(* Source: Kevin Riley *) 

According to data at Alexa.com which ranks websites according to their visitor traffic, Web 2.0 video sharing site Youtube.com has now overtaken Google.com as the world's second most visited website. Is this proof that video search marketing has come of age and is becoming a threat to traditional online search?

After noticing a massive spike in popularity and traffic at video sharing sites such as Youtube.com starting early last year, internet marketer and website traffic expert Kevin Riley decided to see for himself if online video had more than just entertainment value.

 
"As someone who had previously focused on online marketing through traditional search using PPC and SEO, I initially assumed that video sharing sites were going to be a fad with little marketing potential," explains Riley. "But when I noticed niche content videos posted to these sites were getting a massive number of views and also showing up high in the search engine results pages for relevant keywords, I knew the potential for marketing with videos was about to explode."

 
"Although I was excited at the traffic these videos received, I was even more surprised when I noticed that these promotions really did increase website traffic to our sites that converted into leads and sales," says Riley. "In fact, the conversion rates on some of our video promotions are as good as the results we get with some of our traditional search campaigns."

"Video search marketing is here to stay," proclaims Riley. "Although video search is more of a compliment than a threat to traditional search, especially since Google wisely acquired Youtube, it has already proven itself as a necessary component of any effective online marketing campaign."

 

More here