About.com Debuts Video Ads

About.com launched a new video ad unit in its new ChannelGuide video content initiative.

ChannelGuides are About.com’s broad-topic experts. They deliver expertise on select topics via broadband programming across About.com’s 23 content channels. Video clips will include video ads within the content.

Ads will be targeted to complement the ChannelGuide’s content topic, said Peter Horan, About.com president and CEO. “The TV experience plays out nicely on the Web, and for About.com these advertising spots serve as an effective navigational tool and a way to frame up the depth of our content across the various channels and topics.”

The video content benefits both visitors and advertisers, Horan claims. It adds to the user experience and offers sponsorship opportunities that go beyond a TV experience. In addition, they’ll add related content and e-commerce links on the page next to video segments.

ChannelGuide content will first be offered in About.com’s “Style” and “Home & Garden” channels. The first advertisers to use the new video offering will be Honda and Black & Decker. Honda will bring its “Odyssey” TV campaign to the “Style” channel. Black & Decker will run a campaign on “Home & Garden.” In 2005, the company plans to launch additional ChannelGuides on the “Food & Drink,” “Travel,” and “Parenting” topics.

“We have run successful video-based campaigns on About.com and feel their ChannelGuide initiative offers a fresh take on how video is presented and consumed on the Web,” said Meridee Alter, senior VP and media director at RPA, Honda’s advertising agency.