More Than Just Video Content
YouTube is the Internet’s second largest search engine, so it’s no wonder that many people choose to use it as an essential part of their marketing strategy. It’s easy to think that making a video for YouTube is all about the content, but there’s actually a lot more that goes into it than that. If you want your videos to rank high on search engines and keep people hooked on your channel, there’s more you have to keep in mind.
Here are some of our top tips on simple ways to improve your video’s SEO and user engagement.
Choose One Topic or Keyword
When you’re thinking of an idea for your video and writing a script, it’s a good idea to build it around one particular topic, or even get specific and choose a keyword. This will help optimise the content of your video, making the topic clear not only to your audience but also to the search engine crawlers that are looking for information on what your video is about.
To help you come up with topic ideas, optimise titles, and conduct keyword research, you can use tools like TubeBuddy which have plenty of free features to help you out.
Make an Effective Thumbnail
Once you’ve finalised your video content, it’s time to make a thumbnail. It’s important to do this rather than using a still from your content as it can be a great tool to make your video more clickable – without being clickbait!
Make sure it’s clear what your video is about through the thumbnail, such as with added text or graphics, and try not to cram too much in as it’s only ever going to appear to the viewer in small dimensions.
If you’re lacking the graphics skills or knowledge to make your own, you can easily adapt pre-made templates available from websites like Envato.
YouTube Marketing Throughout the Video
There are various features you can include throughout the video to encourage viewers to interact and stay on your channel. For example, insert video cards to other related videos on your channel that the viewer might want to watch next. You can also include alerts throughout with links to subscribe, like, or enable notifications, to encourage continued engagement.
Make Use of End Cards
Finally, make sure to make use of YouTube’s end card feature. This is a still image or graphic that can contain links to other videos, playlists, or to subscribe. By suggesting more of your own videos you can keep people on your channel, and provide them with another easy opportunity to subscribe. Again, the visuals for this end card can be made from scratch, or adapted from a template.
Optimise Your YouTube Marketing
Making the most of your YouTube videos for marketing can be easy with the simple consideration of video cards, subscribe prompts, thumbnails, and end cards. Improve your search engine optimisation, increase engagement, and ultimately boost your channel and marketing strategy with these tips.