How to Use YouTube for Marketing

About YouTube

It is hard to believe that YouTube has been around for less than 10 yrs (It’s 10th anniversary will be in December of this year), but it is even harder to believe the changes which have occurred to the platform in that time span. Some facts regarding YouTube in Ireland include:

• YouTube is the 2nd largest search engine in the world (after Google of course).
• In Ireland, 50% of YouTube traffic comes from mobile devices.
• The YouTube homepage has in and around 1.7 million views in Ireland, every day.
• 46% of Irish people who use YouTube in Ireland are 35 +

Each one of these points tells us about the strength YouTube has in numbers in Ireland alone, so it’s only natural the platform is used for marketing companies, brands and businesses, but how?

Advertising

About 1 in 3 people spend as much time watching YouTube in a week as they do TV. Who would have even thought of that over 10 yrs ago? People’s viewing habits are clearly going online and YouTube is at the epicentre of that. Money is where eyes are. That used to be Newspapers and Television, now its online video content. It was only a matter of time before advertising on YouTube became an incredibly good way to market a business.

YouTube Channels

It has never been easier for businesses or anyone, in fact, to set up their own video channel to create and distribute content. Video marketing has taken huge strides in the last 2 or so years and is now responsible for the majority of content (not just video content, content overall) on other social media platforms. The ability to create your own URL video channel has been a complete game changer in the way marketers think and approach online and digital marketing strategies and techniques. For example in the sports world, companies like the UFC have used YouTube in the to broadcast some of their prelim fights in order to entice you to buy their PPV event later that evening.

Some of the benefits for a business to have a YouTube channel include:

• Demonstarting Products
• Creating a Community
• Showing your Brand’s personality
• Leveragine events and promotions
• Solving Customer problems

And these are just to name a few, this list could take up 2 whole pages by itself.

YouTube’s Competition

YouTube has been the dominant force in the video marketing world for the better part of a decade, but 2015 will be the first time they will see some stern competition from the social media platforms which essentially helped them get as big as they are. Facebook and Twitter have upped their game in terms of their own video marketing and both have found ways to encourage users to upload their content natively, rather than through YouTube.

Facebook’s algorithms now show content via YouTube further down users news feeds while they are more favourable to posts which include a video uploaded directly to Facebook. Twitter has just recently launched an update which allows users to directly tweet by video, something which their users had been screaming out for. With Facebook and Twitter taking video marketing to a new level, and other competitors out there such as Vimeo and Blip (but to a lesser extent) YouTube doesn’t necessarily own the video market anymore and they will have some work to do in 2015. This will alter how marketers and people will use YouTube for marketing.

Examples

Joe.ie (Irish Example)

Joe.ie has used YouTube extensively for their video content throughout their overall marketing. Joe.ie uses YouTube, consistently and effectively to drive traffic to their website and social platforms. Check out their YouTube Channel

Gary Vaynerchuk for Wine Library TV (International Example)

Gary Vaynerchuk literally changed how the online Video Blog (Vlog) system worked when he started Wine Library TV back in 2006. GaryVee as he often calls himself saw an opportunity which was being used but not to its fullest extent and jumped all over it when he started a wine tasting blog which went viral and skyrocketed the success of his business and eventually his overall personal brand. Check out Wine Library TV’s YouTube channel.