is also itself an advertiser.
The report indicates that TikTok has spent more than $5 million in digital advertising so far this year, with the largest investment going towards mobile display. Indeed, its spending on mobile display increased by 58% between June and July this year to account for more than one-third (35%) of TikTok’s monthly ad spend.
To find out more, the full report can be downloaded here.
About the Data: Per the report, “Pathmatics spend estimates are based on our proprietary panel and spend methodology. They may not accurately estimate the spend for any advertiser.”
