YouTube SEO: How do you optimize your channel for search engines?

In 2018, 45% of e-marketers preferred to use YouTube as a marketing tool more than any other platform. But with so much video content amounting to 6 billion hours a month on YouTube, how do you make it easy for customers to find your YouTube channel ? Well, you will simply need to configure the YouTube search engine to improve the visibility of your channel content, through several criteria such as:

Use appropriate keywords

There are many ways that you can identify the appropriate keywords to target in your YouTube video content. Whether by using some tools dedicated to that , or by using the YouTube search box that shows you the most searched suggestions once you search for a word, or even by visiting competitors' YouTube channels, and looking at their most watched videos.

But if you are new to YouTube, and you want to create a unique channel to enhance the marketing mix for your brand, you may need to use YouTube marketing services in addition to SEO services to choose the appropriate keywords and improve your visual content in line with search engines. 

Include keywords in the video file

You have to include your target keywords in the video file, similar to what you do when you include keywords in your written content. Tools for this will recognize keywords related to the topic of the video.

Because search engines can't figure out what topics your  videos are broadcasting through your YouTube channel , but algorithms can read the file name, it will work if you add keywords in the video file name as well. For example, if your target keyword is modern haircuts, you can name the video file as (modern haircuts).

Promote videos according to search engines

1. Address

The title of the video is the first thing that visitors notice, and it contributes greatly to increasing the likelihood that they will click to open the video. And because including keywords in the video title may contribute to improving the video’s ranking in the search results, even slightly. Therefore, it is always recommended to put the title of the YouTube channel videos in no more than 60 characters, including keywords, so that the title is not cropped when it appears in the search results.

2. Description of the video

Google allows YouTube channel videos to include a description limit of approximately 1,000 characters. However, it is preferable to shorten the description of the video whenever possible, because YouTube is a platform for displaying visual rather than written content. In addition, remember that YouTube only shows the first lines of the description without you having to click on the (show more) button.

So, it is always advised to start describing your YouTube channel videos with the most important content along with the call to action . As for the keywords included in the description, they do not rank better for the video in the search results. But they do contribute to your video's visibility in side suggestions.

3. Signals

Including tags in your YouTube channel videos will give your audience clear information about the content of the video. In addition, the signals make the YouTube algorithm recognize the content and link it to similar content, which increases the reach of your YouTube channel content.

Use advanced settings

Using the advanced settings provided by YouTube helps you to boost the quality of your YouTube channel content and improve its visibility in search engines. YouTube provides some steps to help you categorize your video correctly, so that it will be linked to other similar videos and added to relevant playlists. So, never neglect the point of choosing the right categorization for your video content.

Also, including subtitles or subtitles for video content may help improve the ranking of videos in search engines when keywords are included in them. So it is preferable to incorporate the written text or subtitles for the content of your videos. If you cannot do this step yourself, you can use the writing and translation services  provided by professional freelancers on Fiverr.

Target Google search results as well

When you search in the Google search engine, some results appear from YouTube videos. It is worth noting here that Google singles out some keywords by showing its video results, such as: searches that start with how, searches for reviews, and other searches related to educational content. 

Therefore, try to select from the keywords you have chosen what is appropriate for Google algorithms, to increase the likelihood of them appearing at the forefront of the search results. And remember, it's not just keywords that enhance the effectiveness of your YouTube channel in promoting your brand, there are plenty of other marketing tools that you can check out in your comprehensive guide to YouTube marketing .

Use the video embed feature

Video embedding is a popular backlink method that is used to improve the search engine requirements of YouTube channel content. You can start using this feature to effectively optimize your YouTube channel for search engines. Click the share icon below the video, then click Embed. Then copy the HTML code from the pop-up box and paste it in the appropriate place within the website or blog.

Conclusion

In the end, content is everything. These methods will not work for you if you do not have good content. Be sure to offer unique content that enhances your presence on the YouTube platform in particular, and in the digital world in general.