When talking about video marketing, it’s important to clarify what platform we’re talking about. Some brands have their own video hosting systems, while others go all-in on YouTube strategies. There’s also each strategy’s outcome to consider: Some companies are looking for an SEO boost, while others want to focus on engagement.
The changing face of marketing was made abundantly clear in SocialBakers’ recent study of video posting methods. It turns out that while the number of marketing videos published on YouTube have held steady since the beginning of 2014, the amount of similar content posted directly to Facebook went up over 80 percent between January and September of this year.
Publish to reach the right kind of audience
So what’s the big deal about where video content is posted? It depends on a brand’s strategy. Keep these considerations in mind when deciding if you should publish right to Facebook.
Do you have a focused video strategy? Check out our guide for avoiding the seven most common video marketing strategies.
Pro: Increased social engagement
If your audience is very active on Facebook, and that channel is responsible for a lot engaged users who click links and drive referral traffic to your site, it may be a good idea to take some of the luster you get from video and direct it toward this platform.
Con: Diminished SEO benefits
Video marketing can pay enormous dividends when it’s hosted on a company’s website, or especially if it’s on YouTube. Facebook posts aren’t crawled, so there isn’t going to be increased organic search visibility if videos just go to there.
Pro: Easier customization and timing
Publishing video content on Facebook means knowing exactly who is going to see it. You can customize publishing times based on when you know videos succeed on Facebook. You also quickly learn what kinds of videos do well on the channel by monitoring results.
Con: No access to YouTube
Making videos exclusive to Facebook may be quicker and easier when targeting an exclusively social audience, but it does cut off access to the highly engaged and massive YouTube audience.
Ultimately, brands don’t have to choose one over the other. Some fun or employee-focused videos and content can be reserved for Facebook, while professional marketing videos can be exclusively hosted or published on YouTube. Make sure to consider what your goals are (engagement, SEO performance, lead generation) before you determine how to choose a video marketing provider.
