Brand Building YouTube Style
Brand Building YouTube Style
Readers will undoubtedly have an opinion about the latest YouTube stylistic changes but whether you love it or hate it, one thing is certain…YouTube is an integral component of every robust social media marketing strategy. In fact, the goal of most small business owners is to hire a reputable social media consultant, create a single video, watch it go viral and bask in the untold traffic and profitable rewards. It’s not a pipe dream. While not every small business would actually benefit from a video going viral (some are actually hurt by a viral campaign!), it’s not as far-fetched as you might imagine. Even if a video doesn’t go viral, brand building on your YouTube channel is a great way to reach new clients, inform your audience and create long term impact.
Remember, YouTube is not just a video sharing site; it’s also a major social media channel with over 3 Billion views each day. Used by people in over 22 different nations, it’s also a global social media site capable of reaching distant clients around the world.
Step One: Make sure your small business has a YouTube channel. It’s not enough to simply upload an occasional video; create a customized channel specifically for your business presence. Don’t assume you have nothing to say or video anyone would want to watch; learning how to create a great presence doesn’t come instantly and sometimes it can be totally surprising what actually goes viral. For instance, Teddy the Porcupine became an overnight sensation much to the shock and surprise of his handlers at Zooniversity (for those that missed Teddy’s big debut on ABCNews and other major media outlets, take a quick glance… http://youtu.be/UGz8jcbJjRw). With well over a million views (and growing), Teddy the talking porcupine has his very own channel and has managed to raise substantial sums for the sponsoring not-for-profit organization.
Step Two: Upload regular content. By far, this is one of the most difficult aspects for most small business owners but it doesn’t need to be difficult! For example, creating a video doesn’t always require an extensive amount of time or effort…in fact, it may not even require getting dressed up. Instead, simply take portions of your best original content and create a slide show presentation, add some photographs for visual interest and perhaps audio. Instant video for minimal time and cost. It’s also a great way to encourage viewers to link to your newsletter, blog and other content channels to get the full report or copy of the complete article.
Step Three: Include a customized URL in the description area. In the past, only YouTube Partners could use this feature but with the recent round of changes, all channel owners can create custom UFLS in the description areas. Be sure to include your social media links to Google+, Twitter and of course Facebook.
Step Four: Use Overlays! Amazingly, the vast majority of small business owners…and even many social media consulting agencies…fail to use overlays. Big Mistake! A routine survey of the top 100 big business advertisers found that 98 used overlays…obviously small business owners would do well to take notice! In the past, YouTube only allowed overlays for paid promotions but once again, that is now old news. Use this to your advantage.
Step Five: Stop Other Advertisements! Think about this for just a moment….you go through all the cost and effort to create a video only to see other advertisements pop up when someone views it. Does that make sense? Of course not! To prevent ads from showing on your videos, go to the edit section and click the box…it’s that simple!
Step Six: Send Viewers to the Feed Tab. Encourage existing users to subscribe to future video’s, leave comments and enhance interaction by making the feed tab a default destination. Just go to the “edit channel” option, enter the “Info and Settings” section and click on “Always take subscribed users to the feed tab”.
Step Seven: Prioritize & Pin. YouTube is attempting to help social media users get more social…it’s a good plan especially given the number of Google+ and Facebook users that enjoy video content on a regular basis. To that effect, it’s a good idea for your channel to demonstrate a solid commitment to community via a publicized subscription list and pinned top 10 user list.
Step Eight: Get Going on Google+. One of the great things about the recent changes to YouTube is how fully it integrates with Google+; in fact, after years of a simple logo, the primary Google search page now has company for the first time ever…a + option. Google+ is expected to fully integrate with YouTube in the near future making a compelling social media duo.
Step Nine: Establish Playlists. Once your YouTube Channel is fully under way, organizing information will help viewers make sense of it all and encourage sharing, surfing and longer term interaction. One important method is to crate playlists by topic. In fact, add the URL to each playlist to the customized section to help viewers locate other areas on the same topic with ease. Be sure to publish the playlist links on other social media websites, blogs and even email. Research with corporations that integrate video’s on product or service sales consistently report a shorter sales cycle as viewers are able to see the product in action, find FAQs and other important data on demand.
Step Ten: Be Consistent. Start making regular contributions to YouTube for maximum impact. Whether you upload a video once each month or once per day, create a catalog of video’s surrounding your product or service. Start with the basics: what do you do, what is unique, FA
Last but not least, be sure to sign-up for the Maximize Social Channel at: http://www.youtube.com/user/MaximizeSocialMedia to learn more about how to deliver maximum impact, create a customized YouTube campaign and integrate your small business message via marketing, support and relationship management.
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