If you’re not already familiar with the power of YouTube, you’ve probably been stuck in your nest chirping away with all the other little song birds, and not paying attention to what other marketing tools are flying around on the Internet. YouTube is perhaps one of the most powerful marketing platforms currently available on the World Wide Web.
The monster wave…
Back in May of 2009, YouTube surpassed 100 million viewers and currently maintains a huge percentage of all videos being viewed Online. Studies show that internet users are now watching an average of 120 YouTube videos every month. Combine this with the number of new contributors coming online daily and it’s easy to see the positive impact of building a presence over on the Tube.
The power behind the tide…
Lately, one of the most interesting phenomenons occurring with YouTube videos is their ability to help the little person. Throughout 2009 there were many cases documented where YouTube videos were used to help normal folks spread a message to hundreds of thousands of people.
Take for example one musician. His guitar was damaged by baggage handlers while flying to an appearance. After trying for more than 7 months to get the airline to pay for the damaged guitar, this individual ‘put up’ a YouTube video containing a song about the incident. After hundreds of thousands of views the airline has reimbursed the man and continues to beg him to ‘pull down’ the video. A prominent guitar company has now given this musician several expensive guitars for the free advertising they received as a result of this vidio.
Hanging 10…
Another story involves a well known, national insurance company. They recently filed a claim on a home builder who, because of the current home building market, could no longer afford general liability coverage. Towards the middle part of 2009, his business had gone under.
The small print on the policy indicated that early termination would result in the policy holder owing a large percentage of the remaining balance. In a conversation with this Insurance Giant this gentleman happened to bring up his new Online business and the videos he was actively loading onto YouTube. He made mention of how much he enjoyed sharing daily happenings with the YouTube audience. With that, the Insurance representative asked that no videos be made for at least 10 days while the case was under review.
The next tsunami…
While these are only 2 obscure examples of how powerful YouTube has become, there remain thousands more. Until the next tsunami comes rolling into the World Wide Web, YouTube is sure to continue dominating as a valuable marketing tool.
Many network and Internet markets who already realize the power of the video will continue drawing huge amounts of traffic to their sites daily with simple 2 and 3 minute videos. If you are still not convinced of the power of video it only takes a few minutes surfing around over in the Tube to see the magnitude of what’s happening. There is still time to catch the wave.
