Crunching the YouTube social media marketing numbers

Clearly, many see the marketing potential of YouTube, but perhaps just as many don’t know quite where to start?

So let’s kickstart your YouTube marketing strategy and give it some meaningful shape using the latest stats and benchmarks for best practice.

How many people use YouTube?

The channel has 2.3 billion members with 5 billion videos viewed each day – with access to such a large number of people, you are bound to find an audience that is relevant to your business. 

What’s the buying power of this audience?

Two-thirds of Fortune 500 executives are using YouTube as a source for information – making it an excellent channel for reaching highly influential figures.

With the average age of a fortune 500 CEO being 58-years-old, and the baby boomer (50-6 yrs) demographic being the fastest-growing audience on YouTube, there’s no indication that this audience is going to do anything but get bigger.

How will YouTube impact the rest of my campaign?

It can actually boost your other channels. Adding a link to a Youtube video in posts on other social media platforms can increase the share rate by 75%, giving your brand and content more exposure.

Should I be worried about brand safety?

This is a top priority for YouTube, which is why there has been a 70% reduction in ‘misinformative and inappropriate content’ on the platform, so you don’t need to worry about brand safety when advertising on YouTube.

How do I target my audience on YouTube?

YouTube targeting is powered by Google, so you can integrate both sets of data to target customers on YouTube. There’s a full explainer of this you can read, but here are the key targeting filters:

1. Demographics – age, gender, location etc.
2. Affinity – interests, hobbies, likes and dislikes
3. Life Events – big shifts in purchasing behaviour that indicate a life change e.g. marriage, relocation etc.
4. Intent – YouTube and Google search data that indicates a customer is researching a product in your category
5. Remarketing – customers who are on your CRM/have previously interacted with your brand online

Which YouTube ad type should I use?

YouTube has 3 different ad types that aid slightly different objectives so choosing the right one for your campaign is important. Hootsuite has developed a handy tool which highlights the benefits of each ad.

Here are the three I think you’ll benefit most from:

Trueview ads (30+ seconds)

Trueview ads are ideal for ‘How-to’s, product demos, testimonials, and they appear at the start of a video and are skippable.

There are different types of Trueview ads, but the key stat you need to know is that they can drive engagement with your brand by up to 500%. 

The pricing structure for this ad is based on whether the video is watched for more than 30 seconds (or till the end) and if the viewer clicks through. This makes it relatively low risk, as you only pay when a viewer is engaged. 

Non-skippable ads (20 seconds)

These ads are ideal for more nuanced storytelling, appearing at either the beginning or midway through a video, and are best for increasing brand exposure to specific target audiences.

To make the most out of the non-skippable ads, ensure your videos get to the point fast, so you’re not wasting impressions.

Bumper ads (6 seconds)

These ads are designed to target mobile users, and with 48% of B2B buyers using mobile to watch videos, it’s an extremely important medium.

These placements are perfect for remarketing to viewers who have already seen your non-skippable ads. You can even use a cutdown of your 30-second ad to save on content creation.

How do I optimise my content for YouTube?

Research shows that 68% of the videos on the trending page are viewed in HD. It’s worth making the investment in higher production value to maximise your audience engagement.

Your YouTube campaign also stands a much greater chance of gaining traction if you can tell your story succinctly.

The business video hosting site Vidyard recommends that Trueview ads should be around 15-20 seconds, Non-skippable ads kept down to 20 seconds, and banner ads no longer than 6 seconds.

And for your own B2B YouTube content, around 2 minutes or less is the optimum amount of time to get your message across – keeping your content short and snappy is more likely to keep your audience engaged. 

What results can I expect from Youtube? 

The optimum clickthrough rate you should be looking for is an average of 0.24%, Median CPC is $3.61 and CPM is $9.88. Of course, these will vary for different industries, but these figures provide a good benchmark.

Where does YouTube integrate with the buyer journey?

YouTube’s targeting tools help you reach customers are different stages of the buyer journey. However, most buyers are using it at the beginning.

80% of people who had watched a video on the social platform to find a product said that they did so at the start of the buying process, so YouTube is perfect for awareness.

And whilst this relates specifically to consumer buying behaviours, I can well imagine the B2B purchasing habits to reflect similar numbers.

YouTube is also a burgeoning lead-gen platform, with 5% of B2B marketers are using the platform to generate leads.

I need some inspiration

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[Header photo: Kon Karampelas on Unsplash]

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This post is part of our Crunching the Social Media Marketing Numbers series – you can read the LinkedIn post here.

And if you’d like some help bringing YouTube into your next campaign then, by all means, do get in touch.

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[Header photo: Kon Karampelas on Unsplash]

Youtube has put together a leaderboard of the top bumper ads from around the world based on CTR, views and ratings. 

With its extensive targeting options and enormous audience base, YouTube has something to offer most campaigns. These stats should help you get started – or optimise your current YouTube strategy.

══════════════════

This post is part of our Crunching the Social Media Marketing Numbers series – you can read the LinkedIn post here.

And if you’d like some help bringing YouTube into your next campaign then, by all means, do get in touch.

══════════════════

[Header photo: Kon Karampelas on Unsplash]