YouTube Marketing for Small Businesses: Tips and Tricks
With the growing number of video consumers, even small businesses with a limited budget invest in video creation. When it comes to marketing channels for small businesses, the popularity of video content puts YouTube high on the list to market their products and services.
Let the numbers speak for themselves:
YouTube has great potential for businesses, but it can't be the one-size-fits-all solution for all small businesses. Thus, it's important to know your business from A to Z to understand if videos on YouTube could be of any benefit.
Not every business can see an ROI once they try a few videos on the platform. Understanding your business and what suits its needs best and its audience is important.
Is YouTube Marketing Right for Your Small Business?
As said before, YouTube doesn't fit every single small business. Wondering how you can know if the platform is right for your business? YouTube can be a good choice if:
- Your target audience shows high interest in video content: As a video creation platform, YouTube is the best choice for businesses that deliver their brand message through videos. Once your audience shows interest in video content, it's time to set up your YouTube channel.
- You are ready to invest time and effort into video creation: It's harsh but true - not every business (both small and big ones) see potential in spending much time and effort to make video content. Although video creation is time-consuming, the payoff is huge as its popularity is on its rise.
- You want to keep up with big companies in your niche: At first blush, creating video content isn't the best choice for small businesses that have a limited budget and just a few team members. But ambitious small business owners draw inspiration from big companies and try to repeat their success stories. If you represent this community, YouTube is right for you, too.
If the answer is yes to all the above criteria, then your business may benefit immensely from having YouTube videos as one of its marketing and advertising strategies.
Ready to use YouTube marketing for your small business? This article will show you a few tips and tricks.
1. Create a Cohesive YouTube Channel
The first step before making and uploading that creative video you're excited about is creating the channel itself.
YouTube has made this process a very simple and easy process to follow. After creating a Gmail account for your small business, you use it to set up the page, following the easy steps shown by the platform. After doing so, you can upload the content.
It is necessary to ensure your videos stay true to the business's values and what the business is all about. Also, the videos must be consistent in terms of quality, subject matter, and who they are addressing. YouTube also allows one to arrange and format videos into playlists which is handy and helps the audience have quicker access to the specific content they want to watch.
Here's an example of a well-organized and cohesive YouTube channel:
Its header has all relevant information about the business, it encourages viewers to become leads for a chance to get the free e-book and the channel has several video playlists to help followers find interesting videos with ease.
Or check out the following example for your inspiration:
This YouTube channel represents a cohesive feed as it has an eye-catching header, a pinned video on the top that welcomes clients and well-organized video playlists.
2. Experiment with YouTube Videos
Everyone loves a good YouTube video, especially when it has all elements of a well-organized video like the intro, hook, story, hook, conclusion with a call to action as well as made with all effects.
You have drafted the script and what the video will have and you're ready to make a video and jump in feet first! Wait a minute, hold on… Have you thought through the visuals of the video?
It is important to try and create high-quality and well-edited videos with an interesting thumbnail to stand out from your competitors.
But when you experiment with YouTube videos, you get a chance to understand what works best for your audience and grow your channel fast. There are many YouTube video ideas out there, but you should always keep in mind that your videos should satisfy one out of three core values: advertise, entertain or teach.
However, stick to the following percentage ratio when creating YouTube videos for your small business channel:
When it comes to video ideas, Google is your assistant in trying to figure out what's trendy and how to make your videos interesting. At the same time, it's a good idea to analyze what types of videos what other businesses create:
Plus, observe your channel's analytics with every video you post to see what type of content your audience responds to best. This is how the experimental videos will help you scope out your small business's niche in the YouTube world.
3. Learn More About YouTube SEO
Creating a stunning video means nothing unless you have an audience of potential viewers who are interested in watching it. That's why YouTube SEO is a must for businesses of all sizes.
This tactic basically shows the creator of content how best to direct a specific audience and type of traffic to their content. What is more, it includes strategies that help your target audience discover your video content when searching for a specific topic on Google or YouTube.
YouTube SEO includes various aspects:
Luckily, there is much software available to assist you in ensuring that you choose and have the most suitable SEO possible for your content. Do the research and reveal those best suited for your small business type of content.
4. Promote Your Channel with Aspiring Niche YouTubers
Influencer marketing has always been one of the most effective tactics. With a growing number of people who want to become YouTubers, small businesses can find and discover aspiring content creators whose values and views align with your brand to promote your channel with their content.
For example, you can reach out to aspiring YouTubers and ask them for endorsements in their videos or if you organize a local event, simply invite them to visit it.
This helps both parties expose each other's presence to a fresh set of people. These are people who will also be interested in your small business and what you offer because you're both in the same niche. That means your audience on YouTube will grow organically with the right audience looking at your small business.
5. Interact with Your Viewers
In business, the department of PR (Public Relations) is responsible for creating a relationship and rapport between the business and the public. In the digital world of YouTube, how content creators relate with their audience is very important.
The "cancel culture" has shown many content creators and even famous people that how we interact online has real-world consequences. You are not just on a make-believe platform with profile names, but rather real people with a say and power to affect your business in real-time.
Thus, monitor and reply to comments your fans leave. When you listen to their thoughts, you increase brand loyalty and trust that motivate viewers to check out your channel more often:
All in all, it is important to have a PR state of mind when dealing with your audience online; after all, you are relating to the public through your videos and in the comment sections. When you interact with your audience, it humanizes you and your business can also have a better feedback loop.
6. Run Ads on YouTube
As a small business, you can approach the platform and pay them the rates for advertising your business on their platform to a larger market than only the niche market you're reaching with your content.
Now your brand will pop up on other content creator videos and Ad space and ultimately a more diverse range of people will see your business. One of the best solutions is to run non-skippable ads:
Also, a savvy business person understands the necessity for multiple revenue streams; who says no to more passive income? YouTube's Ad feature allows you to run adverts on your videos and make some extra money. The advertising option can go both ways mentioned depending on your end goal as a business, plus things like the business's budget.
Conclusion
YouTube is a platform that has proven its worth for many years as a place for people and businesses to thrive. Video content is constantly taking the world by storm, so it's no wonder that the number of users on the platform is growing. These people show a strong interest in consuming video content and businesses should keep up with these trends.
When done right, YouTube can become a great marketing channel for small businesses that seek out new engaging ways to acquire clients and sell more. With the above-mentioned tips and tricks, your small business can make the most out of YouTube marketing and bring the business to the next level.