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As video increasingly dominates audiences’ time and attention, marketers must adapt to the new reasons why people are watching and what they choose to watch. That means embracing video’s new role in the consumer journey, while treating organic content and creator marketing like an investment that should compound in value over time.
40% of a video’s views on YouTube happen more than a month after the video goes live.
For decades, video was synonymous with entertainment, but the reasons why people watch have expanded. Whether someone is looking to discover something new or make a decision, viewers come to YouTube with a range of intents that span the entire consumer journey. That includes everything from the latest episode of their favorite creator’s show to a detailed product explainer.
Video has also been closely linked with the day-to-day of culture: “what’s on TV” or “what’s trending.” But relevant doesn’t only mean right now on YouTube. In fact, 40% of a video’s views on YouTube happen more than a month after the video goes live,1 which means content from brands and creators stays discoverable and popular longer. For marketers, YouTube content’s durability means it’s able to drive performance and also build brands over the long term.
YouTube creators build lasting content and trusting communities
This dynamic has created new opportunities for brands to get noticed, beyond chasing what is trending today. Knowing their best content continues to grow in popularity over time, YouTube creators are able to focus on crafting content that builds their audiences and keeps their audiences coming back. According to a survey conducted by Kantar, 80% of surveyed viewers in the U.S. say that they return to the same creators on YouTube again and again.2 Partnering with YouTube creators means brands can become part of the trust they’ve built with those loyal viewers, sometimes over years.
Individual connections between creators and their viewers have compounded into communities built on shared interests. Gen Z audiences actively look for places to belong, and 79% report YouTube creators build communities that provide exactly that.3 YouTube creators are building for their communities and those viewers can feel the difference. In fact, 78% of viewers agree that YouTube has the most trusted creators for product recommendations.4
Viewers who watch a YouTube video about a brand are 13X more likely to search for that brand and 5X times more likely to buy from it.
Creators bring communities together at a scale, which shapes the biggest moments and conversations. From sports to comedy, creators are bringing brands into the center of culture in ways that have much more staying power than just the trends of the day.
Compounding return on content investment
YouTube presents a different kind of opportunity for marketers, compared with platforms limited to feeds where content loses traction in days or even hours. Audiences continue to discover and actively seek content after the standard campaign cycle ends, with long-form sponsored videos on YouTube retaining over 65% of their launch-month watch time in their second month.5 This is also true for actions driven by a video, with 30% of clicks happening more than 30 days after publishing,6 making marketers’ initial investment more efficient as time goes on.
That opportunity for durable results is amplified for brands that partner with YouTube creators. When watching a video about a brand on YouTube, viewers are 13X more likely to search for a brand and 5X more likely to buy.7 The value of a brand’s content and creator partnerships are supercharged when brands boost them with AI-powered ads solutions. YouTube ads drive incremental views to organic content about a brand, which makes the overall investment more efficient, increasing incremental ROAS by an additional 16%.8
Capitalizing on content durability for long-term growth
People come to YouTube with the confidence they can discover the most relevant content to match their intent, regardless of when it was posted. Audiences know creators are sharing trustworthy points of view, tailor-made for them.
We’re making it easier than ever for brands and agencies to use YouTube to make the most of content durability, as part of their organic, creator marketing and paid strategies. Get the full Creator Marketing Playbook, and discover what YouTube can do to build your brand and drive performance. Use this simple approach as the foundation of a YouTube marketing strategy that delivers:
- Bring the best of your brand’s content and creator partnerships to YouTube to get even stronger results.
- Build strong partnerships with YouTube creators to connect with their communities.
- Boost creator content to scale your results with our best-in-class AI solutions.
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