Q: Is YouTube Worth My Time and Effort?

Danielle Ernest

You may have heard that YouTube surpassed Yahoo for the first time in total U.S. search queries, making it the second-largest search engine next to its owner, Google. More than 800 million people visit YouTube every month. More content is uploaded to YouTube in 60 days than the three major U.S. television networks create in the same amount of time. The average YouTube user spends 15 to 25 minutes per day on the site, equaling up to 2.9 billion hours on YouTube in a month. Four hundred tweets per minute contain a YouTube link and on Facebook more than 150 years worth of YouTube videos are watched daily. The demographic age is a broad range from 18 to 54 years old.

Does that convince you that it is important to have video content available for your customers?

Proven Winners has recently begun to create more content specifically for use on our YouTube channel and also for continued use on our social media platforms. Content is king in social media, as has been learned through the last three articles. We not only are using these videos for social media, but also for embedding them into our newsletters. Over the last months, we have found that the embedded video in newsletters is the highest clicked link, whether the email is going to growers or writers.

We constantly watch what other major non-horticultural brands are doing in terms of marketing. The YouTube logo is now popping up next to the Facebook and Twitter logos in advertising (print, television, Internet) everywhere.

So how can your company get started? Here are seven tips.

1. Start Slowly
Start slowly by brainstorming what video content your company might already possess. For instance, do you already have commercials that have been created for your company? How are you currently using them? If they’re only used on television, then you’re missing an opportunity. These commercials (even the older ones that still apply) can be uploaded to your YouTube channel and embedded onto your website.

After identifying existing video assets, sit down with your staff and come up with a plan. What are the most commonly asked questions by your customers? Make a list of the top 10 questions and record videos to address those questions, post them to your YouTube channel and use them routinely throughout the year with other social media. If you would prefer not to be in front of the camera, ask members of your staff if they would like to be the “face” of the company. Maybe you have an actress or comedian in your group that would love this opportunity.

2. Go Viral
The best viral videos are flash mobs, but a garden center has yet to do one. For examples of some great flash mob videos, go to YouTube and search “Coke Flash Mob” and get some ideas for what you can do. It could be a perfect complement to a “Pink Day” promotion. Work with a local dance studio and have your staff learn the dance as well. I can visualize a “Pink Day” flash mob dancing to Lady Gaga’s “Edge of Glory” or whatever song you feel would fit. Maybe the flash mob is on the first day of spring—tape it, upload it, and forward the link to your local television station. It could potentially give you a free, promotional boost right when people are thinking about getting in the garden.

3. Be the Next Gardening Personality
There isn’t a lot of gardening television anymore—so make your own. How about becoming the next online television personality? Check out some of the gardening television that still exists and create a plan for six small episodes. These days anyone is able to create video with a smartphone or camera. With some editing skills or a software program, you can have an online television series that is specific for your garden center. It only has to be as professional as you think necessary. The majority of videos on YouTube are homemade, so the expectation from the consumer isn’t high.

4. Product Placement
Do you have a local television station that has a gardening segment? If not, give them a call and ask if they would like to work with your garden center to tape some segments. Let them know you would be available for the interviews and would bring all the props necessary. Before taping, ask them if you would be able to get the video file to use on your YouTube channel. This would allow you to circulate the information on your different platforms. This content will not only help to build your video portfolio, but also gains your company some promotion on a local level as the go-to garden expert.

5. Demo and Product Videos
Relieve some of the anxiety that people have about gardening and let customers know that failing is a part of the gardening process, like any hobby. Yes, you may kill a plant, but you also may burn a cake the first time you bake. However, with practice and more knowledge they’ll become more successful.

Take a cue from popular magazines like Better Homes & Gardens. Two of their top trends for this coming spring are vertical gardening and terrariums. Why not make a video for each? As a customer, what items and products do I need to create both of these projects? If you have a container design department, have your designer tape a video on creating and caring for terrariums. She or he can make the video while creating finished terrariums for people to purchase immediately.

6. Super Fans and Testimonials
Capture this sincere excitement for your brand. Either ask your super fans to upload videos explaining why they love your garden center or tape them in store during a VIP night for frequent shoppers. Make sure to reward them with items like a coupon, free plants, food and drink for their participation. Have them sign a release form, allowing the use of the video on your website or other social media platforms. Live testimonials are the high-tech version of written ones and are better received because potential customers can see how existing customers feel about your company. This type of promotion is trusted three times more by consumers than any printed advertisement because it comes from a third party. If it showcases the customer as sincere and trustworthy, it won’t come off like some of those cheesy infomercials.

7. Contests
Do you have a new product that you want to make sure all your customers know about? Pick a group of 20 super fans and ask them to use the product and then submit a video of their comments. It’s okay to have videos where the review is not positive—customers will appreciate the range of reviews. Pick a winner of those that reviewed the product and present them with a gift. Gillette Fusion ProGlide used this concept when they sent several razors out for customer review via video. This type of contest can be duplicated on any product or service.

Every business is capable of providing video content for their customers, no matter the size of the company. Keeping track of other non-horticultural brands to see what they are creating is a great way to get ideas, then determine how to apply those concepts for your own business. GP

Danielle Ernest, a 30-something who lives and gardens near Seattle, Washington, is the public relations and brand development coordinator for Proven Winners. She can be reached at danielle@provenwinners.com.