I don’t normally look to a public agency to act like a leading-edge marketer, but the Arizona Office of Tourism deserves kudos for trying something new and collecting the data to prove it works. (Smart move to preserve their budgets?) Please note they started this test with strong, already-proven creative content. Click on the link and read the complete article for juicy details.

iMedia Connection: Video Shows Strength in New Verticals.

With only minimal experience with online advertising, Moses Anshell, the agency representing the Arizona Office of Tourism, sought to collaborate with online media buying firm The Fifth Network and online video specialists Klipmart, to develop an online campaign that leveraged eye-catching creative Moses Anshell had previously used for television spots and re-purposed from their library of Arizona, to play online. …

During the campaign 7,778,462 video ads were served, with 41,271 clicks, or a .6 percent clickthrough rate. For the 5,146,062 non-video ads, there were 5,089 clicks, for a .09 clickthrough rate. The overall conversion rate for those who clicked through was about 50 percent, with the video ads outperforming the non-video ads by about nine to one. Total conversion rate for all 12,924,524 ads served was .3 percent; cost per acquisition (CPA) utilizing online only creative was $5.26, a figure far less than their offline CPA.

With the video creative far outpacing the non-video creative in both clickthrough and signups, one can conclude that video ads not only delivered a highly effective branding message that drove traffic to the site, but also dramatically lifted direct response metrics.