12 tips for YouTube SEO
You may know about SEO on Google in relation to websites, but did you know that SEO can also help you get more views on YouTube? Find out in this article with 12 concrete tips to get your videos higher in search results - both on YouTube and in Google Search.
What is YouTube SEO?
YouTube is the world's second largest search engine, which is why you can benefit from search engine optimization for your YouTube videos. Search engine optimization of videos on YouTube can quickly get your content into the race for the top positions, as there is generally not the same SEO effort as there is on Google Search, for example.
Google Search also shows results from YouTube, so by focusing on SEO, you have the opportunity to get traffic from the world's two largest search engines.
12 tips for SEO on YouTube
1. Enter keywords in the title
When people search for videos, they usually look for headlines that match their search intent. Therefore, it's important that your YouTube video title contains relevant keywords in a natural way so that the title doesn't seem mechanical. This way, you increase the chance that users will click on your video and not your competitors.
Although YouTube supports up to 100 characters, your title should not be longer than 70 characters including spaces. If your title is longer, you run the risk that some of the characters won't be visible and your CTR (click-through-rate) may be minimized.
At Webamp, for example, we want to rank for keywords like 'SEO' and 'search engine optimization' - which is why we've included it in the title of our YouTube video about SEO.
2. Enter keywords in the video file
When you upload a video to YouTube, the video file will have a name, which you can see on the right side of the screen under the video details. It's important that the name of the file contains the keywords you want to be found on.
Therefore, you should change the video file name to match your selected keywords BEFORE you upload the video to YouTube. This will improve your video's ranking in search results, so you get as many views as possible.
3. Optimize video description
The video description is possibly one of the most important factors when it comes to YouTube SEO. Just like with blog posts, Google can crawl YouTube video descriptions to assess the quality and relevance of the content. Therefore, your video descriptions should be optimized with relevant information. The more information you provide, the more likely you are to rank higher on YouTube and Google.
You have 5000 characters to work with, and a well-written video description usually contains: Keywords at the beginning, short description of the video content with keywords, CTA and relevant links.
4. Use keywords in your tags
On all YouTube videos, you have the option to put certain tags on your videos. Tags can have a positive effect on SEO and give the best results when you use your chosen keywords as tags.
Tags both tell the user what to expect from your video and give the platform a sense of the content. This makes it easier for YouTube to connect your video with other related videos. It also means that your video can more easily appear among the recommended videos after the user has watched a video with similar tags.
5. Categorize your video
When uploading a YouTube video, you need to choose a category to put it under. For example, a YouTube video that is about SEO can be in the "education" category as it informs and educates the user in a specific area.
YouTube's algorithm places your video alongside other videos in the same category. Therefore, it's important that you choose the right category so that users will eventually click on your video after they've seen a similar one. The more engagement there is with your video, the better it will perform and rank higher in search results.
That's why you need to choose the category that fits best with your content to make the user want to click through.
6. Use a custom thumbnail for video
A thumbnail is one of the first things users will notice when scrolling through search results on YouTube.
A good and catchy thumbnail will attract more users to your video, which will help your YouTube SEO. Therefore, you should include selling titles that contain your relevant keywords and create appetizing graphics that catch the user's interest.
7. Use SRT files
On social media, a large proportion of videos are played without sound as they are viewed in public places. That's why it's a good idea to subtitle your videos so users don't click away from the video if they want to hear it without sound.
Google also has some problems decoding what is being said in videos - especially in Danish. Subtitles can help Google understand the content, resulting in better SEO performance.
Subtitles can be added via an SRT file, which gives YouTube a text version of your video so that your keywords are also read through it.
8. Use Youtube Cards + End Screens
When watching YouTube videos, you may have noticed the small white circle icon with an "i" in the center in the top right corner. These are called YouTube Cards and act as a series of add-ons you can put on your video. For example, it could be a link to a website, a playlist or another channel.
You can use Youtube Cards to promote your brand and other videos on your channel and get more views to improve your SEO.
End Screens are similar to YouTube Cards. The difference is that they only appear at the end of the video, where they link to some of your other videos, for example. End Screens are usually also more visual and detailed and are therefore a good way to keep the user's attention on your channel.
9. Use hashtags
Hashtags are a newer addition to YouTube that allows you to add related words to your topic. When you click on a hashtag, you'll see videos that relate to it, increasing searchability for specific topics.
Optimized hashtags make your video more visible and group keywords and related topics, making it easier for users to find the videos they are looking for.
10. Create a playlist on the channel topic
If you create more content on the same topic, it's a good idea to create a playlist by keyword. If you have made several videos about SEO, it makes sense to have a playlist that is also called SEO.
This not only makes your content easier for the user to navigate, but also helps drive users to some of your other videos. Ultimately, this will increase your views - and thus your ranking in search results.
11. Make a pinned comment
You can create what is called a "pinned comment". This is a comment that will appear at the top of the comment box and you can highlight a comment that contains your relevant keywords.
This is both positive for your SEO, and if you ask a question at the same time, you can also create engagement with your viewers in the form of likes and comments. All of which will ultimately improve your SEO and rankings.
12. Use analytics tools
As with website SEO, YouTube SEO should also be data-driven. Therefore, you may want to consider the analytics tools below.
Google Trends: You can set YouTube as your search channel to research the popularity of your keyword and in which geographical areas it is most popular.
YouTube Analytics: Here you have an overview of your videos' data so you can better identify areas that need to be optimized. The "research tool" is particularly useful as it shows search volume for specific keywords.
Tubebuddy: It's a paid tool for professionals that gives you tools to analyze and improve titles, descriptions, tags, categories, and other metadata that can improve your YouTube SEO.
Semrush and Ahrefs: Both tools have a "YouTube" search tool that can give you insights into your own and your competitors' performance so you can achieve better rankings in search results.
An example of successful YouTube SEO
Of course, we've also done SEO on our own YouTube channel - we are an SEO agency after all.
After working with the different parts of YouTube SEO, our video "What is SEO and how to do search engine optimization? INSIDER TIPS" came up high in the search results in a very short time.
In less than a month, the video has moved up in good company with some of our talented 'colleagues' in the top 10 in Google's video results for "SEO". With a few, and not very time-consuming, actions, the video has become visible in the results, and we can now direct users to our own website and thus attract more traffic.
Want the same result? Then get started with YouTube SEO!
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