Joe DavidMarketing mix of YouTube (7Ps of YouTube)
This is a detailed analysis of the marketing mix of YouTube. It examines the 7Ps (Product, Price, Place, Promotion, Process, People, and Physical Evidence) of YouTube and explains how it has been using these marketing techniques to take its message to the customers. YouTube is a subsidiary of Google. It was developed in 2005 by three former employees of PayPal – Jawed Karim, Steve Chen, and Chad Hurley who sold it to Google in 2006.
Products of YouTube
YouTube is an online video-sharing platform. It allows anyone to watch videos; however, only the registered users can upload videos on its platform. It has made music, news, documentary, sports, dramas, films, and many other different types of videos available at the users’ fingertips. Its main product categories are YouTube Go, YouTube Kids, YouTube Music, YouTube Originals, YouTube Premium, YouTube Studio and YouTube TV (YouTube, 2020). This shows that YouTube’s products are differentiated e.g. YouTube Kinds is an app for kids who can have fun in a safer and more contained environment. YouTube also has recommended videos service that helps users explore the videos they love.
Price and pricing strategies of YouTube
Anyone can watch YouTube free. This has been one of the biggest drivers behind the success of the company. However, not all services are free! For instance, YouTube TV costs $64.99 per month, though it includes 6 accounts. It has more than 85 top channels of entertainment, news, live sports, & more, and programmes can be recorded without any concerns for storage limits. A combination of both free and paid services has been a very effective pricing strategy for YouTube.
Advertising on YouTube is cost-effective as well. Most businesses usually star using YouTube as their advertising platform and spend around a £6 per day for local campaigns. YouTube usually charges advertisers only when people watch their ads or have some kind of engagement e.g. clicking on a call-to-action overlay.
Place/distribution channels of YouTube
YouTube is available in all smart devices and major browsers; however, 70% of watch time takes place on mobile devices. It is localised in over 100 countries, and viewers can watch its programmes in 80 different languages (YouTube, 2020). However, it should be mentioned that YouTube is banned in some countries. Likewise, it sometimes bans some YouTubers for violating its online terms of use and removes their contents from the platform (Sullivan, 2019).
Promotional strategies of YouTube
Word of mouth has been one of the biggest drivers of YouTube’s global growth. Approximately 500 hours of videos are uploaded on it every minute and millions of people are watching and sharing them. This takes the name of YouTube from one corner of the world to the other. YouTube also uses sales promotion techniques. For instance, to convince advertisers to use its platform for digital marketing, it often offers $100 free credit when they spend $50 on video ads. However, it is worth noting that some major British and U.S. companies, and newspapers suspended their advertising on YouTube in 2017 as their ads appeared near offensive contents.
People of YouTube
Over 2 billion users visit YouTube each month. The company has over 9000 partners that use Content ID. It also has a good number of employees. It positions itself as an employer that cares deeply about its teams of people and promotes itself as an equal opportunity workplace. However, it should be stated that many YouTubers have recently complained that they are earning less money even their content views are up.
Process in YouTube
Different YouTube activities have different processes. For instance, the first stage of uploading a video on it is having an account with it. Likewise, its process of hiring employees is of 6 stages i.e. self-reflection, job search, resume, online application, interviews, and decisions and the offer.
Physical evidence of YouTube
Physical evidence is the last element to address in the Marketing mix of YouTube. YouTube has an excellent and distinctive logo. It also has a user-friendly interface to interact with videos. However, many people did not like its testing of bigger thumbnails.
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Last update: 06 October 2020
References:
Sullivan, H. (2019) Who has famously been banned from YouTube?, available at: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/8222486/who-has-famously-been-banned-from-youtube/ (accessed 05 October 2020)
YouTube (2020) YouTube, available at: https://www.youtube.com/intl/en-GB/about/ (accessed 04 October 2020)
Author: Joe David
Joe David has years of teaching experience both in the UK and abroad. He writes regularly online on a variety of topics. He has a keen interest in business, hospitality, and tourism management. He holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Management Studies and a Post Graduate Diploma in Marketing Management.
M Rahman
