5 Simple YouTube SEO Tips to Rank Your Videos Higher in Search

5 Simple YouTube SEO Tips to Rank Your Videos Higher in Search

Everyone is aware that people would prefer to watch a video rather than read a lengthy blog post. Indeed, 59% of executives prefer to watch a video over reading text. That is a sizable number of people. That means that video SEO can result in a plethora of benefits, including increased watch time, increased brand awareness, and increased sales and leads.

Google and YouTube, for example, use the same fundamentals in their algorithms for ranking websites and videos. The emphasis is on providing the best possible experience for the user, and YouTube video search results have been combined with Google search results to streamline the user experience.

Let’s walk you through exactly how to increase traffic to your YouTube videos using some simple SEO tips in this blog.

1. Choose your keywords carefully

Each month, the SERPs become more competitive. Everybody is vying for the top spots—new competitors, new products, and new services. Thus, diversifying yourself and your offering is critical. Conduct keyword research and, unless you are able to compete for extremely competitive terms, choose keywords that will generate traffic but are less competitive.

2. Include keywords in the title of your video

The first step is to ascertain your audience’s search intent. We know that the most frequently occurring search intents are informational, commercial, navigational, and transactional. Thus, matching the content of your video to the intent of your customer will be critical for your video to appear in search results.

Second, be certain that you understand WHY you’re creating a YouTube video and who your primary audience is. For instance, if you’re showcasing a product review, include the product’s name in the title and description of the video. It sounds simple, but there are a large number of YouTube channels that skip this step, resulting in their videos appearing at the bottom of Google and YouTube search results.

3. Include the keyword in the file name of your video

Simple, but YouTube may use this as a ranking factor when determining whether or not to show your video in search results. If the file name contains the target keyword, your video will have a much better chance of being ranked—and gaining additional search volume.

When you upload a new video, the filename is visible. YouTube uses this to ensure that the video is relevant, so make sure to update the file name before uploading!

4. Optimize the description of your YouTube video

Having a strong, optimized video description is a critical ranking factor for YouTube SEO. When you modify or update any element of a YouTube video — including video descriptions, subtitles and closed captions, and video thumbnails — YouTube will reevaluate the video. This can be beneficial or detrimental… so it’s critical to get it right the first time!

YouTube recommends including your most important keywords in the first couple of sentences of your description and keeping it to no more than 200 words. In general, make your description useful. If an item does not assist a user, delete it.

5. Utilize video hashtags to increase the visibility of your videos on YouTube

Hashtags (#) are now widely used across social media to assist users in locating content that answers their questions across a variety of platforms. You can include related hashtags (#) in video descriptions to assist viewers in finding your video when they conduct a hashtag search.

Tags, in particular, assist in driving search by making key trends more visible. When you include a hashtag in the video description, it will appear above the video’s title and will become hyperlinked.

It’s also important to keep in mind where you include video hashtags in this section. When you include a hashtag in the video title, it prevents hashtags from the description from being displayed alongside the video title.

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