Q: Is putting an instructional video on YouTube a form of affiliate marketing? I watch girls showing how to apply make-up then they feature the line and girls showing how to apply fake hair, some without featuring products. Is it better to have an instructional video on YouTube or to put the video on my site? YouTube gets alot of exposure.
A: Yes, YouTube does get a lot of exposure. It is the #2 search engine behind Google.
As far as whether the videos you are seeing are being monetized through affiliate marketing, it depends on the relationship the person in the video has with the advertiser.
In some cases, the advertiser will pay a flat fee to people to make videos.
If you see a video where the URL featured in the video or description that goes to a site other than the advertiser, then they are likely an affiliate.
When it comes to putting your videos on YouTube or your own site, I would encourage you to upload to YouTube, and then embed the videos from YouTube to your site, so you can optimize your exposure with YouTube and Google.
Also, check out the Video SEO Plugin for WordPress to get a greater impact in the Google results for your posts that include videos.