What’s the best spot for your video content?
If there was a time where the online video competition was an easy race to win for many sites, today there’s no chance to dominate the landscape without identifying the right spot.
Here a list, up to date as May 2016, of the most relevant places to post your video content.
The list includes two sections for video-on-demand and live-streaming, beyond many links to our resources for main video platforms.
All-In-One Video Sharing Sites
The service that allows viewers to watch content whenever they choose to is called video on demand.
Except for designated premium content that can only be accessed via a paywall, the overwhelming majority of video content on the following platforms are free to any user, across any device.
Let’s take a look at the big four:
YouTube
Google took the time to build the most comprehensive site for posting videos online and it was absolutely worth it: YouTube is now the top video site in the world by a wide margin.
In case you aren’t aware, YouTube has a revenue sharing feature, more than 1 billion users uploading over an estimated 500 hours of video to the site every minute, and more than a million advertisers using Google ad platforms.
Facebook Video
I’m not asking, I know you already have Facebook.
Now please, if you haven’t done yet, post your video content on it because Facebook video generates over 8 billion views per day.
With the focus Facebook is placing on video right now, it’s the best time to consider posting there. You better do so quickly before all of the hiccups are fleshed out of the Facebook video rights management, or content ID system, now that the site is introducing Rights Manager. The social networking site also has a revenue share program for some creators, which makes it the biggest video site outside of YouTube.
Vimeo
Vimeo is like YouTube’s artsy cousin. It has similar features to Google’s video platform, but tends to be considered the go-to place to post short films and episodic content.
While YouTube has a wide audience, Vimeo is the place to target a specific public that appreciates well-made creative films, rather than the short entertaining video clips that have become the hallmark of YouTube. Vimeo has a number of revenue sharing models, including a “Tip Jar” and Vimeo on Demand which allows creators great flexibility with ad-free models. This trade-off comes with a yearly subscription fee to post to the on demand portion of the site.
Dailymotion
In this big family Dailymotion seems to be the loser cousin, but it’s really not. Its platform is definitely worth utilizing for video thanks to a robust set of analytics for creators, a revenue sharing program and a content ID system for combating copyright violations.
Like YouTube, you are required to have an account to upload or comment, but you can watch video there without one.
Mobile Video Centric Apps
Advances in mobile technology have not only led to massive consumption of video across smartphones and tablets, they have also facilitated a whole range of new mobile-centric, single-purpose video apps.
Let’s have a look at some.
Vine
Numbers speak for themselves: the last reported number of active users of Vine was 40 million in 2013 and 1.5 billions were the loops seen per day in early 2015. (Vine also reported in early 2015 that they are seeing 1.5 billion loops per day).
As YouTube moved away from short-form content, Twitter owned Vine rose up to fill that void. Vine’s 6 seconds content is easy to digest, which allows it to be used for multiple purposes. It can be used as a home platform, but since it has no direct way to monetize it, it lends well to starting a conversation and connecting with audiences off platform. Vine is also a great place for well-timed content.
Instagram Video
Best known for pictures, Instagram has added also video a year after Facebook acquired it for $1 billion in 2012. Like Vine, the videos are short form and now go beyond the original 15 seconds. Users – over 400 million – can upload content that lasts up to one-minute, which many brands are already taking advantage of. Instagram also lends well to bridging the conversation between platforms and also has no native revenue sharing model.
Snapchat
Here and now: that’s what Snapchat is and that’s exactly what ephemeral marketing needs the most. Snapchat is a great place to connect with an existing customer base and lends well to timely content. The fact the messages disappears gives it an “act now” appeal and a feeling of exclusivity for customers.
With the addition of Snapchat Stories, content can be added and kept up longer in a 24-hour personal feed of sorts.
Snapchat generates 10 billion video views a day, creating a never-ending conversation with their fans and friends.
Twitter Video
First of all it must be said that Twitter already owns Vine, which has a much bigger foothold in the video space and already integrates well with Twitter.
It’s just another place to post video content, but it’s not the most popular one. Even thought the platform has the added benefit of posting 30 second videos, only few users post their content on it.
Live Streaming Video Sharing Sites
Live streaming allows viewers to watch online video in real-time. Mobile apps, like Blab, and Periscope, gives brands and creators to broadcast events to millions of viewers anywhere at any time. They can easily take advantage from the kind of engagement this specific type of video content is able to generate.
Ustream
Ustream was one of the first video platforms to facilitate live-streaming, way back in 2007. It gives a platform to any creator with a camera and decent internet connection to upload content to a global audience via their own channel. Ustream is free to all users but there is a premium option for professional broadcasters. IBM acquired Ustream in January 2016 for $130M as part of a plan to build out the tech giants cloud video services.
Facebook Live
Facebook Live allows creators and brands to broadcast live to followers on the platform. Users can select their target audience and choose to save the video content to their timeline or video archive.
The platform allows users to embed videos on external sites, including social media channels.
As Facebook announced, Live video has become a priority in the user’s News Feed. Indeed, live video is getting around 10x the engagement of other video content on the site.
Our in-depth best practice guide for Facebook Live is coming soon, so keep an eye!
YouTube Live
In April 2016, YouTube announced the support of 360-degree video live streams, with the first major live-streamed broadcast coming from the Coachella music festival. The site is also working on an app called YouTube Connect which is going to compete against Twitter’s Periscope and Facebook Live.
Live video will be available through the app, as well as on the creator’s YouTube channel together with chat and tagging features.
Twitch
Acquired by Amazon in 2014 for $970 million, Twitch is the top option for live streaming, especially on desktop. It was created to record content that has been streamed and archive on your channel for future viewing. A partner program on Twitch allows content to be monetized and paid subscriptions to channels that offer additional perks.
Periscope
Named as Apple’s app of the year in 2015, Twitter’s Periscope is another live streaming service that gained a following with creators and viewers. It has been used for 200 million broadcasts to date. When a live broadcast posted by a creator or a brand is about to begin, Twitter users get a notification. They can provide instant feedback by sending ‘hearts’ to show their approval or bailing out of the broadcast if they don’t care to follow.
YouNow
We start by saying that some of the top creators on YouNow can earn upwards of $50K per year.
It’s a unique platform that focuses completely on live video and it’s very popular among Millenials. YouNow created a social commerce system where viewers can leave YouNow “Bars” for creators instead of typical engagement features like shares and upvotes.
There are other video posting sites out there, but if you are building an audience, sharing your work, or looking to leverage a platform for your brand, I’d recommend these platforms as the most relevant ones right now. Only few sites are able to offer an all-in-one solution for video, but those same sites excel only in very specific uses. So, keep this in mind when you look for a place to post video content: pick the right platform for your goals and your target audience.
Have something to say? Let us know in the comments, we’re listening!
