With YouTube garnering 500 million views per day and publishers uploading 300 videos per minute, comparing podcasts to YouTube videos isn’t exactly a look at apples to oranges. We’re more in the comparison realm of the star power of Cinderella outshining one of the conniving, and perhaps misunderstood stepsisters.
YouTube videos are the darlings of content marketing today. They’re captivating, appealing trust-builders that can do wonders for your brand’s authority in your niche and your SEO.
Podcasts, on the other hand, are slower to convert and won’t have the same impact on your online presence. As just over half of the US population listened to a podcast in 2019, audio isn’t winning any popularity contests just yet, at least not when stacked against the brilliance of YouTube videos.
But, there are several unique advantages that make podcasts a worthwhile effort for a lot of brands. In fact, when you really examine the podcast vs. YouTube question, you’ll see that the best outcome isn’t pitting these two step-sisters against one another. Depending on your niche, your audience, and your marketing objectives, you may stand to gain the most from dropping the sibling rivalry and doing both.
Benefits of YouTube
It’s hard to compare the sheer weight of impact YouTube videos have in digital marketing today, especially if your audience is under 35. Millennials flock to YouTube like single ladies to the ball and already prefer YouTube to traditional television and 37% of 18 to 34 year-olds are actually at binge-worthy levels.
Aside from reach, YouTube also offers:
- The SEO advantage – Don’t forget, Google owns YouTube so posting high-quality videos on YouTube and growing a viewership can help you score a sky full of gold stars with Google.
- The trust advantage – Because you’re using a visual medium, you can quickly establish who your brand is through visual cues. This makes it easier to build trust way faster than you ever could with a written blog or an audio podcast.
- The competitive advantage – YouTube is still ripe for building a following and giving you a marketing edge – only 9% of small businesses are on YouTube.
The only real disadvantage of YouTube is effort. Creating professional-quality videos that your viewers will enjoy does require the right tools, creativity, and skills. If you aren’t sure where to get started or don’t have your own in-house production team, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at Six Degrees Digital Media and schedule a discovery call.
When to Use YouTube
These broad benefits make YouTube worthwhile for all niches. For visual mediums like travel and food, and for anyone targeting millennials (which means every business under the sun!), YouTube is a must.
Even if you have a successful podcast, YouTube is great for answering your target market’s quick online search queries. The how to build a/make a/fix a video content will boost your SEO efforts tremendously. It’s also useful for comparisons and events. Anytime your customers search online to ask a question about your industry, if you have a video published with the answers, chances are, they’re going to click on your YouTube video over your competitors’ blog post – and they’re probably not even thinking of a podcast.
So, When Should You Use a Podcast?
That doesn’t mean podcasts aren’t still valuable. It’s true that only about half of US adults are listening but that number is steadily growing. It jumped from 44% to 51% from 2018 to 2019.
What’s even more important is how the people who are listening are tuning in. Of podcast listeners, 80% listen to all or most of each show – and they’re listening to an average of 7 shows a week! Well over a third of the US population tunes in monthly. In terms of demographics, podcast listeners are mostly affluent, loyal, and educated.
When you want to slowly build a loyal following, podcasts are the way to go. Because listeners may tune in for a longer time than they would to watch a video – the average podcast is about 30 minutes – you can go in-depth with your podcast content. This makes audio an excellent medium for thoroughly covering topics, answering complex questions your customers may have, and for both a discussion and interview-style session.
In terms of niche, podcasts work well for industries where thought-provoking topics are popular. For example, if your audience would be interested in financial trends, cultural issues, current events, or personal and professional growth content, a podcast can work well. On the other hand, if your customers are looking for DIY plumbing repairs or graphic design tutorials, YouTube is the way to go.
When to Use Both
For most brands, it’s not a question of either-or. It’s more a thing of, yes to YouTube and then deciding if podcasts would also fit into your marketing. They can complement one another and help your brand reach out to, and build, both your visual and your audio audiences.
But, where you can create a killer podcast, where no one expects ball gowns or glass slippers, you’ll need to focus more on the full package for YouTube videos. This means getting everything right, from the vibe you create with your visual cues to the editing.
Contact us at Six Degrees Digital Media today to make sure your digital marketing darling lives up to your customers’ expectations.
