Before you can use Video Creation, you’ll need to request access through your Google team.
To open Video Creation, go to http://director.youtube.com/videobuilder. If you don’t have access yet, you will see an error message.
Video Creation requirements
- Access to a YouTube channel: The Google Account needs to have “Owner” or “Manager” permissions to a YouTube channel where the generated videos will be automatically uploaded by Video Creation. If you don’t have a YouTube channel for your business, you can create a new YouTube channel. If the YouTube channel is managed by someone else in your business, the person who manages the channel should give your Google Account “Owner” or “Manager” permissions to the channel.
- Images and logos: You should have legal rights to use all images or logos in the video. For example, these could be images or logos from display or print campaigns, social media assets, your website, or even pictures you’ve taken yourself.
- The latest version of Google Chrome: Video Creation is optimized for Google Chrome, so we strongly recommend using it to avoid any issues.
Instructions
- In Google Chrome, go to Video Creation.
- Choose a video layout, then click Use layout. You can review the asset requirements and watch a sample video for each layout.
- Choose a brand color you want to use in the video.
- To add a logo, drag and drop from your computer or click Choose image.
- To add images to your video, drag and drop from your computer or click Choose image. The maximum file size for images is 2 MB.
For best results, follow the recommended styles, sizes, and orientation for images highlighted in Video Creation. As you upload new images, use the “Storyboard” panel at the bottom of Video Creation to preview the layout of video.
- Add text (such as a call-to-action or URL) to your video.
- Choose a font for all text in your video. All fonts come from the Google Fonts catalog.
If you use non-English languages for the text in your video, you may encounter character limits. To make sure that your text renders properly in the video, select a font that supports the language the text is in. If you’re using special characters (for example, “ñ”, “ç”, “ć”), use any font under the “Latin Extended” options. Custom fonts aren’t supported.
- Choose the music you want to include in the video. To hear a sample of the music, click the play icon.
You can only use the music available in Video Creation. Custom music isn’t supported.
- Click Create video. Depending on the layout you selected, it may take a few minutes to generate the video. You’ll be able to preview the video before uploading to a YouTube channel.
- Select a YouTube channel where you want to upload the video, then enter a name for your video. The video will be uploaded to the YouTube Channel as “Unlisted”. To make changes to your video privacy settings or update additional video settings (such as the video description, thumbnail image, or tags), use YouTube Studio.
- Click Save video to upload the video to the selected YouTube channel. After you save the video, you can share the video with collaborators, embed the video on your website, or create a video campaign through Google Ads.
- If you want to make changes to the layout of the video, click Edit video. Avoid closing the tab where you created the video. If you do, you’ll have to create a new layout in Video Creation.
Frequently asked questions
Am I the owner of the video after it’s created, or does Google own the rights to the video?
You retain the rights to the video as the owner of the YouTube channel to which the video is uploaded, just as you would any video you upload to YouTube. Keep in mind that content claim rules (for example, copyright policy) still apply. If you use assets in Video Creation you don’t own, you run the risk of having a Content ID claim made against your video.
Can I force line breaks in the text fields?
No.
Is there a way to save a video but not have the video automatically uploaded to a YouTube channel?
No. Any assets generated by Video Creation have to be uploaded to a YouTube channel.
I work at an agency and want to create videos on my client’s behalf. Should I create the video in my personal account?
It’s recommended to ask your client for “Owner” or “Manager” permissions to their YouTube channel if you need to create videos for your client. While you can use Video Creation to test the layouts and share examples with your client, you can’t transfer the videos to your client’s YouTube channel until you get the required permissions.
Why is my text not rendering properly (for example, showing “🅇” in place of text) in the video?
To ensure the proper rendering of the text in the video, select a font that supports the language the text is in by referencing the Google Fonts catalog.
Can I link multiple accounts to one YouTube channel?
You can link multiple accounts to a YouTube channel. The owner of the YouTube channel needs to give “Manager” permissions to each account. Learn more.
Can I upload the same video to all YouTube channels my business owns at the same time?
You can, but you have to do it one video at a time. To do this, use Video Creation to generate a new video and upload to a YouTube channel your business owns. On the final page of Video Creation, click Create a new version of this ad. Your previously selected images will be available, and you can upload the video to a different YouTube channel.
