Whether you’re aware of it, or not, you’ve most likely used video host sites before. The social media behemoths of Facebook, Twitter, and Snapchat all use their own hosts to seamlessly integrate the infinite sea of content being uploaded each day.
In the arena of video host sites, one appears to stand high and mighty above the rest: YouTube. The bloated Google-owned mega host boats 6 billion hours of video watched per month. The odds are you may even have a YouTube tab open as you’re reading this…
But, for business whose videos are lost in the dense web of content that YouTube has spun; there’s hope out there.
In 2019, video is a truly indispensable asset for websites. Viewers on a website with a video are said spend 2.6% more time on that site. From an SEO standpoint, that time-on-page plays a huge role in boosting your visibility in Search Engine Rankings. And while YouTube links get part of the job done, native videos on Facebook have a reach 10x higher than linked content.
You can upload videos without video host sites; but for most websites, that’s only bound to eat up bandwidth, drive down traffic, and diminish its organic search engine ranking. So yeah, video hosts matter. They’re not only the infrastructure supporting your content, but also hubs for exposure, engagement, and analytics.
Sure, YouTube is a quick and easy fix: it’s got the brand recognition and the masses on its side. But the goal of YouTube is ultimately to keep their viewers on YouTube: clicking, digging, and consuming content from all different sources.
With other video hosts, the goal is to showcase the work your proud of and to convert new leads by driving them to your webpage to explore further. These are cream of the crop video hosts out there (not called YouTube) that can boost views of your video content.
You’ve probably heard of Vimeo before. It’s reputation as a sort of “fancy YouTube” has led it to become popular hub for creative content. It’s neat and tidy feel has drawn in crowds looking for a YouTube alternative that lacks the cluttered feel. And oh yeah, it’s ad free!
Vimeo also touts an impressive lineup of membership plans. Of course, there is still a free option, but their paid plans are quite affordable for a host site, offering up to 7 TB of storage in their premium package!
Vimeo is equipped with easy social media integration and a built-in analytics program that can help you capitalize on your content. Their live-streaming capabilities have become an industry favorite for live event coverage. Statistically speaking, it may not have YouTube’s clout with direct traffic, but its search results and social performance leave YouTube in the dust.
So for those looking to reach the masses, but not use YouTube, Vimeo offers a nice alternative. Sure, it’s fancier, but only modestly.
Customization has become an integral aspect in a company’s brand identity. Wistia prides itself as being “Video software for video-loving business.” In the process, their channels offer custom video backgrounds, CRM integration, auto-plays within your channel, among other features that make your channel more about you.
The Wistia Premium options allow your videos to integrate more fluidly with CRM platforms like MailChimp, HubSpot, and Google Analytics. Wistia’s own analytics service offers enhanced analytics like viewer history trackers and trend graphs to allow you to target your perfect audience.
Wistia doesn’t have the name recognition of YouTube or Vimeo. However, it makes up for it by being a progressive platform for businesses. Wistia allows it customers to augment their branding and track their video performance in one user-friendly channel.
With an impressive client list studded with names like Condé Nast, McDonalds, Vox, and Showtime, Brightcove has differentiated itself from other video host sites by offering a high-quality platform that is oriented to draw in revenue.
Corporate marketers leverage their video content, whether through event coverage, commercials, and testimonials, to convert their leads into customers. By breaking down their service packages into three categories: marketing, monetization, and marketing, Brightcove is leading the way in showcasing video for the business world.
With 85% of consumers wanting to see more video content from their favorite brands, Brightcover’s features ensure that that content will be displayed with the utmost style. Their HTML 5 video player uploads video 70% faster than other hosts, while their ad server integration and analytics services let businesses connect more closely with their audiences.
Brightcove goes to great lengths to assure their clients the best quality. For businesses looking to drive revenue and track the ROI of their video content, Brightcove’s resources offer a leg up on the competition.
Vidyard has become a widely-recognized name in video marketing for pioneering an array of features that offer clients a rich user experience.
All of their features seem designed to go a step further in making it a wildly accessible platform to engage users. Their A/B Testing with thumbnails, customizable call-to-action pages, and analytics that calculate the viewer’s attention span are all industry leading features. Vidyard provides marketers more control over how their audience views their videos.
Vidyard’s services can veer to the pricier side of things, so it’s best research their plans before committing. Luckily, their custom-built membership plans allow users to pick and choose what features they need and which they don’t.With their strong lineup of features, even the smallest plan is bound to make an imprint on your marketing strategy.
Just when you thought that YouTube held all the solutions to video hosting…
The four video host sites that we mentioned certainly lead the pack with their revelatory features and intuitive designs. However, countless other video hosts are available to take a load off your bandwidth and help you get the most out of your content.
For WordPress users, Jetpack is the ad-free video host that is fully compatible with WordPress sites. Jetpack offers embedded videos and custom analytics.
Dailymotion is a trusty YouTube alternative that offers unlimited and bandwidth for premium users, who can build up a custom channel with no limitations.
Twitch has become of phenomenon for its cultural impact, towering view counts, and live-streaming potential.
For users looking for 8k playback capabilities and an analytics platform, Sprout Video has become a launchpad for corporate growth.
The point of all of this is not to totally disown YouTube. In all fairness, YouTube is a revolutionary platform responsible for bringing a diverse and engaging hub of video content to the public. But for professional marketing purposes, it’s worth exploring other options.
Beyond analytics and promotion, these video hosts offer a strong foundation to handle your data, so that your site’s bandwidth is available and your search rankings are free to climb. From there, the features are what make each host unique and valuable to whatever video content that you’re producing.
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