A decade back, video content marketing was a relatively new concept. People used to ensure that every aspect of their video, from quality to duration, is perfect for getting views. But, now, it has become a common and much-used popular form of marketing.
Consequently, it has become a little challenging to get viral on YouTube, which boasts a massive 2.6 billion monthly viewers. But, we have a few tricks up our sleeve in the form of SEO for YouTube that can get your Videos viral instantly.
Why Choose YouTube for Video Sharing Purposes?
Interestingly, Videos get 1,200% more shares than a mix of images and text. If we understand more, Video content is more impactful for marketing purposes than blocks of written text because it can strike a strong connection and generate deep emotional responses.
For this purpose, YouTube must be on your list for marketing and video content sharing goals to get more views.
What Do We Understand by YouTube SEO?
Like written content, Search engine optimization is essential for Videos to get better views and responses. SEO for Youtube is a strategy to enhance the optimization of Videos and channels on the platform for suitable placement.
YouTube's largest video platform is one of the most significant search engines. Consequently, every video creator and brand use SEO strategies to increase the ranking of their video and eventually be at the top.
Looking back, YouTube was created back in 2005 it quickly grabbed popularity. For this reason, Google soon took it over in 2006, further making it reach the heights of popularity.
The platform is credited with bringing video content into the spotlight and making it a vital component of digital marketing. Gradually, with an increasing number of users and creators, the platform had to introduce SEO to organize the video content for the viewers.
Its algorithm prefers the best content that ranks on top, followed by others with a lesser quality of content. The ranking is done over programming, design, content production, and the relationship with other sites. At the same time, the content that is spam, plagiarized, or follows other malpractice is removed, or action is taken on it.
How does SEO work for YouTube Videos?
Since YouTube has taken over Google, it has had an intelligent ranking system for the search engine. It works with just one aim to offer the best content and experience to the user. Consequently, whenever you search for a particular keyword on YouTube, it will search for the best content across countless channels to bring out the best-using algorithms.
Other things like channel engagement and optimization criteria are considered along with good content. This optimization criterion includes adding a few elements like description, title, and tags. Even more, comments are a sign of a good experience for viewers that improves ranking. Also, when you work on SEO for Youtube, it will enhance its ranking on Google too.
Top 10 Tricks to get your YouTube videos viral easily
We have listed ten easy steps to instantly make your video viral on YouTube with SEO for YouTube.
1. Begin by renaming the file with a focused keyword
Like any written content, an SEO algorithm notices its file name is the first thing an SEO algorithm notices about a video. So, identify and add a relevant focus keyword, as YouTube will not watch your video to rank it. But, it would read its file name with its code to get an idea of its insights.
2. Proceed to add the keyword into the title without forcing it
The first thing we notice about any video will be its title. It will let the users know the kind of content they find in the video. A lot depends on the title as it makes a user decide whether to watch a video or not. It should be simple, concise, and straightforward.
Also, try to add the keyword naturally into the video title without forcing it. Moreover, another advantage is a naturally added keyword in the title that matches the users' search intent.
3. Time to Fill the video description that attracts the viewers
After the title, a user will go towards the title to get an idea about the insights of the video before they watch it. So, YouTube gives a word limit of 1,000 characters to add a description.
However, a user is not there to read the description.
So, add a precise, crisp, attractive video Description that gives a brief to a viewer. People and YouTube would mostly focus on the initial line of the description, and you need to grab the attention and interest of the viewer through it. You can add the most vital detail about the video, CTA, or other important links.
4. Don't forget to tag the video with popular keywords relevant to its content
Tags are words that describe the theme or subject of a video. This will inform the viewers and YouTube about the contents of a video. It can broaden the reach of the video. However, choosing the right tags is essential as an irrelevant tag can be a disadvantage. You can even use a mix of small and long-tail keywords.
5. Make sure to add the right category to the video
The next step is categorizing the video, which helps to group it with other videos on the platform. So, the next time someone plays a similar video, your video will be displayed in the similar suggestions section. This brings more exposure to any video. But, look at other Videos in the category you prefer to choose with their elements like production value, duration, or format.
6. Be ready with a proper video thumbnail image to add
As a viewer, when you scroll through a list of Videos, it's natural to put your attention on an attractive thumbnail. It's like an image description for a video that will be visible to the viewer in the search results. It gives an idea about the content and possible quality of a video. So, it can drive more clicks, views, and likes for a video. Another benefit would be using a custom image, and 90% of high-performing videos have it. A .jpg or .png image. Also, a size of 1280×720 pixels will ensure better quality.
