An Untapped Platform
Due to its extensive reach and popularity, a YouTube marketing strategy seems like a no-brainer inclusion in any campaign. However, less than 10% of businesses have their own channel, according to Brand Watch. That makes YouTube one of the most valuable, untapped marketing platforms available today.
If you’re one of the many business owners or marketers who hasn’t yet taken advantage of YouTube, today is the day to get started. The platform requires minimal investment, precision targeting, simple viewer-to-consumer paths, built-in ROI tracking, and greater ad reach for 18- to 49-year-olds than all cable networks combined. In addition, it’s a great place for potential markets to better understand you and your brand.
And if you’re needing some inspiration before you get going, we’ve got you covered. Read on for examples of various brands across the industry that all use YouTube to connect with their target audience and gain brand recognition.
Brands That Are Succeeding
Let’s take a quick look at some YouTube usage stats:
- YouTube has over 2.70 billion monthly users.
- It is estimated that the number of YouTube’s global user count will reach 2.85 billion by 2025.
- YouTube is the 2nd most popular search engine in the world.
- In the United States, 82% of adults use YouTube, up 10% from previous year.
That’s a lot of traffic. It’s also true that there’s a lot of noise on the platform, with 500 hours of video being uploaded every minute. And while every brand must find their own way to cut through all that noise, there are consistent lessons to be pulled from the most successful YouTube marketers.
What They Have in Common:
- They have a clear understanding of their target audience
- They understand the true value proposition of their products to their customers
- They know how to tell their story
- They know how to help their audience naturally see themselves interacting with their products
Now on to the examples.
PATAGONIA
@patagonia | 441K subscribers | 1.5K videos
Now declaring Earth as their only shareholder, Patagonia is noted for their devotion to giving back to the planet. Rarely have they strayed from their mission. Patagonia knows their most loyal audience cares about environmental preservation. They have successfully built their YouTube channel, and garnered well over 100 million views, via campaigns that focus on activism and sustainability. Their content ranges from simple videos of their Fair Trade Certified products to documentary projects like Artifishal, a film about the fight for the future of wild fish and the ecosystems that support them.
RED BULL
@redbull | 13.3M subscribers | 6K videos
Red Bull’s YouTube marketing strategy has translated to over 13 million subscribers and more than 5.2 billion views. They know what their audience wants and their content delivers it. Over and over again. It is no coincidence that over the years, Red Bull has become synonymous with extreme stunts and sports. From parkour races to a world record supersonic freefall, the channel solidifies Red Bull as a lifestyle.
GOPRO
@GoPro | 11M subscribers | 2.6K videos
Boasting 3.5 billion views, GoPro’s YouTube channel showcases their mission to encourage people to share and relive their experiences to make life more meaningful and fun. While continually showcasing the capabilities of their cameras, GoPro’s YouTube marketing strategy mines the depths of user-generated content. The GoPro awards program offers ongoing challenges that tap into its community and supply a steady stream of quality content in exchange for gear, exposure, and cash. For their most recent Million Dollar Challenge, GoPro received tens of thousands of submissions, all shot on their latest camera, the HERO11 Black.
Now those are some pretty hefty examples…
But you don’t have to be a household name to become one. Take the YouTube marketing strategies of these growing brands as inspiration:
BLENDTEC
@Blendtec | 848K subscribers | 187 videos | nearly 300M views
Several years ago, Blendtec was trying to shift from a solely B2B blender product to a B2C one. But without the luxury of a sizable marketing budget. After the viral spread of their “Will It Blend?” series, which featured the company founder pulverizing all sorts of items in their blender, BlendTec’s site traffic increased by 650% and sales increased five-fold over previous record revenues.
PURPLE
@Purple | 183K subscribers | 135 videos | nearly 900M views
Mattress startup Purple experiments relentlessly. Their strategy is to hook their audience, present a problem their product can solve, then guide them through the decision-making process towards consideration. Also, they don’t run unskippable video ads, preferring that their audience “opt in” to the experience. “If you give consumers autonomy to interact with an ad on their terms, it leads to better outcomes rather than us dictating what their next behavior needs to be,” Rob Towne, then Director of Performance Marketing, told Ad Exchanger.
SQUARESPACE
@squarespace | 97.7K subscribers | 217 videos | over 350M views
Founded nearly two decades ago, the website builder has a history of helping artists and entrepreneurs easily create websites. But recently, Squarespace began targeting creators directly, educating them on the relationship of content and commerce. The results are inspiring more creators to become entrepreneurs. Similar to GoPro, Squarespace is also pulling user-generated content into the YouTube marketing strategy by encouraging creators to post and “tell [their] progression story.”
YouTube Marketing Strategy for Your Brand
If you’re just getting going on your YouTube marketing strategy, here are some tips to steer you in the right direction.
- Identify your audience – What do they care about? What are their interests? Hobbies? Desires? Concerns? What problems can your product or service solve for them?
- Clarify your voice – What is the tone of your brand? What is your mission? Wow does your target audience align with that mission? And how do you talk about it? Figure out your brand’s voice and keep it front and center for each YouTube video you create.
- Tell stories that inspire – What’s the story of your brand? How can your story, and the stories of your audience, highlight your service or product? How can you inspire viewers to see your brand integrated into their lives?
- Share updates – What are upcoming projects you’re working on? Do you have a grand goal that viewers can rally around? How can you offer an insider’s perspective? Bring your audience every step of the way, taking them behind the scenes to help them feel part of the team.
- Utilize tools – The best way to help your target audience find you is by making data-driven decisions. Whether you have one channel or many, TubeBuddy provides the tools that will help you optimize your content, understand your audience, build your subscriber base, and save you time and heartache.
While you may not yet be Patagonia, Red Bull, or GoPro, you can grow to understand and connect with your audience just as well. Today is the day to get started and we’re here to help.
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