What is YouTube SEO?
YouTube is the world's second-largest search engine. That's why it makes sense to search-engine-optimise your YouTube videos. Search engine optimisation of your videos on YouTube can quickly get your content into the race for the top spots. In general, there's nowhere near the same SEO effort on YouTube as there is on, say, Google Search.
Google Search also shows results from YouTube. So when you focus on SEO, you can bring in traffic from the world's two biggest search engines.
12 tips for SEO on YouTube
YouTube SEO is low-hanging fruit that many people overlook. So how do you search-engine-optimise on YouTube? In true AA style, just follow this simple 12-step guide.
- Put keywords in the title
- Put keywords in the video file
- Optimise the video description
- Use keywords in your tags
- Categorise your video
- Use a custom thumbnail for your video
- Use SRT files
- Use YouTube Cards + End Screens
- Use hashtags
- Create a playlist about your channel's topic
- Create a pinned comment
- Use analytics tools
1. Put keywords in the title
When people search for videos, they usually look for titles that match what they're searching for. That's why your title should contain relevant keywords. Work them in naturally so the title doesn't sound mechanical. That way, you increase the chance of users clicking on your video rather than your competitors'.
YouTube allows up to 100 characters. Even so, keep your title to 70 characters at most, including spaces. If the title is longer, you risk some characters not being shown, and your CTR (click-through rate) may drop.
At Amplify, for example, we want to rank for keywords like ‘SEO’ and ‘search engine optimisation’. So naturally, they're in the title of our YouTube video about SEO.
2. Put keywords in the video file
When you upload a video to YouTube, the video file has a name. You can see it on the right-hand side of the screen under the video details. The file name should contain the keywords you want to be found for.
So rename the file to match your chosen keywords BEFORE you upload it to YouTube. That lifts your video in the search results, so it gets as many views as possible.
3. Optimise the video description
The video description may be one of the most important factors in YouTube SEO. Google can crawl your video descriptions just like blog posts and assess how good and relevant the content is. So fill the description with relevant information. The more information you provide, the better your chances of ranking higher on YouTube and Google.
You have a full 5,000 characters to play with. A well-written video description usually contains: keywords at the beginning, a short description of the video's content with keywords, a CTA and relevant links.
4. Use keywords in your tags
You can add tags to all your YouTube videos. Tags can help your SEO, and they work best when you use your chosen keywords as tags.
Tags tell users what the video is about and also give the platform a sense of the content. That makes it easier for YouTube to link your video to other related videos. Your video is also more likely to appear among the recommendations when a user has watched a video with the same tags.
5. Categorise your video
When you upload a YouTube video, you choose a category for it. A video about SEO could, for example, go under “Education”, because it informs users and teaches them about a specific area.
YouTube's algorithm places your video alongside other videos in the same category. So choose the right one, so users click through to your video after watching a similar one. The more engagement your video gets, the better it performs, and the higher it climbs in the search results.
In other words, choose the category that best fits your content, so users want to keep clicking.
6. Use a custom thumbnail for your video
The thumbnail is one of the first things users notice when they scroll through the search results on YouTube.
A good, eye-catching thumbnail draws more users to your video, and that helps your YouTube SEO. So write compelling titles with your relevant keywords, and create appetising graphics that capture users' interest.
7. Use SRT files
On social media, many people watch videos without sound because they're in public places. So add subtitles to your videos, so users keep watching even without sound.
Google also struggles to decode what people say in videos, especially in Danish. Subtitles help Google understand the content, and that gives better SEO results.
You add subtitles with an SRT file. It gives YouTube a text version of your video, so the platform also reads your keywords that way.
8. Use YouTube Cards + End Screens
When you watch YouTube videos, you may have noticed the small white circle with an “i” in the top right-hand corner. That's YouTube Cards: a set of add-ons you can put on your video. It could be, for example, a link to a website, a playlist or another channel.
Use YouTube Cards to promote your brand and your other videos on the channel. That gets you more views and better SEO.
End Screens are similar to YouTube Cards. The difference is that they only appear at the end of the video, where they link on to your other videos, for example. End Screens are usually more visual and detailed. That makes them a good way to keep users on your channel.
9. Use hashtags
Hashtags are a newer feature on YouTube. With them, you add words related to your topic. Click on a hashtag and you'll see videos on the same topic, which makes specific topics easier to find.
Optimised hashtags make your video more visible. They bring together keywords and related topics, so users can more easily find exactly the videos they're looking for.
10. Create a playlist about your channel's topic
If you make more content on the same topic, create a playlist based on keywords. If you've made several videos about SEO, it makes good sense to have a playlist that's also called SEO.
The playlist makes your content easier for users to navigate and sends them on to your other videos. Ultimately, that increases your views and therefore your ranking in the search results.
11. Create a pinned comment
You can create what's known as a “pinned comment”. YouTube shows it at the top of the comments section. Ideally, pin a comment that contains your relevant keywords.
It helps your SEO. And if you ask a question at the same time, you also get your viewers to engage with likes and comments. All of that ultimately improves your SEO and your ranking.
12. Use analytics tools
YouTube SEO should be based on data, just like SEO on your website. So consider these analytics tools.
Google Trends: You can select YouTube as the search channel and see how popular your keyword is, and in which geographical areas it's most popular.
YouTube Analytics: Here you can see data for your videos, making it easier to find the areas you need to optimise. The “Research” tool is particularly handy, because it shows search volume for specific keywords.
Tubebuddy: A paid tool for professionals. It gives you tools to analyse and improve titles, descriptions, tags, categories and other metadata that can boost your YouTube SEO.
Semrush and Ahrefs: Both tools have a “YouTube” search tool. It gives you insight into your own and your competitors' performance, so you can achieve better rankings in the search results.
An example of successful YouTube SEO
Of course, we also do SEO on our own YouTube channel. We are an SEO agency, after all.
We worked on the different parts of YouTube SEO for the video “Hvad er SEO og hvordan laver man søgemaskineoptimering? INSIDER-TIPS”. In a very short time, it climbed high in the search results.
In less than a month, the video moved into the top 10 of Google's video results for “SEO”. There it sits in fine company alongside some of our talented fellow SEO agencies. It took just a few measures, and they didn't take long. Now the video is visible in the results. It sends users on to our own website and brings us more traffic.
Want the same result? Then get started with YouTube SEO.
