Businesses looking to boost sales, brand awareness, or simply reach out to an audience would be wise to focus on YouTube. According to sites like TubeKarma Reviews, YouTube is the number one place that people look to get video content. It reaches more users than any other website, and it’s the social media platform with the highest time spent on it.
Here are eight reasons why YouTube is the best marketing tool for businesses today.
1. YouTube has one of the largest audiences of any website around
There are more than 1 billion unique users each month, which accounts for almost 25% of all people on the Internet. This number is only growing every day, with new users in new locations signing up to YouTube.
2. YouTube is constantly evolving to meet the needs of its audience
This includes new video formats like 360-degree videos, live streaming, and playlists that can help your company’s online marketing strategy. The more tools YouTube gives users, the more time they spend there, which means more exposure for advertisers.
3. YouTube reaches an audience of young adults aged 18-34 years old – known as Millennials
These are some of the most active Internet users right now, and this demographic isn’t expected to lose interest any time soon. 69% of Millennials use YouTube regularly on almost all devices, including mobile phones and tablets, with 77% using it daily on their smartphones alone (source: Google).
4. Using YouTube isn’t just about reaching Millennials
YouTube is one of the few social media platforms that appeals to all generations. 85% of people aged 45-54 years old are now on YouTube, with 40% using it weekly, which means you can engage an older audience too. Baby Boomers are also huge users, with 48% watching YouTube regularly – this age group is known as Digital Natives who have grown up with technology and expect to interact online (source: Forrester).
5. YouTube reaches a global audience wherever your company operates
Every country has access to YouTube, and there’s no better way for companies operating internationally to advertise their brand and products. It’s even available in countries like North Korea, where it might be restricted or censored by the government (source: Wikipedia).
6. YouTube helps generate leads and sales like no other site on the Internet
Almost half of all Millennials say they would follow a brand they’ve seen advertise on YouTube if they make an online purchase. Almost 70% of people aged between 16-24 years old said that watching a video made them more likely to buy a product – which is unsurprising as 80% of users say that videos help them make better buying decisions.
7. Companies can’t afford to ignore YouTube when planning their social media strategy
When users spend so much time on one website, business owners have to take advantage by getting their name out there too. In fact, 95% of smart marketers rank YouTube as one of their most important social media channels. So while YouTube is currently the #2 search engine in the world, it’s a good idea to include videos in your SEO strategy too.
8. YouTube ads are affordable and easy to use, thanks to Google AdWords
Advertisers can easily target users by choosing which keywords trigger their ads automatically – this saves time, although there may be a small charge for it. In fact, advertising on YouTube has helped companies boost sales by over 30%.