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Don’t Overlook YouTube

People continue to allocate more time than ever to social media. Platforms like the dominant Facebook, the ever-expanding Snapchat, and the growing-faster-than-anyone TikTok, seem to be getting all the attention, but when it comes to the sheer volume of content consumed, one platform still reigns supreme: YouTube.

YouTube offers a little bit of everything.

We don’t always think of YouTube as a social media platform, but it is. It’s also a search engine, and a destination for highly engaging content of all kinds—clips, web series, full-length movies. For many consumers, YouTube is a legitimate alternative to regular TV and the millions upon millions of people watching it access the content whenever they please on whichever platform suits them in a given moment.

From a marketing perspective, YouTube is often viewed as an extension of a social media strategy, but we see it as one of many powerful spokes in a TV campaign, serving as a key access point for on-demand video content.

It’s important to remember that audiences are spending more time on YouTube than ever before. Let’s take a look at some recent stats from eMarketer’s US YouTube Advertising 2020 report:

This year, over 95% of US over-the-top (OTT) video viewers will watch YouTube at least monthly, surpassing even Netflix (75%).

More time is being spent with YouTube than any other video platform, and the content is being watched not only on mobile devices, but more frequently via connected TV.

YouTube’s US connected TV (CTV) ad revenues will reach $2.89 billion, accounting for more than one-third (36%) of total US CTV ad spending.

CTV continues to be a major growth area in video viewing in general, and YouTube is no exception. This trend was strengthened during the pandemic, and it’s not slowing down, which means advertisers are following this audience closely.

YouTube US net ad revenues will grow 17.8% year over year (YoY) to $4.04 billion and reach $6.87 billion by 2022.

YouTube is still a prime touch point for consumers, and advertisers who aren’t considering the platform as a piece of their marketing mix are missing out on big opportunities for branding, interaction and sales.

It’s clear that YouTube never went away and is still a dominant video content platform. But the bigger takeaway here is that TV media buying is about a lot more than buying “TV” ad time. When planning TV as part of your media schedule, don’t think in terms of segmenting the buy into Linear TV, OTT (Hulu, Spectrum app, etc.), CTV, and so on; instead, develop a truly holistic approach that incorporates all of these touch points into the strategy. That ensures your brand message is equally effective from one video platform to the next (adapting to the nuances of each platform as needed).

YouTube is a powerful consumer substitute to standard TV. The next time your audience sits back to pull up their favorite videos, are you going to be there to make them lean forward?

Get in touch with Mike Pocci to learn more.

Mike Pocci

Connections Planning Director

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