Optimising Your Business YouTube Channel

Optimising Your Business YouTube Channel Should Not Be An Afterthought

Many companies spend time and/or money on their website SEO, social media marketing, trade shows, and print advertising but forget about YouTube. Why?

• It can’t be because YouTube is the second biggest search engine in the world after Google!
• It can’t be because 70 percent of people on YouTube use it to help them make buying decisions.
• It can’t be because YouTube reaches more people under the age of 50 than TV channels and networks!
• It can’t be because YouTube is owned by Google and therefore if optimised correctly your YouTube channel will help your business in Google Search!
• It can’t be because over 5 billion videos are watched on YouTube every day!

So I can’t find a good reason not to use YouTube, can you? Those of you who might already upload the odd company video might be thinking right now that you are doing well but do you optimise these videos and your channel?

Optimising your YouTube Channel...

1. Add your main keyword(s) into your YouTube channel name. For example, if you are a marine engine distributor you might have Company Name marine diesel engines
2. Create an eye-catching banner for your channel. This is known as channel art. Remember to check how it looks on desktop, mobile, and TV displays.
3. Complete the About Us page. The first 48 characters show up in the YouTube search results so you should describe what your channel is about with a few of your keywords.
4. Create a YouTube Channel Trailer - this trailer video is only seen by non-subscribers when they land on your channel. It should articulate what your channel is about and it is your chance to persuade someone to subscribe to your channel. Keep it to under 1 min in length.
5. Add appropriate keyword tags (find under Advanced Settings). This allows YouTube and Google to index your site for search so make them relevant.
6. Create Playlists. Just as you do for your own personal YouTube Channel. If for example, you are a distributor of various brands, create a playlist for each of these brands or products. This encourages the viewer to watch the next video on your playlist and keeps viewers on your page longer.

Optimising the videos you are uploading...

1. Most people are producing short videos for social media use which is great and they should be on your YouTube channel but you also need to create long videos. The reason for this is that the watch time is the most important ranking factor. This means the longer people watch on your channel the higher your page will rank. Explainer and how-to videos are great for achieving a higher watch time.
2. The first 15 seconds of your video is the most important as the viewer will at this time decide whether to watch further. This is the point where you wow the viewer with what they are going to learn or what the video is about. It is not about bigging up your company or showing boring branding introductions. The Wow needs to be at the beginning.
3. The filename of the video needs to reflect relevance with keywords - make sure you do this before uploading the video.
4. Add your main keyword into the title of the video
5. Make sure you add a compelling description. The description can be up to 800 words. I would suggest a minimum of 400 in order that it is optimised for Google. Ensure you have contact details, and links to the correct pages of your website with a clear call to action in the text. The first 2-3 lines of the description (approximately 50 - 60 words) are all the viewer will see (they will have to click on ‘see more’ for the rest). It is therefore important to have your key message and call to action in the top few sentences.
6. Make sure you choose the thumbnail you want to be shown in the results. If you want you can also create a thumbnail. If you have the time this could increase your chances of someone clicking on your video in the search results.

YouTube is a powerful channel yet highly competitive. Don’t use this channel unless you are going to optimise it. Use the same approach and place the same importance on it as you have your website. Don’t upload a video and then plan to optimise it later, the first 48 hours are critical. If YouTube does not know what your video is about and viewers can’t find it, the video will suffer in the rankings. Whilst you can come back and optimise these videos it is hard to recover from once the algorithm has placed a low ranking on your video. 

At SPC Marine Marketing we offer digital marketing services to our marine clients. These include website design & development, SEO, social media, graphic design, PR, and content management. If you would like a FREE initial consultation regarding any of these services please get in touch with heidi@spcmarinemarketing.com