Dive Brief:

• Verizon and Reebok appeared for the first time on the YouTube Ads Leaderboard in Q3, with Verizon debuting in the top spot, according to a post on the Think With Google blog. The leaderboard is determined by an algorithm that analyzes organic and paid views, watch time and audience retention.
• Nike's ad supporting gender equality in sports and Volkswagen's ad showing its move to electric cars landed in the top 10.
• Advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy appeared most frequently with four of its creatives appearing on the leaderboard. The agency created ads for Duracell Optimum, Old Spice, Nike and KFC that appeared on the list.

Dive Insight:

Verizon's ad that shows how its service can be customized for individual family members racked up more than 38 million views, giving the brand its debut as the top spot in the YouTube Ads Leaderboard. Agency McCann created the 30-second spot, which shows people's quizzical reactions to a family all dressed in the same outfit, hairstyle and makeup as they shop in a bookstore and hipster coffee shop. "Would you want your wireless company to see your family like this?" the ad's copy asks, before explaining how the company lets family members mix and match Unlimited plans.

Reebok's one-minute ad starring Cardi B also performed well with 3.45 million views. The ad created by Venables Bell + Partners showed the rapper wearing curlers while sitting at a hair salon. The commercial takes a surreal twist when she notices that one of her shoelaces is untied. Her fingernails suddenly grow to the ground and tie her shoe before the illusion ends as she proclaims, "Nailed it!" The commercial closes with Reebok's "Sport the Unexpected" tagline.

While most of the top 10 ads were funny or lighthearted, Nike and Volkswagen took a more serious tone with socially conscious messaging. Volkswagen's one-minute spot from creative agency Johannes Leonardo was timed with the 50th anniversary of the first manned moon landing. It showcases statistics about the automaker's plans for electric cars, a weighty message for a company that paid billions in fines after the "Dieselgate" scandal in 2015. The video, with its soundtrack featuring David Bowie's "Space Oddity," generated 20 million views. Wieden+Kennedy created Nike's one-minute "Never Stop Winning" commercial that showcases the U.S. women's national soccer team with a message of empowerment. The ad raked in 4.9 million views on YouTube.