How to have a strong video description
The ideal Youtube video description to optimize your channel
Why are YouTube descriptions are so important?
Seems obvious but YouTube video descriptions work as a way to preview about what your video is about & help VIEWERS decide whether they want to watch it or not.
But most importantly, done right they help rank in YouTube’s “suggested search” function, boost SEO, subscriptions, view counts & watch time! Remember the goal, you want to hit YouTube’s algorithm & get YouTube to share/show your videos!
Whilst metadata in general we feel is less important than a strong CTR (thumbnail and title) and watch time - you might as well get these areas right to help YouTube share you more
Follow these 8 tips to get your CREATIVITY flowing!
- KEYWORDS! Same as for your titles, use keywords. Keywords must appear on the description to help your video reach more VIEWERS
- REPETITION! Repeat the keywords: repetition lets YouTube know a particular term is relevant to your video/channel. So use your keywords between 2-3 times so your content can RANK higher
- CLICK HERE! Add LINKS, this will improve your SEO
- HASHTAGS! Add hashtags but not too many. Stick to less than 10 hashtags and make sure that they are RELEVANT to your video
- FRONTLOADING is key! The first line of your video description is what appears under your video in search results so make sure the FIRST few lines get straight to the point if you want viewers to CLICK
- CREDIT where credit is due! Give credit when you need to such as resources, gear or music links
- TIMESTRAPS! If your video is LONG, include timestramps as this will help the viewer to go directly to the part of your video they are most interested in, this also applies to structured videos such as tutorials
- CTA! Include CALL TO ACTION such as “Subscribe now” or “Follow me on…
Great Video DESCRIPTION examples!
- Yes Theory’s video description is relevant to the video content & title
- KEYWORDS used in repetition in both title and video description “Finally” & “Will Smith”
- First line gets STRAIGHT to the point of the video & the viewer knows exactly what to expect from the video; “We finally met the man, the myth, the legend… Will Smith”
- Patricia Bright’s video description is relevant to her title.
- Her KEYWORDS used in repetition of both her title & video description are “Luxury” & “Broke”
- The first line of the description tells the viewer EXACTLY what to expect from the video, “Today we are talking about how you could afford a little luxury without going broke in the process”
Give it PERSONALITY!
And remember, your video description should also be FUN & demonstrate your brand’s PERSONALITY or unique voice to the viewers. Unlike more traditional forms of advertising, this is the PERFECT opportunity for you to install CREATIVITY & some humor into your content!
Most IMPORTANTLY, be CLEAR about the content of your video: Go to the POINT & let your viewer know EXACTLY what they can actually expect from your video.
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