7. Prepare a creative Subtitle and closed captions for SEO
Just like the title, video description, and tags mentioned above, using subtitles and closed captions will boost the SEO for Youtube. This offers another place to use and highlight keywords. The absence of subtitles can often become a reason for a few viewers not to watch a video.
8. Proceed with a card and end screen to boost viewership
Not many video creators know there is an option to add cards to a video. You might get to see an ‘i' option where up to 5 cards can be added at the corner of a video. It can take viewers to another channel, add donation links for a social cause, fan funding, external site link, Playlist cards, etc. On the other hand, just like its name, an end card will appear when a video is over. It's more detailed in terms of its visuals, and Google has a list of details on how the end card will be.
9. Keep your eyes on user engagement
After uploading the video, it's essential to keep your eyes on user engagement to get an idea of its performance. So, you should keep an eye on the basic engagement metrics, comments, likes, shares, and subscriptions and notice their rise and fall. Also, try to encourage your viewers to increase this engagement.
10. Finish it by monitoring analytics
Lastly, you must keep a note and observe the analytics to get an idea of your content's performance. Also, you will know what type of your content is preferred among the viewers, their watch time, impressions click, click- through-rate, subscriber growth, and unique viewers.
Why is SEO essential for YouTube Videos?
YouTube is the leading video-sharing platform, with 500 minutes of content uploaded daily. Even if you take 2 minutes to read this article, 2000 minutes of video has been uploaded. Also, figures say that 90% of people discover new brands and products. So this makes it vital for digital marketing by brands.
All these figures suggest that it's essential to get success on YouTube, but it will be a competitive ride. The production of high-quality, engaging content is just a partial part.
Alongside, you will be required to use SEO Techniques to ensure that your video reaches a wide audience. SEO has a significant role in enhancing a video's online presence and engagement.
Top 3 useful YouTube SEO tools for growth
As per the steps mentioned above, finding the right keywords, designing thumbnails, and promoting a video is essential. So, we have listed the top 5 YouTube SEO tools that can be helpful in that bid:
1. Ahrefs Keyword Explorer
This detailed SEO platform can be the ideal tool to research the right keywords to create the perfect content. It can help to filter keywords by search engines and gives its monthly search volume about it.
2. Canva
The ideal tool to design a template is Canva. This platform lets you design cards, photos, and logos. Also, it has a particular option to create a thumbnail for YouTube Videos. This gives the right dimensions and choices to add graphics, images, or text in the thumbnail image.
3. Tubebuddy
This comprehensive platform enables you to do all the steps of uploading and promoting a video. It starts with the production, optimization, and promotion of YouTube content. Also, there is a language translator, a keyword research tool, etc. Moreover, you can get tag suggestions and rank tracker tools.
FAQ
Are YouTube Videos good for SEO?
Search engines indeed prefer video content that is a mix of audio and visuals, striking a connection with viewers. The more videos you have, the more traffic will be on your pages, increasing your site's SEO.
Is SEO for Youtube growth?
Every search brings a user to the content they want on the internet keeping aside the countless other videos on it. So, when you optimize your video for the search engine it will bring good traffic to the site.
What does video SEO mean?
Video SEO is a comprehensive process to optimize traffic to video content on search engines. So, YouTube SEO enhances the presence of a video and its channel on YouTube.
How do I SEO my YouTube Video?
Follow the given steps to SEO your YouTube Videos:
- Begin by renaming the file with a focused keyword.
- Proceed to add the keyword into the title without forcing it
- Time to Fill the video description that attracts the viewers
- Don't forget to tag videos with popular keywords relevant to their content.
- Make sure to add the right category to the video.
- Be ready with proper video thumbnail images to add.
- Prepare a creative Subtitle and closed captions for SEO.
- Proceed with a card and end screen to boost viewership.
- Keep your eyes on user engagement.
- Finish it off by monitoring analytics.
Wrapping Up
Every YouTube video maker wants to get successful on the platform. But, every success story tells us that getting viral on YouTube won't be that easy. Combining engaging, high-quality content with the right SEO strategies will be the key to instantly getting your video viral.
Adding keywords, preparing thumbnails, preparing descriptions, and subtitles, tracking analytics, and keeping an eye on user engagement are steps that can make your Video rank higher and get more views.
Furthermore, a few tools like Canva, Adrefs, and Tubebuddy help you work on this SEO for YouTube steps.
