Should I Use YouTube or Native Facebook Videos on Facebook?

The difference between posting YouTube videos onto Facebook or alternatively just uploading a video direct to Facebook as a native video is subtle. However, a recent study has shown that the results from each option can vary in important ways. In this article I will share the pros and cons of each option with you.

Facebook has done lots for video – they clearly understand where it’s at. With an inbuilt feature allowing businesses to upload videos direct to their Page, they are making it easy for users to integrate video into their Facebook sharing activities. However, many businesses still prefer posting links to YouTube videos. In January 2014, Socialbakers reported a sharing of 3,684 YouTube video links and only 458 native Facebook videos, over a five day period.

Native Facebook video – PROS (/YouTube video on Facebook – CONS)

1. Native Facebook videos, despite there being less of them, get just as many likes as the YouTube videos that people post on Facebook.
2. Native Facebook videos get more comments than YouTube videos – yes, more interaction!
3. Commenting on a Facebook video is a much more user-friendly experience for your followers. YouTube comments are notorious for off-putting troll-like interactions.
4. When you share a native Facebook video, you can opt to include a ‘Like Page’ button – helping your wider interaction. This isn’t possible from sharing a YouTube link.
5. You can tag people in your Facebook videos, again contributing to wider interaction.
6. Your uploaded Facebook videos will appear in your ‘Pages Gallery’ – giving them a proud place to sit. If you embed a YouTube link, it will simply fade into oblivion as it get’s pushed down your timeline by more recent posts.

You can watch an interesting discussion here on Bloomberg about native Facebook video ads.

YouTube video on Facebook – PROS (/Native Facebook video CONS)

1. You want your video to be available online and as widely as possible. So you start with YouTube. Why spend the time uploading again to Facebook when you can just share the same link?
2. If you have your video on YouTube and Facebook, you will be dividing the analytics on the video, making it more difficult to evaluate. YouTube Analytics is a great tool and you would rather just have one port of call for your video stats.
3. According to Socialbakers, the YouTube videos were shared more often than the Facebook videos.
4. Posting YouTube videos on Facebook allows for more flexibility – you don’t just have to post your own content, you can share other good sources of video content. This means that what you share will be more diverse and therefore potentially more engaging.
5. When you link to one of your own YouTube videos on Facebook, you are also linking your audience to your entire YouTube channel and all of your other video content.

And the winner is…

In all fairness, the pros and cons of each option have a lot of legs – and the decision really comes down to you and what you are trying to achieve.

Facebook videos look better on Facebook – because the platform is built for them and will naturally encourage more use of their in-house facilities. However, YouTube is like the one-stop shop for video for many organisations and duplicating uploads on Facebook can seem like extra work for no good reason. If your Facebook Page is particularly important to your business – in that it is where you focus a lot of energy – then native videos will make more sense to you. If you have a wider social media strategy, YouTube videos are more adaptable across the board and are probably a more comfortable option for you.

The new Facebook videos advert format may influence the way users experience video on Facebook – potentially in a negative way. This is worth being aware of if you are considering going native, so to speak.

Overall, we would recommend experimenting to establish which route works best for you. The type and style of content you are sharing may impact on how it is received via various platforms – which is something only you can assess.