EightBlack.

I’ve been thinking a lot about YouTube recently. Actually, ever since Seth Godin posted this clip here.

Look at it from a case study perspective.

But, first let me indulge in a few sweeping generalisations. I don’t think there’s any of us who wouldn’t admit (reluctantly or not) that the internet hasn’t fundamentally altered the society in which we live.

It has. Just accept it.

And YouTube is one of the those “one percenters”. One of the killer applications. The $1.6 billion that Google paid for it is chicken shit. It really is.

Here’s why.

Google have been very, very busy since they made the 2 boys from GooTube very wealthy. First off, the usability of the application has gotten a lot easier. Very “Mac” like, especially if you are watching a particular clip and it ends, all relevant clips (or what Google deems relevant) to the clip just viewed will appear as little thumbnails.

It’s very cool.

And they also offer the embed code (the ability to cut and paste the code for the clip straight into this blog post for example) and the URL (if I want to forward this to someone).

Again, all much, much easier and all designed to encourage viral replication and consumption. You don’t even need to click thru to the YouTube site - you just pick up the embed code or URL straight from the clip you are watching.

But usability is not what has got Ken McCarthy all wound up.

Ken is one of the pioneers when it comes to internet marketing and teaching people about the internet. He reckons that Google could potentially hijack users on your site and turn your valuable online real estate into a Google/YouTube platform.

I for one am ok with this because as talented as I think I might be at this blogging stuff (joking ok), I categorically know that the average time spent on this site is about the same time as the average set of traffic lights takes to turn from red to green.

Video improves consumption and duration. And yes, I am running Google Analytics on the site so I have the traffic statistics and evidence to prove my statement.

I want Google to work out how to monetise the application. I really do. I’m pragmatic when it comes to acknowledging that visitors to our site(s) are fickle. They’ll come for the content they want and stay if they like it and leave if they don’t.

It’s simple internet physics.

But back to why I think video is the future. Indulge me for a moment and read the rest of the post and take another quick look at the original video that Seth posted courtesy Marketing Hipster.

Here it is here. Actually, it’s the winning clip (you’ll understand in a minute).

Forget how good the concept of the show might be for a second and lets assume that we are marketing folks (or more importantly, advertisers).

The popular talent show “Britains Got Talent” obviously aired in the UK market. Don’t quote me on this, but I think the show at its peak was pulling audiences anywhere from 6-8 million viewers. It was yet another feather in the cap of that pain in the arse, Simon Cowell. I thought my old man could be a rude old prick. He’s The Dalai Lama compared to Cowell.

Anyway, the clip of Paul Potts, the singing mobile phone salesman, spread like the ebola virus courtesy the internet, and more importantly, courtesy YouTube.

If you spend 5 minutes on YouTube, the number of times some of the BGT (Britain’s Got Talent) video clips have been viewed is nothing short of staggering. Clips like this have pulled in numbers in excess of 3.5 million. Thats just ONE clip.

Now, count all the finalists. From cute 6 year olds - to guys with a performing monkey. I don’t care how tough you are, how much of an act you put on, this clip will make you cry (or should). If it doesn’t, you’ve got unresolved issues with your parents.

Do this for me. Please.

Type into YouTube “Britains Got Talent”. On the first page alone, you’ll be presented with 20 thumbnails of video clips. I did a rough back of the envelope tally of how many times these 20 clips have been viewed.

20 million.

It’s not a typo. It’s 20 million.

Thats triple the audience on the final episode of the show. And you can bet, most of that audience was outside the UK.

Here’s what I just don’t get though.

ITV is the production company behind BGT. If you go to their site, you can learn all about the show. But can you watch any of the content if you happen not to be one of the 60 million Britains? Nope. Nada. No Way.

We tried. I had one of our developers try and bounce off a UK based proxy server. Still couldn’t get in. And I rate this developer as one smart bastard and was surprised that he was stumped by the geo-limiting feature on the ITV site.

I simply don’t get the logic of ITV’s management. Do they not think their show will be posted all over YouTube? Surely they’re not that naive? But maybe they are.

Why wouldn’t you syndicate the content and put show reels together after each episode? Embed ad clips if you must, but make it easy for the content to spread and be shared. The show after all, has a limited shelf life, like all reality TV.

Because of YouTube, Britains Got Talent has a global audience in multiple languages. I know people were waiting this Monday in parts of the world for the final to air on Sunday night UK time. Within minutes of the show ending, content started to populate the web and sure enough, much to the horror (or pleasure) of ITV’s lawyers, their content was being watched all over the world - and not a cent of ad revenue was to be seen.

ITV (nor any other broadcaster) is powerless to stop this happening. I don’t care what controls or measures you put in place. The power to consume video content is now squarely in OUR hands. Not the broadcasters.

The only way to prevent this from happening is to embrace it. Work with Google on developing faster ways to aggregate the content and help them distribute it to ensure its viral success.

My advice is simple. If you’re in business and you can explain the service or products you offer better with video, then you should be swamping your YouTube account. Your website and blog should be full of video content.

I know it seems a lot of effort. Trust me - its worth it. And it’s not going to go away anytime soon.

What do you think?

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 19th, 2007 at 11:03 pm and is filed under Video Content, YouTube. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.