YouTube is trying to enlist its army of creators to grow its shopping business.
How YouTube Shopping Affiliate Marketing Program Can Beat Rivals: Exec
Bridget Dolan, managing director of YouTube Shopping partnerships, told BI the platform’s greatest advantage is its user experience and the resources it can offer creators.
How YouTube Shopping Affiliate Marketing Program Can Beat Rivals: Exec
Dolan said YouTube Shopping’s user experience is more interactive than other programs. Built directly into the platform, viewers can see products and prices below a YouTube video without searching through a sea of links in the video’s description, where users typically find other affiliate links.
How YouTube Shopping Affiliate Marketing Program Can Beat Rivals: Exec
YouTube also has dedicated partner managers who communicate with shopping creators weekly to troubleshoot, share best practices, and plan in-person and virtual events, Dolan said.
How YouTube Shopping Affiliate Marketing Program Can Beat Rivals: Exec
Shopping has always been at YouTube’s core, with tech, beauty, and fashion creators earning millions from pushing their favorite products. Last year, people watched over 30 billion hours of shopping-related videos on YouTube, and there was a 25% increase in watch time for videos that help people shop on YouTube, the company said.
How YouTube Shopping Affiliate Marketing Program Can Beat Rivals: Exec
YouTube wants to build on that by making it easier for people to shop and for creators to earn commissions.
How YouTube Shopping Affiliate Marketing Program Can Beat Rivals: Exec
“This is the basis of what YouTube has always been,” Dolan said. “Our features are just making that so much slicker and easier for the viewer instead of the viewer hunting and pecking for links below in a sea of blue links trying to be like, ‘Wait, which one is this product?’ And then leaving the video and being like, ‘Oh, it’s how much,’ or, ‘Oh, it’s out of stock,’ or all those things.”
What sets YouTube apart from other programs
YouTube has released a slew of new features to set its program apart and improve the affiliate experience for creators.
The company released in April a way for creators to…
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