your video content strategy for YouTube, using the Hero, Hub and Help Approach.

How to organize your video content strategy for YouTube: Hero, Hub & Help

Few brands are successful at making a splash on YouTube, and here's why: Unlike Facebook,

where brands can buy a community of subscribers rather straightforwardly, with YouTube you

need to instill a dash of effort and a pinch of ingenuity to reap the benefits.

How is it that brands with deep pockets are failing on YouTube, but 16-year-olds with

nothing more than a smartphone are mastering the video-based social channel?

It's because these brands don't have a well thought out video content strategy designed

specifically for YouTube.

Have no fear! You don't need to have millions of dollars in spending cash or even a dedicated

video production team on staff to get the most out of the second largest search engine

on the planet. Here's all you need to know:

Hero Hub

Help

At first glance that sounds terribly confusing, right?

Let's break it down and simplify it so you can be on your way to making a splash on YouTube.

Making the moments count with your Hero content

Your Hero content consists of your brand's most pivotal moments, and, as such, should

only take place a couple of times per year.

Hero content might include product launches or major announcements. A good way to look

at it is this:

If you had the opportunity to create an ad that ran in the Super Bowl, what ad would

that be? What would it be about? What would it look like?

That is your Hero content. The Hero video you produce will be the cog of an entire campaign,

which will likely include active PR, social media and more.

Hero content is about pushing out a video that supports your brand's most important

initiatives. Each calendar year, you likely have 2 or 3 BIG IDEAS that you want to focus

on. These big ideas are your Hero moments.

Keep your subscribers engaged with Hub content

When you produce a video – or any piece of content, for that matter – that goes

viral, you likely experience a sense of thrill and excitement. Finally, your hard work has

paid off and you're seeing an uptick in traffic.

But what good is that traffic if those folks don't stick around or come back time and

time again? That's why it's important to have Hub content, which keeps your subscribers

engaged.

Hub content should be episodic. That might sound nightmarish, as in, “What, you're

saying I have to make videos constantly?”

No, not constantly. For example, some of the biggest YouTube stars out there produce videos

every day (often multiple times per day). You don't have to do this.

It's more important to maintain consistency in your posts than it is to commit to a daily

routine.

Regardless of your frequency, creating ongoing videos can be challenging, which is why we

strongly urge you to create a “template” that's easy to replicate. You don't need

to reinvent the wheel every time you upload a new video. Just look at the most popular

YouTubers out there: nearly all of them use their own, specific format and just create

new content that fits the confines of that format.

Nintendo's “Nintendo Minute” is a great example of Hub content. It goes live every

Thursday, with the same hosts, and the same format (the hosts play games, add commentary,

and occasionally chat about what's new in gaming).

The production level is simple, thus making it easy for Nintendo (a brand with deep pockets)

to stick to their weekly routine without having to overthink the creative process.

We suggest that, as a brand, you aim for a new episode each week, and keep to a simple

production.

Leverage YouTube's SEO prowess with Help content

Don't forget what we said earlier – YouTube is the second largest search engine on the

planet, behind Google. The same rules apply to YouTube as they do to Google:

People type in a search phrase and are then shown the top-related videos based on their

search. How can you make your videos rank higher on these results page?

Help content.

Help content should answer the question: How can my brand help our consumer find what they're

searching for?

When creating Help content, make sure you stick to content that's relevant to your

brand. Don't just post videos that you know your target audience is interested in – that'll

muddy up the effectiveness of your channel.

Focus on these three keys:

What your consumers are searching for Your brand/niche and expertise

Areas where there's enough search volume to validate the time and effort required to

produce a video

If you're a handyman, for example, you might want to produce Help content videos such as:

How to unclog a toilet How to paint corners neatly

How to replace a ceiling fan

Your Help content videos might not be exciting topics from the onset (compared to your Hero

content, for example), but they do answer the questions your audience has, and they

establish your brand as an influencer in the field.

Get your content strategy, then take over YouTube

We've seen far too many brands take to YouTube with a spray and pray approach: they create

a ton of videos, promote them on social media, and hope for the best.

But it's best to approach your YouTube efforts with a well-established strategy designed

to improve your search rankings, turn heads, and retain your audiences' interest.

The Hero, Hub, Help strategy works; however, it's key to adapt it to your specific needs.

A B2B tech firm, for example, won't have the same type of Hero content as an interior

designer. But, once you understand your offering, and the needs of your audience, we're certain

the Hero, Hub, Help approach to YouTube content will give you the results you're after.