Spot Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) were approved in the United States by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in early January. A report from Financial Times claims that Bitcoin ETF ads have been made live on search engine Google.
The report published on February 5 stated that leading asset management firms like BlackRock, Fidelity, and Grayscale have “launched an online advertising blitz” to promote their newly approved exchange-traded products while taking advantage of the new shift in Google’s policies surrounding the promotion of digital assets.
Bitcoin ETF Ads on Google
Google’s updated advertising guidelines now permit the display of ads promoting ‘cryptocurrency coin trusts’ alongside search results for queries related to ‘bitcoin ETF.’ These rules came into effect on January 29, just weeks after the launch of multiple bitcoin ETFs by asset managers on January 11.
Advertisements from asset managers including BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Invesco and Bitwise have surfaced according to the report. The firms are trying to get their product in front of as many new faces as they can while mainly being focused on retail investors.
“We believe Google—among other search engines—is an important piece of our larger marketing strategy,” said a spokesperson for Invesco.
Fierce Fee War
The marketing war between the asset management firms also saw each firm reducing fees to gain advantage over the other. Notably, every spot BTC ETF issuer, barring Grayscale, has reduced their fees to attract additional buyers. Currently, Grayscale charges a fee of 1.5 percent.
As reported earlier by Bitcoinnews Invesco also recently reduced its fees from 0.39 percent to 0.25 percent.
Promotional Tactics
Bitwise has enlisted the spokesperson from Dos Equis’s “The Most Interesting Man in the World” ad campaign, while Franklin Templeton’s X account adorned its logo with laser eyes—a popular meme in the digital asset space. Additionally, BlackRock is gearing up to project bitcoin ETF ads on prominent buildings in major US cities.
Moreover, Hashdex debuted a campaign seeking to emphasize the significance of choosing issuers with extensive experience in handling ETFs across diverse markets.
Although these attention-grabbing tactics are noteworthy, asset managers aiming to attract capital from investors find advertising on platforms like Google more efficient, according to Ben Johnson, Head of Client Solutions for Asset Management at Morningstar.
While Google has not disclosed specific ad spending figures for Bitcoin ETF spots, citing variable costs determined through an auction process, the search giant permits ads for digital asset trading platforms and wallets. However, it strictly prohibits ads related to initial coin offerings and any promotional efforts deemed as “otherwise promoting the purchase, sale, or trade of cryptocurrencies or related products.”
Targeting Wealthy Boomers
As reported earlier by Bitcoinnews, BlackRock unveiled a seemingly mundane advertising campaign for its iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT). Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas pointed out that eventhough the ad might be boring for some, it sought to target wealthy boomers, stating:
“This is how you market to rich boomers, folks. The calm disposition, easy-to-understand investment case, soft new age music, suit with no tie… everything about it says ‘it’s ok now, the adults are here.’”
