6 Reasons Why YouTube is One of the Best PR Tools Going

Imagine if a huge chunk of your target market or audience could be reached in one fell swoop – wouldn’t that make life easier? Well, YouTube is possibly the closest you’ll get to that right now. These days eight out of ten 18-49 year-olds are tuning into the video-sharing website for their daily fix of whatever they’re in to. Consequently, the site has become one of the biggest money-spinners on the interwebs.

Around 5 billion videos are watched every single day. And with over 80% of businesses now using video as a marketing tool, getting a slice of the action is a no brainer.

So what exactly makes it such a great tool for marketing and PR?

It works in harmony with other social media platforms

YouTube’s enormous reach is extended even further because of its relationship with other social media platforms, namely Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Videos are commonly shared on all those platforms, while algorithms and hashtags further ensure the right content reaches the right people. Good news for your product or campaign, especially if it’s a bit on the niche side.

It’s campaign central

From Michelle Obama to Greenpeace, YouTube is the go-to for campaign launches. Why? Well for one it’s the world’s biggest video-sharing platform. For two, more people are willing to watch a video than read a large block of text in its entirety. The key to success is to keep your campaign videos short and sweet. According to Wistia, less than 60% of viewers will be with you at the end of a 4-5 minute video, versus 75% for a 1-2 minute video.

You can create your own marketing channel for absolutely zilch

If video content could be a major selling tool for your business or client, then creating your own YouTube channel is an absolute must. You can customise your page with your brand’s logo and colour scheme, and link everything to your products, services, and other social media platforms – effectively giving you a mini, on-brand website to play with.

The most important thing is that you get to grips with SEO (search engine optimisation), so you’re maximising your visibility not only in YouTube searches, but internet searches too. You can keep tabs on how you’re doing via the built-in analytics feature, which is a pretty nifty addition. The best thing about all of this? Beyond content production, it won’t cost you or your client a single penny.

YouTuber endorsement

There’s a reason why the biggest YouTubers are living like P Diddy in big boxy Hollywood mansions – and it’s not because of hefty ad revenue. Like Instagram, the website’s biggest influencers are getting paid big money to promote products and services, and brand deals can easily run into the six figures if they’ve got a big enough audience.

You don’t always need to spend big bucks to get them, however. Whatever the product or service, many YouTubers with a decent following will still talk about it for free – providing you give it to them for free. Often it’ll be a review or ‘first impressions’ video. So, make sure your PR kit is flawless and worthy of praise.

The power of a discount code deal

Another way YouTuber’s rake in the cash is with discount codes. This is very much a win-win deal between the brand and the YouTuber. The YouTuber will typically make a positive video about you or your client’s product or service, before offering their audience a discount code for the same purchase. You get more publicity and more sales, and the YouTuber takes a cut of the sales they’ve helped generate. In theory, everyone’s happy. Naturally there’s a healthy amount of audience cynicism towards discount code deals these days, so pick a person you think will genuinely love your product.

Deals like these are typically struck through the YouTuber’s management (if they have management), which you’ll often find details for on their YouTube page or personal website.

Viral potential

Going viral is every PR and marketing team’s dream (so long as it’s for all the right reasons) and YouTube is the undisputed kingmaker when it comes to viral videos. Research has shown that 44.1% of people have an incredibly low attention span during their YouTube binges and click away from a video if it doesn’t tickle their fancy within the first 60 seconds. So make sure whatever promotional material you produce really packs a punch and gives people a reason to share it. A slick sales pitch isn’t something people are going to share. Something funny, thoughtful or beautiful might be.