10 best practices 2019 for brands on Youtube
Whether you’re already on Youtube or just starting out, there’s always room for improvements. So want to learn from the best? Here’s what works for brands that succeed on Youtube.
1. Prepare script in advance
Spend some time planning your video in advance. This is especially important for when you’re going to edit your material later and make transitions between clips. Having a plan and idea of what clips you need and how you’re going to shoot your video is important to make your video look coherent and professional. Write a short script, it doesn’t have to be detailed but the more you plan in advance, the better the outcome.
2. Create a smashing intro
According to research, 20% of the people who start your video will leave if it hasn’t hooked them within the first 10 seconds. There’s always another similar, and better produced, video, so if your message isn’t engaging, clear or presented in a good way, your viewers will leave. In other words, make your intro smashing! It’s also probably a good idea to front-load your video slightly. Don’t wait until the last 30 seconds to share your key messages.
3. Top quality sound
Probably a no-brainer but still. If you’re filming with your smartphone, use an external microphone. Invest in good equipment because it will pay back later. No one likes poor sound quality. And while it’s essential to have great visuals too, we’d say sound quality is probably even more important. If people can’t hear what you say, they’ll just leave, and probably comment on it too, and you don’t want negative comments if you can avoid it.
4. Good lighting
If you don’t have the equipment or knowledge to use studio lighting, use natural daylight as much as you can. Dark shadows rarely looks good, so if you’re planning on filming a day when the daylight is poor, it’s a better idea to wait until the next day.
5. Plan your transitions
Making good transitions is what will make your video look professional. Fading one video into the other is very basic, spend some time learning the more advanced techniques or hire someone to do the job if you don’t have the time to learn how to do it yourself.
Good transitions come with planning, so let us stress one more time: Plan your clips and transitions in advance so that you know what angles to shoot from for example.
6. Mobile first (most of the time)
Think mobile. Most people watch Youtube videos on their mobile phones, so keep that in mind, but also keep your target group and their behavior in mind. Where and how do they watch your videos? How does your channel art for example look on a tablet or mobile phone vs desktop?
7. Encourage interaction
Want your Youtube channel to rank higher? There are many factors that decide your Youtube ranking, but one of them is user interaction. Getting people to comment on your video requires a certain amount of effort, and for people to make that effort, your content needs to be engaging, captivating and interesting. You can also ask your viewers a question in your video or otherwise encourage them to comment on your video. Think of your video as a way to initiate conversation.
8. Make your thumbnail pop
The thumbnail is what people see when they search for content and see your video in a list of results. So make sure it pops. Youtube auto-generates thumbnails that you can choose from. You can also upload a custom thumbnail. Accounts that are verified can upload custom thumbnails. To get verified on Youtube, visit youtube.com/verify and follow the instructions.
Add stickers to your thumbnail, make it colorful, add text in big-bold fonts. Spend some time editing your thumbnail and remove distracting objects in the background for example.
9. A great title and description
From an SEO perspective, the title is crucial if you want to your video to be seen and discovered. The title should be clear, to the point and contain relevant keywords. But don’t write a misleading title just to attract viewers, it should of course be representative of what your video is actually about.
The description is also important. The limit for Youtube video descriptions is 1,000 characters, but only the first 100 characters are displayed. For the whole description to be seen, viewers have to click “show more”, so it’s a good idea to put the most relevant information in the beginning of your description.
10. Tag with popular keywords
Using tags will give your video a context and help Youtube know how to associate your video with other videos. This can increase the reach of your video. But choose your tags carefully. Don’t use irrelevant tags that aren’t related to your content. Include the most important keywords and use both short and long phrases.
Tags:
