We all want to stay ahead of the curve and that means embracing evolving communication platforms. While social media giants like Facebook and Instagram remain relevant, YouTube is rapidly emerging as a powerhouse for reaching and engaging the 35+ demographic, which probably comprises most of your business community.
It’s time to consider why this video platform could be your chamber’s next strategic investment.
Earlier this year, we talked about the growing interest in long-form video. While shorts are entertaining and inspiring, long-form video are ideal for education, fitting a lot of what chambers are doing these days for their business community.
If you’re already doing it, you might as well record it.
Reaching the 35+ Audience
While video channels are often associated with younger demographics, its reach among adults over 35 is skyrocketing. This age group, often comprised of business owners and decision-makers, is increasingly turning to YouTube for information, education, and entertainment. For chambers, this presents a golden opportunity to connect with a valuable audience seeking practical business solutions.
People are turning to video in lieu of watching TV at night, enjoying it on their morning commute, while they’re working out, and even as part of their self-guided professional development.
The Search Engine Giant: Answering Real Questions
Beyond entertainment, YouTube is the world’s second-largest search engine, second only to its parent company, Google.
But what makes it different than other social media platforms is that most of its users are actively searching for answers to specific questions. Your business community could be searching for topics you’re knowledgeable in such as “how to write a business plan,” “why should I visit <your town>,” and “best marketing strategies for local businesses.” This aligns perfectly with the chamber’s mission to provide resources and support to its members.
Monetization Potential
While engagement is the primary goal, YouTube offers monetization opportunities (albeit getting monetized takes some time and effort). Once your channel meets specific criteria (1,000 subscribers and 4,000 valid public watch hours in the past 12 months), you can join the YouTube Partner Program. This opens doors to advertising revenue, channel memberships, and Super Chat/Super Stickers during live streams. While monetizing shouldn’t be the sole focus for your chamber channel, it can provide a sustainable income stream to support your content creation efforts.
Not (Just) Another Thing to Do
While long-form video isn’t something that can be done in a few seconds, it’s an investment that pays off in the long run with more engagement and exposure. And again, you likely already have the content in another form. (We’ll cover how to repurpose that content in the Leveraging Existing Content: AI-Powered Video Creation section.)
Additionally, creating a YouTube channel and preserving all your educational and event content shows what your chamber is doing on a platform that more and more people are turning to in order to figure out how to do something. Unlike other social media channels, that are largely geared toward passive entertainment and mindless scrolling, people turn to YouTube for answers and how-to’s, making it a good fit if your chamber mission is educating or assisting businesses on best practices, trends, etc.
You also don’t need expensive equipment or advanced technical skills to get started. Smartphones and user-friendly editing software are sufficient. Some editing software, like CapCut, offers a free version.
If you hate being on camera, you can use voiceovers with pictures of your town and events, screen recordings (for tutorials), AI avatars or drawings, a mascot/costume, or delegate it to someone who loves the camera. But you’ll be well-served if you can get over your fear of the camera as people connect with faces.
Content that Connects: Serving Your Business Community
Like any platform, you don’t want to just post randomly. You want to feature content that resonates with your ideal audience. Additionally, using location-specific keywords in video titles, descriptions, and tags can help local businesses find your content.
Consider these ideas:
Educational Tutorials
Create “how-to” videos on topics like:
- Navigating local permits and regulations.
- Utilizing social media for business growth.
- Mastering financial management.
- Understanding tax laws relevant to small businesses.
If you’re not the expert in these fields, you can ask a member to create a video for the chamber. Create a series (that will help increase your views and watch hours) such as “tax tips for the self-employed.”
Industry Expert Interviews
Host interviews with local business leaders, industry experts, and government officials.
Business Success Stories
Showcase the success stories of your chamber members, inspiring others and highlighting the benefits of membership.
In general, feature local businesses prominently in your videos. It’s valuable content that will get engagement and will strengthen your relationships with members and potential members who will also want to be featured.
Local Economic Updates
Provide updates on local economic trends, development projects, and business opportunities. Speak with the people who are making things happen. This can be a formal video interview or an off-the-cuff “Meet Your Neighbor” interview.
Event Highlights and Recaps
Share videos of chamber events, workshops, and networking sessions. Create a video where you ask several people their favorite chamber event and splice them together with video images of past events.
“Ask the Expert” Series
Answer frequently asked questions from your business community in short, informative videos.
Community Spotlights
Create video series highlighting local events, initiatives, and community leaders. This positions the chamber as a central hub for the local business community.
“Shop Local” Campaigns
Use YouTube to promote “shop local” campaigns and initiatives, encouraging viewers to support local businesses. When it comes to shop local, seeing the exciting places to visit is a lot more likely to motivate people to act than simply writing about them.
Repurposing Existing Content with AI
We know. You don’t have the time or resources to create videos from scratch. We get it. Instead, start by repurposing your existing blog posts and articles. Use clips from podcasts and marry them to local images.
AI-powered tools can help. There are:
- Text-to-Video Platforms: Services like Pictory AI, InVideo, and Lumen5 can automatically convert text into engaging videos with visuals, voiceovers, and animations.
- AI Voiceovers: Use AI voice generators to create professional-sounding voiceovers for your videos. You’ll be amazed at how many voice options there are.
- AI Video Editing Tools: Simplify the editing process with AI-powered video editors that offer features like automatic scene detection and smart transitions.
Shorts and Long-Form Video on YouTube
YouTube offers both short-form (YouTube Shorts) and long-form video formats.
- YouTube Shorts: Utilize Shorts for quick tips, announcements, and behind-the-scenes glimpses. They are perfect for capturing attention and driving traffic to your longer videos. You can also use clips from your longer videos as teasers in Shorts.
- Long-Form Videos: Dive deeper into topics, provide in-depth tutorials, and conduct comprehensive interviews in long-form videos.
Engaging Your Audience: Building Community
We don’t want to mislead you. Long-form videos are work. You likely won’t see a couple hundred views on your first few videos like you might on TikTok or Reels. But if you follow these tips, you’ll begin to build a loyal audience:
- Ask questions, invite comments, and respond to viewers’ feedback.
- Organize your videos into playlists to make it easier for viewers to find relevant content.
- Promote your other videos, playlists, and external links using end screens and cards.
- Host live Q&A sessions, webinars, and event broadcasts to interact with your audience in real-time.
- Use accurate and detailed descriptions and tags to help your videos get found in search.
YouTube is a powerful platform that can help you connect with your business community, provide valuable resources, and establish your chamber as a thought leader. You can also unlock new opportunities for growth and engagement.
Check with your ideal audience. Find out how often they’re on YouTube. It might just be time to make YouTube a key component of your chamber’s communication strategy.
