The 10 Most-Watched Indian Ads on YouTube in December 2016

Samsung gets the highest audience engagement.

2016 was an interesting year for brands and advertisers in India. In a country, which is slowly shifting to digital, capturing the imagination of the audiences on their smartphones and laptops took the advertising game to the next level. We witnessed a slow change in the way brands approached digital. It started with most of them just uploading their TV commercial videos on their online properties such as their YouTube channel or their Facebook page.

Slowly but surely, some brands started experimenting with original digital marketing and advertising videos. They began to realize the importance of making a name for themselves in an increasingly cluttered online space. They even experimented with different genres of content - like the Da Da Ding video song by Nike featuring Deepika Padukone or the action packed Ranveer Ching video directed by Rohit Shetty; experiments happened every month.

Things are looking great for the online video ecosystem and the brands have started to understand the importance of storytelling and strategic targeting. They now have more control over what they want to show, and to whom. This is only going to get better in 2017 and I'm pretty excited to see how brand advertisers from different verticals approach this space.

To wrap up an eventful 2016, here's the leader board of the top 10 most watched Indian advertisements on YouTube in the month of December:

Note:

- Only advertisements uploaded in the month of December are considered for the ranking.

- Only YouTube views are taken into account.

- The views count is updated till Jan 3

10. It takes two by Pampers

Traditionally baby care products have always focused on the relationship that a mother has with her child. In a refreshing change, this commercial showcases the relationship that both the parents have with their child. With over 3.7 million views so far, this Pampers ad is at number 10.

9. Paytm - 50% cashback on movie tickets

At number 9 we have Paytm's 10-second advert promoting the 50% cashback offer that ran during most part of December. Even though the video is kept private, comments were not disabled. As expected, out of the 900+ comments, most people talk about issues that they face while using Paytm. Paytm ideally should have replied to such comments but you don't see any.

8. Minute Maid Pulpy Orange

With over 4.2 million views so far, we have Minute Maid's Pulpy Orange TVC at number 8. Usually beverage brands stay away from spending much on advertisements during the winters, but it is interesting to see that Minute Maid isn't afraid to do so.

7. Brotherly love by Coca-Cola

Another beverage brand commercial in the top 10! With a catchy jingle set to the backdrop of brotherly love, it has clocked over 4.8 million views so far.

6. Reinvent Dhakkan by HP Deskjet

HP churned out some really cool adverts in 2016. (If you haven't watched their heart-warming global advertisement celebrating brotherhood, you have to check it out now!) This funny commercial is set to a cracker of a jingle that plays over a storyline depicting a clumsy guy named Giridhar.

5. Manyavar - Virat ki nayi shuruat

In 2016, we witnessed some unusual picks by brands as their ambassadors. We saw Pierce Brosnan and Priyanka Chopra endorsing Pan Masala brands whereas Hrithik Roshan replaced Hema, Rekha, Jaya aur Sushma for the Nirma TVC! But there were a few brands that nailed it on the head when it selecting celebrity endorsers. One of them was Manyavar picking Virat Kohli. A masterstroke and the performance of the advertisements speak for themselves! The four videos that they have done with Kohli so far have clocked in a whopping 14 million views so far just on YouTube and all of them have a fantastic like-dislike ratio! Here's the latest one at number 5.

4. Canon - The Wedding commercial

In this TVC by Canon, a guy is seen photographing the marriage of his former girlfriend! Set to the background of popular song Piche piche aaja meri chal, this ad with a progressive theme has raked in over 8 million views so far.

3. Thums Up - Yeh Toofani Hota Kaun Hai? With Ranveer Singh

Just like the Mountain Dew ads, Thums Up commercials have always been about action and an adventurous spirit. At number 3 we have the first advertisement with its new brand ambassador Ranveer Singh. For a long time, Salman Khan endorsed the beverage and the new choice has so far got mixed response from the audience. Do you like the selection?

2. Hike Stories

Hike has always found it difficult to make a space for itself in the phone messenger category because of WhatsApp. However, it has a niche audience of its own and has recently come up with the 'Stories' feature a la Snapchat. This latest commercial showcases this new feature and it has clocked over 10 million views so far.

1. Samsung - We Will Take Care of You, Wherever You Are

It is not every day that you come across stories that touch your soul. Be it in movies or novels or even in video songs; a well made touching story makes a mark that you can't forget. Imagine a brand video doing that! Think about the impact that it leaves on its prospective customers and the indelible brand image that results from it. That's exactly what Samsung has done with this branded video showcasing its customer service. I'll not give you any spoilers. Go ahead and watch this beautifully shot story:

Some interesting observations:

Here are some interesting observations based on the top 50 ads of December in terms of views:

- Average time duration of the ads was 52 seconds.

- Total views clocked by the top 50 ads was around 142 million!

- Ads by Samsung, Manyavar and Canon got the highest audience engagement.

- Electronic product brands and beverage brands had the highest share in the top 50 advertisements.

(The author is product marketing manager at Vidooly, a YouTube audience development and analytics firm)