Uploading quality content that resonates with viewers is the best way to find success on YouTube. YouTube can be a very valuable extension of your brand when used properly, however, it’s imperative that your content get exposure for it to effectively help your business.
Getting exposure on YouTube involves many of the same steps as getting exposure for your blog. You’ll want your content to rank highly in YouTube’s search results so that users searching for relevant terms will easily find your content. There are several SEO strategies you can use to improve the ranking of your content on YouTube’s results page:
- Keywords: Keywords are the bread and butter of all SEO strategies. Much like Google, YouTube uses keywords to determine which content is most relevant when it ranks search results. YouTube keywords should be placed in the tags of videos, video titles, and video descriptions. The best keywords to use on YouTube are longtail keywords, because they are more specific and allow videos to rank very highly. Do a keyword search to see which longtail keywords your audience is searching for, and create content that relates to those keywords. When you upload your content, tag it with as many longtail keywords as are applicable in order to rank highly in YouTube’s search results.
- Titles: Much like keywords, titles play an important role in your YouTube SEO strategy. Your title will largely determine who watches your video and who doesn’t so be direct and honest when naming your videos. Your titles should include keywords and should describe the content found in your video. Good YouTube titles are typically 70 characters or less in length.
- Video thumbnails: Each video you upload will be represented by a small image known as a thumbnail. Your thumbnail will work in conjunction with your video title to catch the attention of your audience and describe the content seen in your video. Your thumbnail should be descriptive, eye-catching, and professional. Avoid using just a screenshot from your video as your thumbnail, as this is not descriptive. A screenshot of your video with bold, descriptive text is the very minimum you should consider for each of your uploads.
- Video descriptions: Your video description is the final piece of your upload visible to your audience before they view your video. Your description appears below your video, and should contain important information about your upload. Include important keywords as part of your description, as well as information about your website and where you can be found on social media. Video descriptions are an excellent place to put links to your social media accounts, as well as links to your website or products.
Organic growth on YouTube comes from the SEO methods listed above, however, there are other ways to grow on the platform. YouTube makes the majority of its revenue from ads placed before, during, and after uploads. These ads are a great way to reach others who may be interested in your content, so consider creating a YouTube ad to promote your content.
Ultimately, uploading quality content is the only way to succeed on YouTube. Your keywords, titles, and descriptions will not attract an audience if your content does not resonate with your viewers. If your marketing videos are not of high quality, YouTube will not rank them highly in its search results, which will undoubtedly hinder your reach. Create content that your viewers will want to see, and record high quality videos. Invest in equipment that will allow you to record professional-grade videos, or use a quality animation program to create your uploads. If your videos are relevant and are of high quality, the SEO strategies mentioned above should skyrocket your uploads to the top of YouTube’s search result rankings.
