Online videos are powerful marketing tools for business, and the clear leader in video marketing is YouTube—with it’s easy, free-to-use platform and massive audience. If you are a gaming affiliate and have not yet tapped the potential of posting videos on YouTube, you are missing out on a critical marketing opportunity.
Here are 5 ways gaming affiliates can use and benefit from the power of YouTube.
Create a YouTube Channel
Creating your own YouTube channel is the first step. By creating your own channel, you can customize the design with your brand, create playlists and add links to your website, blog and other social networks. A channel also offers other YouTube users the option to subscribe to your content and search specifically for your videos.
Tip: YouTube’s content is organized on a tag word basis, so when uploading your videos, make sure you use applicable tags for SEO, such as “online poker,” “online gaming,” etc., even if the content is not entirely in that category. And be sure to monitor how your videos perform so you can adjust your tags accordingly.
Use Annotations in Your Videos
Annotations are design features that can be added to your video after you upload it, such as speech bubbles, call-to-action text, subscribing information, etc. Although annotations are great additions, don’t saturate your videos with them. Too many annotations can be distracting to the viewer and can cause potential clients to leave your video/channel.
Use YouTube’s Free Analytics Tools
YouTube offers free analytics data via the “Insight” button on every uploaded video. This data can provide valuable information on views stats, audience demographics, community and “discovery” data, or how viewers came across your video—including the links they followed to get there.
Network with the YouTube Community
YouTube is a social platform and should be used as such. Make connections with other affiliates/affiliate channels, find relevant videos and post back links and promotional info in the comments section. Also, keep up-to-date with YouTube’s own news. YouTube goes through major changes periodically and adds new features that can increase the efficiency and functionality of your channel.
Promote Your YouTube Videos Elsewhere
Every time you post a video on YouTube that’s relevant for sharing, blog about it, tweet it or add it to your Facebook. YouTube also offers the option to embed videos on external sites, emails, blogs, etc., and this should be used as much as possible.
As a gaming affiliate, do you use YouTube to promote your business? Do you have your own YouTube channel, and do you think it’s made an impact on the visitors to your site? Tell us in the comments below.