P&G returns to YouTube but with a more selective mindset

It seems like Google folks can breathe easy as P&G is finally making its return to YouTube, after staying away from the platform for over a year. This was due to concerns regarding ad placements ahead of inappropriate content. According to Bloomberg news, P&G has told its gamut of  brands that they are now permitted to buy spots on YouTube.According to Bloomberg, P&G is however, far more selective this time around and only plans to advertise on videos which it has reviewed and approved off. The ads will run ahead of content fewer than 10,000 YouTube channels, a massive slash from the 3 million YouTube channels it used to advertise on."We paused advertising, and for the past year, we've worked extensively with YouTube to improve brand safety," Tressie Rose, a P&G spokeswoman, said in a statement to Bloomberg. She added that it feels like “the right measures are in place” now for the brand to return to the platform.In March this year, during the recent Association of National Advertisers’ media conference in Orlando, P&G chief brand officer Marc Pritchard said the company had cut its digital ad spend by US$200 million last year, and the amount was invested into other areas with “media reach” such as e-commerce, audio and even television, increasing reach by 10%. However, he did ask audience members to “stay tuned” when it comes to the future of the relationship with Google-owned Youtube.While he did not share the names of the media companies P&G cut spend with, it is largely reported that Google faced a significant setback when the company put a halt to its advertising on YouTube after ads appeared next to questionable content.Unfortunately for Google, while P&G has indeed made its return, last Thursday CNN reported that ads from over 300 companies and organisations ran against content promoting white nationalists, Nazis, pedophilia, conspiracy theories and North Korean propaganda. The ads came from companies such as Adidas, Amazon, Netflix, LinkedIn and many others.  According to the CNN investigation, many companies were unaware their ads were running next to these content.Sports gear brand Under Armour, said it was pausing its advertising buy on the platform after CNN notified the company its ads appeared on a white nationalist YouTube channel called "Wife With A Purpose."