“Scrappy” ads are performing better than COVID-themed ones.

YouTube’s “scrappy” ads are performing better than COVID-themed ones. According to a YouTube executive, COVID-related ads didn’t “perform any better than regular ads on the site.” A trend of “here for you” during “unprecedented times” commercials featuring inspirational music and shots of empty streets emerged at the start of the pandemic, but didn’t have too much of an impact. Instead, spots with more “scrappy” production have performed “strongly” or “better” than most of the other ads—paving the way for a future where high-quality commercial shoots aren’t as necessary. (CNBC)