Video Content: YouTube vs Vimeo

November 12, 2014

Search Engine Optimization

Marketing

Social Media


There’s no stronger content than video content. Reread that first sentence.  

Many companies that we are working with are just starting to make the transition from extremely text-heavy websites to more visual websites with images… If you take that a step further and go from images to video, it sends an even more powerful message to your target demographic. With more people using Vimeo lately, it has turned into a debate: “Which video platform is better for my business?” Well, it really depends on the goals of your business.

We’ve broken this debate up into 6 different categories to help you determine, which is better for your business.

1. SEO (Search Engine Optimization): YOUTUBE 

There’s no doubt that both Vimeo and YouTube both have extreme SEO benefits and visibility upon signing up, however YouTube’s parent company is Google… Google gives preferential treatment to YouTube videos in search engine page results so they are always more likely to be seen.

2. UX (User Experience): VIMEO  

Vimeo’s layout is as clean as it gets.  The simplicity of the player allows for the content to be the star of any page that a video is embedded on.  Not only is the video player larger than that of YouTube, Vimeo has minimal ads and a flat aesthetic for a perfect video UX.

3. Audience: YOUTUBE  

There’s no contest here.  YouTube gets over 1 BILLION Monthly Views and Vimeo is approximately 1/10 of that with over 100 Million Monthly Views.  YouTube commenting does create quite the viral environment, but it does require a Google+ account in order to leave a comment. Vimeo does get acknowledgement for having a very clean share function, but still the audience a fraction of what YouTube is currently getting.

4. Quality: VIMEO  

Vimeo has been built on the reputation of quality over quantity.  Both platforms are built on user generated content, however Vimeo is known for being a community of video professionals with higher quality.

5. Content: IT’S A TIE  

It depends what you’re looking for… If you want Viral Videos (aka cats) then you’re going to go YouTube all day, but if you want breathtaking videos, then Vimeo is the easy decision.

6. Advertising Value: YOUTUBE  

Vimeo’s UX and quality can attract film majors and video professionals all day, but the 1 billion users on YouTube with a paid pre-roll advertising format make it a clear winner in this category.

YouTube 4 – Vimeo 3

If you’re making a decision between the two platforms, it really depends on your overall goals for the content and where it will be displayed.  We typically lean towards the clean UX and quality (Vimeo) because we feel there are other ways to get a boost in SEO, however it totally depends on the client and what you’re looking to accomplish.  Whether using Vimeo or YouTube, there’s still no debate that there’s no better content than video content.