Wondering how your YouTube content can show up in the search results and suggested videos on YouTube?
YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google and hundreds of hours of videos are uploaded almost every minute. So, it is fair to say that the chances of your videos getting noticed by the audience are very bleak among the vast number of cute baby and cat videos.
While achieving a large number of views right with your first video is improbable, it is not impossible if you have a solid plan in place. Here is a list of some optimization techniques to empower the videos and give them a fighting chance.
1. Content is the “KING”
Driving natural traffic and generating great views is an almost impossible feat if your content is not impressive. If you are looking for a considerable number of views, ensure that the content is entertaining, informative, or engaging. Most importantly, it should be something that people and websites would like to share.
YouTube would not be the only source for driving traffic. As a result, for every channel, there are amazing analytics tools offered by YouTube which you can use to track all the different sources.
Apart from this, keep a close watch on top trends on YouTube when creating the video. If viewers are searching for it, they might just land on your video.
Keep these tips in mind while planning your content:
- Invest in a DSLR camera to shoot your video. A tripod will also be required to shoot stable videos.
- Don’t forget about audio. Ensure you have a high-quality microphone.
- Pre-production plan is the key in preparing quality video content
- Use storyboards to plan complex shots and transitions
- Keep additional footage ready to be used while editing to give your video a unique zing
- Plan a proper call to action
- Use proper video editing software like Adobe Premiere Pro, Sony Vegas etc.
Also remember consistency is the key here. To keep your audiences engaged, you need to upload fresh un-skippable content regularly.
Wondering about the length of the video? While the average YouTube video is of 4 minutes, the length depends on the nature of your video.
2. Titles and Tagging
Tags and titles are very crucial when it comes to making the video more discoverable. YouTube can very well understand the text associated with the video. Take advantage of this if you want to get yourself ranked for some specific keywords.
Due to the rising instances of publishers buying fake views, the number of views is no longer important for YouTube. It is the ‘watch time’ that you need to focus on. Think of this as the bounce rate for the videos. What is now important is the time viewers spend on your video. If viewers land on your video due to some misleading title or tag, they won’t really watch the video completely and this will have a negative effect on your video.
- You can use Google Trends to know the relevant non-branding tags which can drive traffic to your content. It allows you to check things viewers are looking for on YouTube and you get the option to source important suggestions from other videos, keywords, and demographic information.
- Consider brand keywords in the tagging.
- Avoid tags that are irrelevant no matter how tempting they are.
- Consider YouTube suggestions when you type the keywords in the search box.
3. Meta Data
The video should have all the important details needed by search engines to index it. As per Google, title, description, and thumbnail are three of the most important details.
Metadata offers detailed information about the
- title of the video,
- description,
- video length and
- file name.
The title needs to be concise and short and the description should offer crucial details and focus on keywords to improve the video ranking. Also, rather than having a generic file name like “video246.mph, prefer something that is more relevant to your video.
4. Closed Captions and Subtitles
While titles and tags are important for indexing, there are other methods to associate your video with text. Transcribe and upload CC files for the videos to improve the success rate.
For instance, The Discovery Digital Networks channel on YouTube was able to increase the overall views of the videos by 7.32% when they added captions to the videos. With the help of closed captions and subtitles, viewers can also watch the videos in a quiet or noisy environment.
5. CTA
The video should also have strong call-to-action in the YouTube annotations and video description. Using the annotations correctly can significantly improve the viewership and engagement. But if done wrong, they can also be very distracting.
If a non-subscriber is watching your video, you can play a particular video before the actual video begins. It provides an excellent opportunity for you to let the viewers know what your channel is about.
Keep these points in mind while planning the CTA:
- Ensure that the annotations are not placed in any obtrusive section of your video. Around the borders is the best position.
- Channel Trailer is also a great way to incorporate strong CTA.
6. Playlist URLs
To improve the watch time of your videos, make sure that they are part of a playlist. Once a video from a playlist ends, YouTube automatically plays the video next on the list. With this, you can considerably improve the time-on-site and time-on-page metrics.
You can also create a playlist of all your best videos for the channel page to encourage people to binge-watch all your videos.
7. Video Thumbnail
Create custom thumbnails and keep them consistent with all your videos. This will make your channel or brand memorable.
The thumbnail is the first thing that viewers notice about your video and it significantly affects their decision of whether they want to watch your video. Make sure that you select thumbnails that are relevant to the video content.
8. YouTube Cards and End Screen
Apart from CTA, YouTube cards and end screen are two useful ways to encourage engagement. The cards can be used to encourage the viewers to like the video and subscribe to your channel. You can also use link cards if you want them to visit any website.
End screen is the last 5-20 seconds of the video. Up to 4 different elements can be added here for promoting your videos, channel, or website.
Conclusion
While there are many different ways to optimize the video for search engine and the users, the most important thing is the quality of your content. It’ll be your content which will attract the viewers while all these optimization techniques will reward you for the dedication through better ranking on search engines.
Focus on first creating high-quality relevant content and then use these techniques to get the content noticed by search engines and users.