How to Get Your Business on YouTube (And Why You Should!)
YouTube is the largest online video platform, one of the most visited websites on the internet, and the second most used search engine globally, right behind Google. So, if there is one place where your business could effectively find and connect with its customer base, it's probably there.
Does your business have a hard time expanding its reach and improving its online presence? Here's a tool you are probably already using daily but haven't even considered as an exposure powerhouse: YouTube.
However, to get the most out of this incredible platform, you must learn what works and what doesn't in it. With so many thousands of content creators uploading countless hours of video every day, it may be quite challenging to otherwise get a relevant place for your channel.
To that end, we go over the playbook for some of the best video marketing companies with a robust YouTube presence, and extract a useful set of optimization guidelines to help to place your brand and its content on YouTube – and ahead of the competition ;)
Start with Your Channel: Be Unique
What makes your company different? Surely you and your business have something unique and special. Make the most of this feature! Users want authenticity, and they are drawn to what makes you peculiar because they can't find it elsewhere.
Express these particularities on your channel. Create a solid and uniform brand that distinctively identifies and represents your business. Always seek to be simple but unique, and you will be iconic.
A good first move in this regard tends to be to create a trailer or introductory video to present your channel, company, or content. But if you do, keep it short and concise while still engaging and representative of the content you will post. An exciting preview like that will prime visitors to engage with your business and your videos.
Be Innovative When Choosing Your Content
To choose the topics of your videos, remember you must take into account your target audience. If you have a difficult time finding a topic, you can examine what the trends are, not only on YouTube but also on other social networks.
You can always pick one of them and create content with your personal touch.
Find a topic that you are passionate about. If you genuinely enjoy the concept you are dealing with, it will be easier to come up with new content around it. Moreover, enthusiasm has the power to attract the public as well.
It is also a good choice to keep an eye on the competition and assess the demand.
If there is a lot of content like the one you plan to produce out there, you better look for a less saturated niche, where you will have a better chance of being original.
Think Up Creative Titles for Your Videos
The title is one of the first things users will see about your content. Choose clear headlines and, if possible, short ones. Also, for each video, you should consider one or two keywords to include within the title and the first paragraph of the description.
On top of that, your titles should also be eye-catching. They have to attract everyone's attention and convince users to click and watch your videos. You can use capital letters or include exclamation or question marks, and even emojis, but always do so moderately.
Also, keep in mind that your videos must deliver on the title's promise. Avoid sensationalism that does not pay off in the end. Disappointed users will not come back in the future. Be honest with your titles, and they will appreciate it.
Put the Algorithm on Your Side: Leverage Tags!
When you upload a video to the platform, YouTube offers you the possibility to add tags. Don’t miss the opportunity.
Tags have a very specific task: they tell the website's algorithm what your video is about, what it relates to, and what it will offer to users. For example, even though they are also a type of explainer videos, we tag every whiteboard animated video on our YouTube channel as “whiteboard video”. That often helps position our content in front of audiences looking for that particular style.
YouTube will use this information to get to your content when someone does a search, and this allows your channel and your videos to rank high in the results that users see when they are looking for something related.
So don't forget to add in this section all the tags that you consider convenient and relevant to reach your audience.
Make Dynamic Videos
YouTube cares a lot about the audience retention that your content achieves. This means that search engines will reward your channel with better placement in result pages if your videos can keep users until the end.
Make your videos dynamic and energetic right from the intro so that the people who watch them don't get bored and leave. Create visually appealing and creative intros for your videos, and insert transitions to keep users entertained.
Avoid monotony at all costs! Keep your content in movement, and you will go far!
Captivate From the Beginning (And all the Way Through!)
If you want your viewers to stay to the end of your videos, hook them from the beginning. The first seconds are the most important to seduce the audience.
A good way to captivate users from the start is to show them a flash preview, a teaser, of what they'll see if they stick around. You can also do it by presenting a problem and offering the promise of an eventual solution, sowing a doubt, or charming them with a novel story or angle.
Another significant way to keep viewers engaged is by offering them a human connection. Make them feel (and truly feel it yourself!) that they may learn something valuable that you have to say throughout your videos and that you believe will enrich their lives.
Remember that YouTube rewards permanence, so at the end of each video, you can link another one so that users stay on your channel. Also, it's advisable to create a playlist with your content grouped according to a particular topic.
Last but not least, posting and fixing a comment with a hyperlink is a plus to keep your audience hooked.
YouTube and Users Will Reward a Good Thumbnail
The thumbnail is the first image of your content that users will see - which makes it vital!
On YouTube, it tends to be better to present a colorful, suggestive, and expressive concept. Make sure the visuals are in line with your aesthetic style, and don't forget to pick thumbnails that underpin the messages of the titles.
The YouTube algorithm likes contrasting images. So use complementary colors, like blue with yellow or red with blue. You can also add some words if it fits your style and content.
Also, a large part of users will be browsing from small screens, so, you must select distinctive images that can be perfectly appreciated in reduced sizes.
Statistics Are Your Best Allies
YouTube has many statistical tools to analyze the performance of your videos. Use them! They will be very convenient for you to improve in the future.
Using this data, you will be able to know with great precision who your audience is and what your subscribers like. This way, you will have references to make more personalized content for them.
You can also see in which moment of one of your videos the attention was greater and in which one decreased. In later videos, you will be able to avoid your failures, enhance your strengths, repeat successful formulas and dodge those that are not so effective.
Don't Overthink the Length of Your Videos
When starting a channel, people can get quite confused about how long their videos should be. But don’t worry so much. The most important thing is not time but quality.
YouTube prefers, as you already know, that users watch your videos until the end. The platform doesn't care that much about how extensive they are. And online viewers’ attention spans are rather short, so they’ll only stay as long as your content is attractive and classy. This should be your main goal.
Don't over-lengthen your videos artificially just to add up minutes because you may end up boring your users. You don't have to be afraid to upload short videos, either, but make every second count.
Be Consistent and Persevere
If you want to gain subscribers and wish your audience to stick around, you need to be consistent in your channel and post content periodically. Disappearing for a long time is not a good idea because, maybe, many will forget about you.
Think about how you are going to deliver your content. Once a week, on a certain day, or even every day? This schedule should be tailored to your audience. Assess how much time your subscribers spend on YouTube and when, and that information will help you decide.
Let 's Get Started!
Although we know that starting on YouTube is a difficult task, we hope that the above tips are useful to make your path easier and your content to be a success. Don't lose time because every day makes a difference.
Despite the challenges, even if it requires extra work, starting a channel may be your best ally or that of your business. So keep going. Never stop training yourself and learning.
Best wishes!