A small business guide to YouTube marketing

With more than 2 billion monthly users, YouTube can offer small businesses a chance to increase reach, engagement and revenue.² (external link)

Reach and engagement

YouTube is widely regarded as one of the most trusted social platforms for product discovery and purchase, with around 90% of consumers worldwide using it to explore new brands and products.³ (external link)

Video content can drive engagement and help you reach more people. With tools like YouTube Shorts, which attract billions of views every day, businesses can create quick, impactful content alongside longer tutorials and product demos.

Revenue and monetisation opportunities on YouTube

Beyond visibility, YouTube can help small businesses earn income. Ways you can monetise on YouTube include:

• Ad revenue 
• Affiliate marketing 
• Product promotion 
• Sponsorships 
• Channel memberships 

All of these are scalable as your audience grows.

Launching a YouTube channel for your small business often involves careful planning. A clear strategy can help ensure your content attracts the right audience and supports your business goals.

Personal vs business YouTube account

When starting a channel, you’ll need to choose between a personal account and a business account (also called a brand account). While a personal account ties the channel to a single Google profile, a business account offers more flexibility and control.

Benefits of a business account include: 

• Multiple users: Brand accounts can have multiple managers, and you can assign roles with different permission levels. 
• Brand consistency: Use your business name instead of a personal identity. 
• Better management tools: Access advanced settings for branding, analytics, and permissions. 
• Ownership transfer: Account ownership can be transferred to another Google account. 

If you plan to grow your channel and involve a team, a business account may be more suitable.

Identify your audience

Rather than aiming for a broad, undefined group, many creators find it useful to identify a target audience. This can help you create content that resonates, drives engagement, and supports your business goals. 

You might start by analysing your existing customer base and identifying key information such as: 

• Demographics (age, gender, location)
• Interests and behaviours 
• Pain points and goals 

You can use these insights to create audience personas – profiles that reflect your ideal viewers. For example, a wedding planner might target brides-to-be under a certain age, while a fitness coach may want to appeal to health-conscious professionals.

Explore the competition

Once you’ve identified your audience, looking at what others are doing can help you understand trends, discover ideas, and shape your own YouTube strategy. 

You might look beyond direct competitors and research content creators or influencers in your niche. For instance, if you own a beauty salon, you could not only review videos from other salons but also popular beauty influencers to spot emerging styles and trends.

You can start by: 

• Researching top-performing channels in your space. 
• Analysing metrics like views, likes, comments, and subscriber growth. 
• Identifying content formats and topics that drive engagement.

Develop your YouTube strategy

A successful YouTube channel usually benefits from a clear marketing strategy that aligns with your business goals. Think about what success looks like, whether that’s building brand awareness, generating leads, or driving sales growth. Your objectives will shape the type of content you create.

To help maximise impact, you can: 

• Cross-post videos on other social platforms like Facebook and Instagram to reach wider audiences. 
• Embed videos on your website and in blog posts to boost engagement and SEO. 
• Plan a publishing schedule to keep content consistent and build audience trust. 
• Create videos that answer questions, solve problems, or offer practical tips and useful information – content with a clear purpose. 

When your YouTube strategy connects to your broader marketing plan, it’s easier to track progress and measure your Return On Investment (ROI).

Setting up your YouTube business channel

Before you start creating and sharing videos, making sure your channel is properly set up as a brand account can help you establish credibility and manage your content more easily. 

To create your YouTube business channel: 

1. Sign in to YouTube using your Google account. 
2. Go to your channel list and click ‘Create a new channel’. 
3. Select ‘Make this a Brand Account’. 
4. Enter your business details and click ‘Create’. 
5. Add channel managers (e.g., a business partner or marketing team member). 
6. Customise your channel with a branded banner, profile icon, and business description.

Once your channel is established, you can turn your views into revenue. YouTube offers several ways for small businesses and creators to monetise their content, including ad revenue, channel memberships, affiliate links, and sponsorships.

YouTube Partner Program and ad revenue

The most common starting point is the YouTube Partner Program (YPP), which unlocks ad monetisation and other earning features. To qualify, your channel must meet one of these thresholds: 

• 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours in the past 12 months. 
• 1,000 subscribers and 10 million valid Shorts views in the last 90 days.

You'll also need to comply with YouTube's monetisation policies, live in a country where it’s available, and enable 2-step verification on your Google account. 

Ad formats available through YPP include: 

• Skippable and non-skippable in-stream ads 
• Bumper ads (6 seconds) 
• In-feed video ads 
• YouTube Shorts ads 

Here’s a quick look at the revenue share model: 

• Long-form videos: Creators earn 55%, YouTube keeps 45%. 
• Shorts: Creators earn 45% of their allocated revenue, YouTube keeps 55%.

YouTube Ads can help small businesses reach highly targeted audiences and amplify their video content. YouTube offers advanced targeting options, including demographics, interests, and remarketing to people who’ve already interacted with your brand. 

Benefits of YouTube advertising include: 

• Massive reach across diverse audiences. 
• Precision targeting based on user behaviour and search history. 
• Remarketing opportunities to re-engage potential customers. 
• Flexible budgets to suit small business needs. 

Whether you want to boost brand awareness or drive conversions, YouTube Ads can deliver measurable results when integrated into your marketing strategy.

Setting up YouTube Ads via Google Ads

To run ads on YouTube, you’ll use Google Ads. Here’s how to get started: 

Sign in to Google Ads (or create an account). 

1. Click ‘New Campaign’ and choose your goal (e.g., sales, leads, website traffic). 
2. Select ‘Video’ as your campaign type. 
3. Choose your ad format (e.g., skippable in-stream, non-skippable, bumper ads). 
4. Define your target audience, budget, and bidding strategy. 
5. Upload or select your video content and set up your ad creative. 
6. Review your settings and click ‘Publish’.

Setting up a YouTube account and publishing videos is just the start. To use your channel to grow your small business, you may find it useful to explore strategies that attract viewers, build engagement, and deliver ROI. Below are three key tactics.

SEO for YouTube content

Optimising your videos for YouTube search can help them rank higher and reach more viewers. Simple steps can make a big difference: 

• Rename video files using target keywords. 
• Include keywords naturally in titles and descriptions. 
• Add relevant tags and choose the right category. 
• Upload a compelling thumbnail image. 
• Add subtitles for accessibility and better indexing. 

To learn more, check out our SEO guide for small businesses.

Analysing content performance

Views and likes only tell part of the story. You can use YouTube Analytics in YouTube Studio to track metrics like:

• Watch time and average view duration 
• Audience retention 
• Subscriber growth 
• Audience demographics 
• Traffic sources (where your viewers are coming from) 
• Click-through rate (CTR) 

These more detailed insights can help you refine your content strategy and measure ROI.

YouTube influencer marketing

Building a channel from scratch can take time, but influencer partnerships can give you a boost. Collaborating with creators in your niche through tutorials, product reviews, giveaways, or hauls can help direct their audience to your brand. 

Costs vary, but influencer marketing can be affordable. Nano influencers may charge as little as £20 per video, while mid-tier influencers may charge around £1,000.⁴ (external link) This makes it a scalable option for small businesses looking to grow visibility without spending outside of their budget.