In 2012, one hour of YouTube video was uploaded every second.
In 2013, according to Fast Company, 72 hours of online video is uploaded to YouTube every minute. In short, people are using YouTube and making videos en masse — some on a daily basis. It makes YouTube a media powerhouse.
"Online video today is what T.V. was a couple of years after it came onto the scene,” said Brent Weinstein, Head of Digital Media at United Talent Agency.
When television first arrived in American homes (by 1955 half of all American homes had a black and white T.V.), many Hollywood filmmakers who were used to theatrical story arcs simply had a hard time accepting the more short-form, episodic way of storytelling. The film versus T.V. distinction lasted for years.
“It took decades for television to gain respect as a medium. Now we’re in a golden age of T.V. That will happen faster for digital creators,” said Weinstein.
“The leverage they have with audiences is something we’ve never seen before. It’s a medium we’ve never seen before, in terms of quality, how it extracts response from its audience, and the power that the individual creator wields.”
How to leverage online video and YouTube is being figured out quite quickly by several startups in Los Angeles. Several multi-channel networks (MCNs) have gained large followings in the last two years.
Big Frame and Fullscreen grow audiences for content creators and connect brand advertisers with targeted, highly engaged audiences. Maker Studios is a new kind of studio, founded by YouTube artists, focusing on early stage talent specifically in the online video space.
Ability to Go Viral
Online videos have the potential to go viral online. Because videos are easy to pass along to others, often when the viewer of a video sees a product, service or information they like, they will share it with other people they know or other people they feel can benefit from what the video contains. This is especially true with social media networks that permit video uploads, such as YouTube and Facebook.
Search Engine Results
When customers are looking to resolve a problem or are seeking information, they tend to turn to the Internet to find what they are seeking. Videos are now searchable by search engines, which means videos appear in the search engine results along with text-based website. Many consumers find watching a short video an easier way to obtain the information they are looking for over reading pages of content.
Engagement
Videos tend to be more dynamic than text, which helps to engage visitors. If you have a video on the home page of your website, a video can increase the “stickiness” of your website, which is average amount of time that visitors spend on your site. In essence, videos tend to capture and hold the attention of visitors for longer periods than text. Seeing while learning or while doing allows watchers to make sure that they are following along during the instruction or education the video provides.
Education
Everyone learns in different ways. Those who learn by listening rather than reading are drawn to videos. Videos tend to follow the how-to format for instructional purposes. Videos thus have the power to educate the target audience for which the video is intended.
Branding
Videos can help to brand you, your business and your product. Especially for service-based businesses, videos allow the service provider to build a rapport with their visitors. Because service businesses tend to rely on the relationships the service provider builds with the customers, videos can help to build the connection and thus boost sales.
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