Mar
21
Dispelling The Myth of YouTube
Photo Illustration by Nikolas Allen
I was talking to a prospect recently, hearing about all the different business ideas she and her husband are considering. One of the ideas lends itself well to video marketing in the form of “How-To” videos.
My prospect seemed quite excited about the promise of YouTube. In fact, she said, “you can just upload a video and tons of people will see it, right?”
Right…if you’re Lady Gaga. Otherwise, your video is just another grain of sand on a humongous beach where billions of people are playing volleyball.
According to YouTube’s Fact Sheet, people are watching 2 billion videos a day on YouTube and uploading hundreds of thousands of videos daily. In fact, every minute, 24 hours of video is uploaded to the site.
Does that mean that nobody will ever notice your tiny grain of sand on that big ol’ beach? Not necessarily. It just means that you have to work extra hard to let people know it’s there. Below, you will find several ways you can do just that.
But, wait! Before you start shooting videos, uploading and directing people to them, you need to define your Video Marketing Purpose. After all, most of the 2 billion videos viewed daily fall under the category of entertainment. The majority of YouTube viewers are not looking for marketing content.
Therefore, Small Business Owners should ask themselves the following questions before firing up the video camera:
1) Can our audience be found on YouTube?
I work with a client who’s Board of Directors said, “Our audience is older, they don’t watch YouTube.” What they really meant was “WE’RE older, WE don’t watch YouTube, and don’t understand the benefit of it.”
I went on to create 20 videos (and counting) for this client’s channel, which have received 1,300 views in six months. Clearly, their brand is engaging SOMEONE with its YouTube presence. It’s not important whether or not the members of your organization are interested in YouTube, but it’s imperative that the audience you want to reach is.
2) Who is our audience?
There is obviously a wide variety of people viewing all those videos, but knowing who YOU are specifically trying to reach will result in creating more focused videos that speak directly to your target audience.
3) What value do our videos offer?
As mentioned above, most of the videos on YouTube involve people getting hit in the crotch with various objects, animals doing silly things and multiple other inane human shenanigans that can loosely be described as entertainment. Unfortunately, that’s what most people go there to watch!
Therefore, IF you choose to utilize video marketing for your company, it must be done in a way that is unique, fun, entertaining, educational and valuable to your viewer. You need to offer viewers a good reason to give you their attention. Oh, and keep your videos short. No more than 5-7 minutes max, preferably 2-3 minutes in length.
4) What are we hoping they will do after viewing?
Simply going for brand awareness is fine, as long as everyone’s on board with that objective. If, however, you’ve got a call to action in mind, that needs to be crystal clear to the viewer. Whether you want people to call a phone number, visit a Web site, or show up at your store, let viewers know exactly what’s expected of them.
5) Do we have a sales channel set up to funnel interested prospects through?
This relates to the previous question. If viewers are interested in your offering, you had better direct them to a place where they can complete the transaction when they’re ready to do so.
6) What keywords are people using to find what we’re offering?
Knowing what words and phrases your customers are searching to find your company, product or category will help your videos get found. Try to use these keywords in the following places:
Video Titles – Keep your titles short and snappy. They should tease, entice, provoke, or give a glimpse of what benefit awaits the viewer. Similar to your email marketing subject lines, you want your video titles to be to good to pass up.
Video Description – The first thing that should go in the description box on every video is your company’s Web site URL. Sometimes people will view your video on YouTube, and sometimes they’ll see it on another social media platform, or a blog. Wherever your video shows up, you want your Web address to be visible right away. Beyond that, create a keyword-rich description that sums up your video’s content.
Keywords Field – Under the video description box is a Keywords field. Use as many words and phrases that relate to your offering and your industry as you can.
Once you’ve got a few videos on your YouTube channel, you’ve got to spread the word. Be sure to promote your channel on all of your marketing collateral: Include the URL in your email signature, your e-newsletter, post videos on Facebook, on your blog, tweet links to your videos, and take every opportunity to direct your prospects and customers there.
Remember, when promoting, DO NOT simply say, “Check out our videos,” or “Check us out on YouTube.” Give people a reason to want to watch your videos by letting them know the benefit they will receive from viewing them. For example, “Visit our YouTube channel for free photography tips,” or “Check us out on YouTube to learn how to start your own organic garden.”
There have been some amazing success stories attributed to YouTube, including the discovery of Justin Bieber, who has become the planet’s biggest and most recent teen-pop phenomenon. The children’s choir that closed out the 2011 Oscar ceremony was discovered on YouTube, and flown out from Staten Island to Hollywood for their big performance.
Brands such as Snickers, BlendTec Blenders, Old Spice and Volkswagen have all experienced massive viral video success in the past year by creating unique, compelling, humorous videos that people want to watch and are inclined to share.
So, getting back to my conversation with my prospect, yes, I suppose there is a chance that a video on YouTube COULD be seen by “tons of people.” But, more likely, it’s just another tool in your Small Business Marketing toolbox that – when used properly – can be a great way to engage, entertain and educate your target market.
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If you need help determining how video marketing can be used for your company, contact BAM! Small Biz Consulting for your FREE Needs Assessment. Phone: Nikolas Allen (530) 859.5454 • Email: bamsbc@gmail.com
