Affiliate Marketing: How to Use YouTube To Promote Your Brand

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth even more.

Video marketing now dominates consumer internet traffic, and YouTube is one of the most effective channels for connecting your business with future customers.
Marketers have found success with a YouTube marketing strategy for a few reasons.

First, video is a compelling way to reach audiences and easily share your product. 90% of people say that product videos are helpful in the buying process and 64% are more likely to buy a product online after watching a video. There are significant benefits of using YouTube for your business.

Additionally, YouTube is a great place to share videos because it has a really, really big audience. With 1.8 billion users every month, Youtube is the second most visited website, following Google. Like we said…there’s a really, really big audience.

The audience is not only big, but it is also actively engaged.
Successful YouTubers have been able to connect and foster relationships with fans to the point they become an ever-present fixture like friends and family. These relationships materialize because video articulates a message in ways text cannot. By hearing a tone of voice and seeing expressions, viewers form a genuine connection with YouTubers, and 60% of viewers say they would follow their advice for what to buy.

How to use YouTube for affiliate marketing

You can start incorporating YouTube into your affiliate video marketing strategy by partnering with video creators to make content around your product.

Then these video creators, affectionately referred to as YouTubers can share tracking links to your store. If they are new to affiliate marketing, they may not know how to promote affiliate links on YouTube, but it is very straightforward.

Youtube affiliates will share most tracking links in the video description. If the affiliate is part of the YouTube Partner Program, they can place links directly in the video.

Additionally, videos are a great way to share coupon codes with viewers.

1. Find great YouTubers to be affiliates

As we said before, YouTube is a powerful channel. But with great power comes great responsibility.

In comparison to finding affiliates that use other marketing channels, finding skilled YouTube affiliates requires more research and outreach.

You’ll need to seek out affiliates who specialize in video production and are comfortable on camera so that videos come off as both professional and intriguing. Keep in mind that some YouTubers may offer different video marketing packages, but it’s up to you to discuss what you can offer them as an affiliate.

It is essential to ensure that your chosen YouTube affiliate doesn’t buy YouTube subscribers, as this would be a waste of time for you both. You can easily check if your chosen YouTuber has a high engagement rate – look for people liking and commenting on their content.

Start with your mentions

To find the right YouTubers, begin with your mentions. Mentions are an excellent place to start because you’ll find people already talking about your brand and will likely be very receptive to partnering with you.
There are a few tools that can help you track your brand’s mentions; Google Alerts and Awario have been useful for us (Awario even has a filter specifically for YouTube mentions).

Seek out established YouTubers

You’ll also want to find established YouTubers in your niche market. Even if they are not familiar with your brand specifically, they’ll have the expertise and a built-in audience.

One way to find established YouTubers is through organic searches, but it’s important to make your searches specific and narrow. Searching for general terms like ‘Top YouTubers’ results in a list of costly influencers who aren’t necessarily experts in this realm.
Instead, try using market-specific keywords in your search queries, and begin compiling a list of YouTubers whose videos frequently appear in the results.

Your list should be a combination of nano, micro, and mid-tier YouTubers that are well-informed and reputable in your market. Hashtags are a valuable way for seeking out low-cost, emerging influencers who are not yet at the top of the search results but are producing excellent content.

Use YouTube Databases

Take advantage of databases that can connect you with different levels of influencers in a variety of categories.
Most of these databases have information about a YouTuber’s subscriber count, views, and overall rating so you can calculate the cost of your investment. You can start your search with YouTube’s Creator Services Directory, which features over 200 companies.

Look Locally

Keep in mind where your affiliates and customers are located. For licensing and legal reasons, YouTube’s services vary from country to country and it is possible that viewers could be met with a “not available in your country” message when trying to watch an affiliate’s video.
The best advice is to evaluate where your customers are and partner with affiliates in that geographical area to ensure people can view your product without barriers.

2. Start creating unique content

A lot of variables factor into creating successful content on YouTube, and you’ll want to work closely with affiliates to ensure your business gets the most out of the platform.

To start, you’ll want to be clear with your business’s objectives and goals. Give some background about your company and the details of this specific campaign. Also, be sure to give the affiliate any necessary branding materials – including logos, fonts, colors, keywords, taglines, etc. – to keep the consistency of your brand. Creating great YouTube banners and branding is key to supporting your channel and getting a legit YouTube promotion.

Then, it’s time to focus on the video. Your Youtuber will know what type of content works best for their audience and what keeps them engaged. As you can imagine, there’s a wide variety of videos on YouTube. These are the types of videos that fit best with the goals of affiliate marketing:

Product Reviews: Affiliates share why they love your product and give an in-depth analysis – this can be anything from a video game, software, or sneakers to a blender. There are several possibilities.

How To Tutorials: Customers see firsthand the functionality of the product and how it can work for them. Popular themes can be software tutorials, and make-up how-to’s. It’s also possible to do something where the product is not the central theme – for example, how to wake up early in the morning, including a mention of a specific alarm clock from one particular brand with an affiliate link in it.

Best Of: The product is displayed alongside competitors, drawing in consumers for being considered one of the best options. These can be any theme.

Unboxing: This is where an affiliate opens a package on camera and films their reactions. This works for any physical product – make sure your packaging and product looks good on camera.

3. Craft eye-catching video promotions

Next, you’ll want to complement your content with a compelling video description because affiliate tracking links are placed here. It’s crucial that the description draws viewers in and encourages them to click through to your site.

The YouTube description should always include the affiliate tracking link or coupon code in the first three lines above the “Show More” button.

A good description starts with a brief introduction about the video’s content and features the affiliate tracking link; then continues with a more in-depth video description that is strategically filled with keywords for SEO.

4. Start marketing your products

Finally, it’s time to let them work! While it’s important to have a strong partnership, you’ll want to give your affiliate room to do their job so they can make content that comes across as natural and genuine instead of manufactured.

Using YouTube for your affiliate program requires a bit of effort – but with a massive, engaged audience, this platform gives your business the means to reach tons of potential customers.

Jessica Rangel

Spending my days writing marketing content, cycling around canals in Amsterdam and attempting to master the Dutch language.