YouTube: Why you need a distribution strategy

It's obvious that simply uploading content to your brand's YouTube channel is not enough. Overlooking a YouTube distribution strategy clouds the brand message outreach and loses itself amongst the hours of video uploaded every minute.

Neglecting marketing strategy issues such as distribution reduces the effectiveness of social media campaigns and diminishes what would otherwise be a great opportunity to connect with your market.

If YouTube is your platform of choice, creativity is not enough. Videos uploaded without a distribution strategy garner significantly fewer views and less social engagement.

The majority of SA brands with a YouTube presence thus far have taken a 'build it and they will come' approach - the result, average views of one to two thousand.

Promotion is critical

Even local YouTubers uploading home videos are out-performing them. Video distribution and promotion are absolutely critical to the success of video content marketing.??

A quick search on YouTube also reveals that fewer than 10% of big brands are using TrueView video ads. Our experience shows us that a combined approach across paid, owned and earned media elements yield the best result, increasing the potential for audience reach and growth.

Social video seeks more than views; it requires shares, interaction and discussion. Videos do not become viral because of their production quality or content. Productions that spread like wildfire on social media platforms do so because something about them compels people to watch and share them over and over.

As advanced video opportunities continue to grow across mobile and device-oriented experiences, maximizing this channel is vital for a brand's success. YouTube is too important to treat merely as an add-on to television advertising and to upload your commercials to.

Promoting your video across social media channels can seem a very daunting task, but it need not be, if you formulate a simple strategy.

Key Takeaways

1. Prepare a plan for social media promotion of your video across all major social networks.
   
2. Contact bloggers who are influential and target the same demographic, and make your videos available to them.
   
3. Optimize your video for search, video play a crucial role in search in terms of content discovery and engagement.
   
4. You can have exciting, relevant and well-produced content, but if nobody knows about it, you're wasting time and money.