YouTube is a great medium for those who want to build their business or online presence. This is because it can help audiences put a face to a name and creates a more authentic and genuine connection between businesses and their customers.
However, it is no secret that YouTube is a deeply competitive world and this is due to its ranking system.
The ranking system is related to all kinds of factors including how many views a video gets, and how often viewers comment or engage with the video, among other things.
In this guide, we’ll be taking you through how you can improve your YouTube rankings.
Whether you are just starting your YouTube channel or have been posting videos for a while with no results, you’ll benefit from the various tips and tricks that you can follow in this guide.
Why are YouTube Rankings Important?
YouTube’s rankings may not seem significant, but they can play a huge role in how much exposure you will receive.
When you go on YouTube, you’ll probably find that the videos on your homepage recommendations are filled with the most popular channels that boast millions of views and hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of subscribers.
These videos on your homepage will be among the highest-ranking videos on YouTube and according to what videos you like to watch, are videos that have been optimized to reach their ideal audience – you!
Increasing your YouTube ranking is basically the same as SEO on any other platform as it is all about being smart with your content and keyword choice.
Therefore, it’s not as easy as simply posting a video on YouTube and hoping for the best. You need to make sure that you are putting in the time and research to optimize your material before it is even uploaded.
This is because the more that you optimize every aspect of your content, the more likely it is going to reach a wider audience and therefore generate more attention and awareness for your brand, regardless of what kind of video you are posting.
You’ll find that once you maximize and optimize your video’s potential, you’ll be receiving far more views than you were before.
Ways to Improve your YouTube Rankings
There are many ways that you can improve your YouTube rankings regardless of what kind of videos you make or what industry you are catering to.
You can choose to focus on one method, but it’s best to utilize a combination to boost your chances as it will ensure that you are expanding your audience.
Here are the ways that you can improve your YouTube rankings:
1. Picking your Keywords
Firstly, you need to ensure that you are picking your keywords wisely. This ensures that you are concentrating on the keywords that are going to attract a wider audience and are the most relevant to your video.
Here are some keyword research tools that you can use:
Google Keyword Planner
Google search
Moz or Semrush
WordStream Keyword Tool
These tools are the best place to start as they will help you identify the keywords you need to keep in mind in every aspect of video production and creation.
Keyword research is arguably the most important part of the SEO process as it shows that you are looking into what your audience is looking for and responding to that demand.
You can choose one of the aforementioned keyword tools or all of them as the more research you are willing to put in, the more accurate your keywords will be when it comes to responding to what viewers are looking for.
2. Using Keywords in your Video Title
Once you have identified your keywords, you need to make sure that you are using as many, or all, of your keywords in the video title when it is posted.
This is because there is a high chance that your audience will be typing in those keywords in the search bar.
If you include as many of the keywords in the video title as possible, you’ll find that there is a higher chance that audiences will respond and engage more with your video if you use them.
Your video title is most likely the first thing that your potential viewers will see, so you want to make sure that it contains the information that they are looking for. This doesn’t mean just filling it with one keyword after another.
Viewers are smart and will look straight past this. You need to make sure that your video title reads correctly, but contains the keywords that they are looking for.
3. Including the Keyword in your Video File
Following on from including the keyword in your video title, it’s also imperative that you include the keyword in your video file as this will also boost your YouTube rankings.
Although the video file may not seem significant, this can be a make-or-break moment for your video as the YouTube algorithm determines the rankings.
In a way, the behind-the-scenes aspects of content creation are far more important to the SEO process as you want to make sure that the platform you are uploading to (in this case YouTube) is going to acknowledge the keywords.
4. Optimizing your YouTube Video Description
Another important part of boosting your YouTube SEO is by optimizing your video’s description. This means ensuring that many keywords are in the description.
You can make changes that are reevaluated by YouTube each time, but getting it right the first time will make the process a lot easier for you.
Having a description that is no longer than 200 words tends to have a better ranking than long descriptions. Try to fill it with as many keywords, while still ensuring that it is readable and helps your user.
5. Using Video Hashtags to Boost YouTube Search Results
YouTube now has video hashtags available, meaning that you can add as many or as few keyword hashtags as you want. Bear in mind that the more video hashtags you add, the higher your ranking is likely to be.
However, you want to make sure that the hashtags are filled with relevant keywords that are going to bring in your audience.
6. Selecting a Video Category
When you upload your video, you will need to make sure that you submit it within the correct category. This means that it is more likely to reach people who are interested in what you have to say.
For example, if your video is part of a niche, and you don’t categorize it correctly, you may end up having an audience who isn’t engaged with the niche and therefore potentially generating negative responses to your video.
7. Customizing your Thumbnail Image
Make sure that your thumbnail image has been customized and is going to draw in your audience while standing out from the crowd. Thumbnails that just show a screenshot from the video are not likely to bring a large audience in.
However, if you create a custom thumbnail, you will be able to show what audiences can expect from your video.
8. Adding Subtitles and Closed Captions
Lastly, a great way to boost your YouTube video is by making it accessible for all by adding subtitles and closed captions. What this means is that those who are not able to hear the audio are able to watch your video with no issues.
Not only do subtitles help to make your video accessible, but the transcript will also appear on search engines, meaning that it can boost your SEO. This is because it is treated just like any other written content such as blogs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Longer YouTube Videos Rank Higher?
Longer videos tend to rank higher on YouTube with the average length of YouTube videos found on the first page lasting approximately 14 minutes and 50 seconds.
Why is my YouTube Video not Ranking?
If you are struggling with your YouTube video rankings, there can be a wide range of factors. The main factor is that you may not have plenty of people watching.
In order to boost your YouTube video ranking, you need to make sure that people are watching and growing your Audience Retention.
Do Comments Help YouTube Videos?
Comments are great for YouTube videos as they can help boost you within the YouTube algorithm as well as show that your audience is engaging with you and responding with what they like and what can be improved for future videos.
Conclusion
In conclusion, creating a successful YouTube channel takes time and effort, but there are plenty of tips and tricks that you can follow and utilize to help improve your YouTube ranking and increase your chances of developing and growing your audience in a faster period of time.
Regardless of what kind of videos you like to make or what industry the videos fall under, being tactical about the videos you post will ensure that you are generating videos that are going to engage with a wider audience.
Hi, my name is Justin Shaw, I started my career with a Masters in Computer Science but found writing to be my forte'.
I'm now the Principal Tech writer for GshiftLabs.com as well as a few other well known publications. I help make the complex world of Tech-Jargon easy to understand.
