We get used to ignoring banner ads. They catch my eye more than they do for the average Joe, just because they interest me and I like to see how others are having success, or failing, with their ad campaigns. When I am on Youtube, I have gotten pretty good at overlooking ads, but this one caught my eye. I had never seen anything like it:

Why is this the coolest banner ad I have ever seen, you ask? Here are a few reasons.

1.) It caught my eye and captured my attention. The videos (yes, all 5 of them) played a short clip within the ad.

2.) I recognized the videos! I subscribed to DevinSuperTramp’s channel a while back. These guys had dynamically inserted videos they knew I would like and recognize in the ad.

3.) Also, the blue color stood out on a Youtube page and they had the most sought after real estate on the page…right across the entire upper fold.

4.) Outlook.com, a Microsoft product, has innovated with their super fresh ad and shown me that their new product/service is worth checking to see what is new. I correlated the awesomeness of their ad with their new email service without even checking it out.

In the end, I didn’t go create a new email account right away because I am currently happy with Gmail, but I had a very positive experience with the brand and plan on checking it out.  If I ever lose faith in Gmail, I will be quick to check out Outlook.com.

Does anyone know how Outlook.com pulled off this incredible banner ad?  Has anyone else tried out this type of ad on Youtube? Was it a success or failure? Let me know in the comments.

Oh, and by the way, if you haven’t seen one of Devin’s videos, they are amazing. Check this one out: