Since coming onto the scene nearly a decade ago, YouTube has revolutionized the world of online video. It draws over one billion unique visits each month, 80% of its traffic coming from outside of the United States. An estimated 100 hours of video are uploaded to the platform each minute, and according to Nielson, it reaches more U.S. adults ages 18-34 than any cable network. To put it short: YouTube is a very big deal.
As such, the company has become an unprecedented stage for advertisers to reach consumers. John Farrell, the head of YouTube Latin America, discussed the advertising dynamics of the medium in an interview with PulsoSocial earlier this week. And just yesterday, Google (the platform’s owner) announced that Susan Wojcicki would be running operations at YouTube. Given Wojcicki’s background in commerce and advertising, this is a sign that Google is focusing sharply on the platform’s advertising prowess.
For startups, YouTube can be an especially useful and budget-friendly vehicle for spreading the word and, in some cases, making a bit of cash. Of course, understanding the potential YouTube offers to reach audiences and actually harnessing that opportunity are two very different ball games. And given the sea of videos out there, the competition is tough.
How do you increase your YouTube video views? There are a number of tactics to employ:
- Give your video a snappy title. Keep it short and sweet, and get viewers intrigued.
- Take some time with the description. Don’t let your video speak for itself – write out a few sentences about it.
- Tag away. The more relevant the tags, the more often it will pop up in searches.
- Share, share, share. Don’t just upload to YouTube and let your video be. Share it on Facebook, Twitter and wherever you can, and even consider shooting an email to family and friends. Encourage comments, too.
- Be relevant. Is there a holiday coming up, or is some big story dominating the news? People want content that’s relevant to them right now.
- Be consistent, and get subscribers. YouTube isn’t often a one and done deal. Post often, even consider scheduling, and don’t be afraid to encourage people to subscribe.
Take a look at the infographic below for more tips on how to increase your YouTube video views and reap the benefits of the platform.
