Web Marketers

Integrate YouTube into marketing mix

If you haven't watched a video online, you are in the minority. Seventy percent of Internet users have, and nearly a third have e-mailed or otherwise shared a video online.

Several businesses have jumped on the hype surrounding the YouTube video-sharing site, creating buzz about their products, building brand awareness and capturing indirect sales.

When Smirnoff posted a rap video parody featuring its new Raw Tea product, more than a million people saw the "Tea Party" spot within weeks. Heeling Sports regularly uploads video of its team members performing tricks wearing its Heelys, shoes with retractable wheels. The company generates traffic to the new spots by mentioning them on other sites.

It's a low-cost marketing tool because the site is free and the target audience prefers clips that are creative but not as polished as standard advertisements. A third of the people who see an ad clip in an online video visit the company Web site, and 8% of those visitors buy something, according to a survey by the Online Publishers Association.

The caveats: You can't control what others post on the site, such as people who videotape stunts wearing Heelys but not protective gear. And audiences balk at anything they see as fake.

Example: A scandal erupted when viewers learned that a group created by a PR firm was financing a blog purportedly by a couple traveling across the United States in a recreational vehicle and parking in Wal-Mart lots.