To help get your videos to the right eyeballs, you are going to want to optimize your YouTube channel, as well as each individual video as you upload.
Optimizing Your YouTube Channel
If you have already added a logo and background art to your channel, you can skip ahead to the “Adding and Optimizing Videos to YouTube” section below.
Your YouTube channel is an extension of your brand, and consistency is important. Be sure that your profile picture is something recognizable, preferably your logo. YouTube will automatically use the profile image from your Google account on your associated YouTube channel.
Next, we will want to add a background photo. Click on your profile icon in the upper-right corner and select My Channel. In the My Channel screen, select Customize Channel.
Like a Facebook cover photo, you can add a background image to your YouTube channel. Good candidates for images are ones that promote brand recognition and loyalty. Team and practitioner photos or pictures of the practice itself are especially good choices to humanize your business.
If you prefer not to use photography, you can also use graphics or a solid background color.
To add your image, click on the Add channel art button. Here you can drag and drop your image file. You can also access the photos that are already on your Google account by clicking on the Your photos tab. YouTube requires that your selected photo is at least 2,048 by 1,152 pixels in size.
Note: Be sure that you own the rights to the image you choose! YouTube takes copyrights very seriously and can penalize your account for copyright violations.
Now that your channel is branded for your business, you can start uploading and optimizing your videos!
Adding and Optimizing Videos to YouTube
Log in to your YouTube channel and navigate to the Home section. Click on the upload a video link.
You can either drag and drop your video file or click on the arrow to browse the files on your computer. This upload screen is where we will begin optimizing your video for search.
Basic Info Options
- Change the title of your video. The title will indicate what your video is about, and it is weighted heavily by YouTube. Being as precise as possible, give your video a title that concisely explains the nature of the content in your video. Keeping the title under 60 characters will prevent it from getting cut off in results pages.
- Add a description. Here you can be a little more descriptive about your video. YouTube only displays the first couple of sentences automatically, with a Show more button to reveal the rest of your description. This means that you will want to get to the most important point first.The description helps your video to show up in the suggested-videos sidebar, so you will want to optimize it for some related keywords. In a few sentences, explain what information viewers can expect to get from watching your video.
- Choose tags. Tags inform the viewer and YouTube what your video is about. They are also an indicator of context to YouTube and help determine when your videos could show up on a related-videos sidebar. Only choose relevant tags — YouTube can penalize you for using tags that have nothing to do with your video. List your most important keywords first, but also include more long-tail searches that answer questions like “How do I…”
- Pick a thumbnail. YouTube will preselect three options from your video that can be used for the video thumbnail. If you would like to create a custom thumbnail, you will need to verify your YouTube account. Verifying your account unlocks more features on YouTube and is intended to prevent spam by robots.
Translations Tab
The Translations tab allows users to view your title and descriptions in their preferred language. This additional accessibility helps to build a wider audience for your videos.
Using the Translate into drop-down menu, select or add the new language in which you want to add your translations. Enter your translated title and description and click Save changes.
Advanced Settings Tab
- Comments. By default, all videos uploaded to YouTube allow comments. Allowing comments gives you an opportunity to read and respond to your viewers. This engagement can help build trust and authority within your community.If you decide to allow comments, you will have the option to review comments before they post to your video. Under the Allow comments option, there is a drop-down menu with three options: All, All except potentially inappropriate comments, and Approved. Choosing Approved allows you to review comments before they post to your video, so that you can filter out any spam or abusive content.Other YouTube users can give a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down to a video, and those ratings are displayed under your video. To eliminate this option, unmark the Users can view ratings for this video checkbox.
- License and rights ownership. See section 6 in YouTube’s standard terms of service for more information regarding the Standard YouTube License language.
- Syndication. Allowing playback on your video across all platforms means that there are fewer restrictions to viewers who want to watch your video. Choosing the Monetized platforms option means that your video will only be available on platforms where there is a possibility of generating ad revenue. Choosing the Everywhere option will not stop your video from being played on monetized platforms as well.For small business, the most important function of these videos is building trust and authority in your community. Allowing playback across all platforms is more user friendly and within the spirit of brand awareness within your local market.
- Caption certification. For the majority of videos, the first option in the drop-down list, “This content has never aired on television in the U.S.,” will be appropriate. Otherwise, you may need to provide a caption certification if required by FCC regulations.
- Distribution options. To embed this video on your website, you will want to leave the Allow embedding option marked. It is also recommended that you leave Publish to Subscriptions feed and notify subscribers checked. This means that anyone who has subscribed to your channel and requested notification when new content is posted will receive a notification.
- Age restrictions. Imposing an age restriction prevents underage users from viewing your video. It also restricts the monetization of your video on some advertising formats.
- Category. Categories are another way to signal video context to YouTube, and they help YouTube match your content with users’ search queries. There are a limited number of categories to choose from; you will need to identify which best reflects the specific video you are uploading.
- Language. The video language options let you choose the original language the video uses. You can also allow viewers within the YouTube community to contribute translations, create subtitles, and add closed captioning.
- Recording date and video statistics. This metadata can give insight into statistics regarding your video. You will be able to view this data in your account, and it is entirely up to you if you would like to display it publicly on the watch page.
- Content declaration. If the video contains paid promotion — such as paid product placement, paid sponsorships, or paid endorsements — you will need to declare it by checking this box before uploading.
You are now ready to begin building your library of video resources! Soon your viewers will have a much deeper understanding of hearing wellness and how they can thrive in your care. Create a series of videos that reflects your brand and expertise. Engage with your viewers. Give them useful and inspiring information. And, as always, your Audigy Marketing Team is available if you have any questions!