YouTube Video Upload Checklist
So you’ve created a video, congratulation! Hopefully it is great, but unfortunately, that alone doesn’t guarantee success. No doubt a video takes a lot of time to produce, so you don’t want to waste your efforts by not doing everything you can to increase the visibility of your work. You probably have heard the term, Video optimization, but what is it?
YouTube, just like other social media platforms, have specific steps and best practices to optimize your video for increased exposure and engagement.
At 4siteVideo we take pride in creating videos for our clients and want you to reap the benefits of our collaborative work with you.
While we offer full service digital media and marketing solutions, and can upload and market your video, some clients either have their webmasters and social team in place, others go the DIY route, which can lead to unflattering results.
Because of this, we put together this step-by-step checklist to help you upload your video and start getting views.
1. File Name
Most people don’t know this. It is very important to rename the .mov or .mp4 file with your main keyword you want to optimize your video for. Example: if your video is about Yoga instruction, it should be Yoga_instruction.mp4, not some random name that got exported through your editing project title.
Why is this important? You are instantly telling YouTube how this video should be categorized from the get go and will be found with similar videos.
Did you know most views come from related videos, the videos to the right of the one you are watching or right after the one you are watching?
2. PRIVACY SETTINGS
Upload your video and set the privacy to “Unlisted” so the video does not go live until you finish all the next steps. Don’t forget to make it “Public” when finished.
3. Use A Target And Catchy Video Title.
Make sure to plan out the title with your target audience in mind. It is best to make it short and simple as possible. But also click worthy. Ask yourself what exactly people are looking for and what they would most likely click on. Just make sure to insert your keyword very naturally
Make appropriate use of important keywords. You can utilize such tools as google keyword planner or just type a keyword into YouTube search and see what keywords they suggest. Studying the competition is always advised and you can learn a great deal about what videos are connecting and how to cannibalize their audience.
Ensure you do enough research before you upload and name your video. Make sure your thumbnail has the same as the title as well.
4. Make A Unique Video Description.
At the beginning of each description should be your URL or website. Hopefully your video draws interest for your viewers to click through for more info. Make use of well-written video description, 250 words is recommended, which will help boost your video seo. Make appropriate use of important keywords. You can utilize such tools as google keyword planner or just type a keyword into YouTube search and see what keywords they suggest.
The first few lines of your video should contain good search-friendly keywords. Make sure to also add a call to action links and any extra information to get viewers to click on them.
5. Make Use Of Hashtags
Hashtabgs on YouTUbe are realtively new, 2016, but 3 hashtags are now display prominently above the video title. YouTube allows up top 15 Hashtags,. Again, do your research to find the most meaningful and effective ones. Put your top 3 hashtags in your description near the top. Hashtags give the viewer the best possible videos for their search without them having to look through pages of unrelated topics or videos that are not specific enough to what their original search was for.
6. Use A Worthy Thumbnail.
This is the Big Tease to your video and if it is not compelling you’ve already lost out before your video even begins. Don’t just choose a thumbnail from Youtube suggestions in creator Studio. Create a custom thumbnail is a must for converting interest to views. Faces or interesting images that exemplify your content work best. Only use high resolution images. Don’t forget to add colorful graphics or titles to help sell your video. Thumbnail titles should be the same as your video titles. Look at some of the top influencers on YouTube to get an idea. Ask yourself, would you click on this? Of note: to create a custom thumbnail your account needs to be verified. Visit https://www.youtube.com/verifyto start creating your custom thumbnails.
7. Categorize your video.
Uploading a video without categorizing it could ruin the whole purpose of your video. How do you do this? You can categorize your video under "advanced settings." It is good to group your video with other similar content on YouTube so you can gain more exposure to a large number of viewers and get more people who relate to your audience.
However, you should know that it may not be as simple as you might think. It is advised to research on the kind of category your video belongs to. Finding out answers to important questions concerning your category lets you know the best one to go for.
8. Add Subtitles & Closed Captions
Get More Views! YouTube captions are read and indexed by both YouTube and Google, the 2 largest search engines in the USA. How to do? You can use YouTube own automatic subtitle tool or upload your own transcript. To do this here is a good guide provided by WikiHow. The use of subtitles and closed captions are great for boosting your YouTube search optimization and open your video up to a new audience that may otherwise not been able to get or understand.
9. Add Info Cards and End Screens To your Video
YouTube Cardsare pre-programmed notifications which appear as drop down rectangles on your videos, CTA’s which you can program to promote your brand or your channel in general.
You can use cards and scripted calls to action to link to other videos, playlists, associated websites or to prompt your audience to buy merchandise or support your crowdfunding campaign.
One video can have a total of 5 cards, and there are a lot of card types you can use. You don't have to use it for just promotions as you can use it to get information from your audience, donations, links for your website, and so much more.
For End Screeen, these are designed to tell the viewr what you want them to do next. Your CTA if one is not included in the video you uploaded. you can choose a video, playlist, subscribe or link. To keep your views on your channel or site.
10. Engage And Promote Through Other Platforms.
Interact with your audience. Be quick to reply to comments on your video, share your videos on a very different social media groups, pages, and so on. Find influencers or bloggers who may benefit from your content Some of the best places to share your videos are:
Don’t forget Emails and news letters, still one of the most effective online marketing tool. Send to family and friends. Encourage others to share.
Conclusion
There area 300 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute and no doubt anyone make a video and upload it on YouTube, but it takes the right strategies to make your videos clickable and successful.
For those of you who like watching Videos, Dan Currier from Creator Fundamentals gives you his break down.