There seems to be something in the water given to SES panelists that compels them to continue to stress the importance of YouTube being the #2 most popular search engine behind Google.

I just saw another article this morning on Aaron Wall’s SEObook.com site.

Here’s the quote from Jonathan Mendez, a speaker at SES New York:

“…This is clear as YouTube is now the #2 search engine, Facebook, eBay & Craigslist are in the top 10 search engines and Twitter is trying to position itself as a real-time search. Search is integral to the web experience.”

While statistically true, is this really a relevant statistic? I think not.

Are you going to tell someone selling tractors or cement mix that they NEED to be on YouTube because that’s where people are searching? Has anyone ever searched for a birthday present on YouTube? My guess is not a one.

Here’s the bottom line. YouTube’s #2 Search Engine status says nothing about the CONTENT of those searches. I asked a panelist about this at SES Chicago. Another panelist agreed with me and the other guy just got sore. Don’t let the experts make you think you HAVE to have some kind of YouTube presence just because THEY say it’s the #2 search engine. There are quite often other, more practical, efforts you can prioritize.