The Best YouTube Alternatives

In the world of online video sharing and posting, YouTube is the supreme ruler. The number one video site receives over one billion visitors to watch 6 billion hours of video every month. YouTube is also the second-largest search engine on the internet. There’s no doubt that when hotels want to post video content, they turn to YouTube. There can be drawbacks to using such a popular platform if you’re looking for a large amount of engagement to generate traffic to your site. If a hotelier uses such a saturated media channel, their videos can get lost in the crowd. Also, if you place all of your eggs in one basket by using only one site, you’re reducing the chances of your videos being seen. There are many other great sites to post videos on that will receive a large amount of exposure. Below are the best YouTube alternatives.

Dailymotion

This European-based company is one of the stronger options to YouTube. Boasting over 128 million users around the globe and over 2.5 billion video views a month, Dailymotion’s target audience is those looking for personal and business videos. If you want to post an excellent promo commercial or a video at a special event near your hotel, you can post it on Dailymotion. Because it’s based in Europe, travelers from across the ocean can easily find and view your videos. Dailymotion supports playback on all forms of digital devices and even allows viewers to access live content.

Flickr Video

Flickr is primarily known as a picture-sharing site. Flickr also has a video sharing component that they describe as “like a photo, but it moves.” The sharing site’s maximum video length is only 90 seconds. This means that hotels must figure out how to get their message across in a short period. This video length is perfect for quick videos of new services and amenities at your hotel, as well as video tours. Flickr can be used on the internet as an iPhone and Android apps.

MetaCafe

This California-based company was started in Tel Aviv, Israel. The great thing about this site is that it is carefully moderated; a panel of 80,000 members thoroughly reviews each video and prevents clutter on their website by removing duplicates and spam videos. This makes it easier for your hotel videos to be found when searched. Metacafe also organizes its videos into the proper categories, which simplifies site navigation. Video content can also generate revenue on Metacafe. Posters are paid $5 per every 1,000 views after an initial threshold of 20,000 views is reached. Metacafe also boasts a viewer audience of 40 million people worldwide.

Vimeo

Part video sharing site, part social networking site, Vimeo’s popularity has rapidly increased over the past five years. Vimeo is a great place for up and coming videographers to showcase their work. A basic membership only allows 500MB of video to be uploaded per week, while a “Plus” account will enable uploads of 5GB per week, and a “Pro” memberships allow for 20GB of video uploads per week. Vimeo is the perfect place for hotels to post original content and is an excellent platform for any type of hotel video. There is also an active sharing and social community on Vimeo, including blogs and forums where people can discuss videos. Even the Vimeo staff gets in on the action: the front page of the site usually lists “Staff Pick” videos, so if your hotel video is chosen, there is another opportunity for great exposure.

The almighty YouTube isn’t your hotel’s only option for releasing accessible video content. The great thing about all of the sites mentioned above is that they connect seamlessly with Twitter, Facebook, and any other social media site. They also provide embed codes for your videos so that they can be posted on your websites or user blogs and traveler sites. With so many options available, why limit yourself to one video-sharing tool when you can use them all and increase your chances of engagement?