YouTube SEO Hacks: 6 Steps to Rank Your Videos

If you want your YouTube channel to rank highly in 2022, you must optimize it for both Google and YouTube. Here are six easy methods to help you quickly rank your YouTube videos. Before we get started with the hacks, let’s have a discussion.

Related: 5 best YouTube converters that you can’t miss

How To Plan Your YouTube Video Creation Strategy

There are three methods for planning videos… It’s preferable to combine all three, but let’s be honest, if you’re not interested in becoming a full-fledged YouTuber, you may focus exclusively on the first (keywords).

1. Keywords

By focusing on specific keywords, you can improve your ranking on Google and YouTube, allowing your films to be discovered through search. One common error I see many developers do is ranking for a term that receives very little traffic… I recommend selecting keywords with an anticipated monthly search volume of at least 1000. I typically conduct between 10,000 and 50,000 searches per month.

You may conduct keyword research on YouTube using tools such as TubeBuddy. Ahrefs or SEMrush are more advanced tools for YouTube keyword research, but these programs are pretty expensive if you’re only utilizing them for YouTube keyword research.

Bonus Tip: It’s a good idea to focus your entire channel on a single set of topics/keywords and generate multiple pieces of content for each. I propose keeping each channel to no more than eight to ten subjects. Create a Playlist for each of your topics/keywords and populate it with the necessary videos.

2. Similar Content

You can appear in YouTube’s “Recommended” section alongside specified videos by creating videos on the same subject, around the same length, audibly mentioning specific keywords in the video (which the comparable video also did), and using the same/similar tags (more on this below). This can be accomplished by locating famous videos created by a comparable creator in your niche and creating a similar video in your own style.

In case you’re curious… There is nothing wrong with this; it is a typical occurrence. You will not anger the other author as long as you do not replicate their video verbatim.

3. Trends

You can find data on what’s trending around a specific topic using a free tool by Google called Google Trends. For instance, I searched YouTube for “how to” and discovered that “how to create a face mask” and “how to make hand sanitizer” are currently global breakthrough fads (as you can probably tell, I’m writing this post-covid). Therefore, if you create a video on this today, it is likely to receive a large number of views (as long as you continue to follow the rest of the advice in this post).

Combine “Trends” and “Similar Content” and you’re practically certain to rank for your search on YouTube and, most likely, Google as well. If the video is good and viewers watch it all the way through, your view time will increase and you will gain a large number of subscribers.

Related: How to do YouTube Channel SEO in 2021

Why would you want to put in effort to rank YouTube videos?

Consider the following scenario: you’re sipping your morning coffee and checking your phone for notifications that have accumulated overnight. You casually check your YouTube analytics and discover that your most recent video received 1,000 views last week!

Hell. Yeah.

It’s unsurprising that you noticed an increase in leads…

These outcomes are not coincidental. YouTube ranks second in terms of search traffic volume, only behind Google. Consider that Google’s search engine incorporates YouTube results, and you get the picture.

Now, let’s get into the technical details of quickly ranking your YouTube videos!

1. How To Title Your YouTube Videos

YouTube video titles can contain up to 100 characters. Google, on the other hand, terminates the title after 70 characters.

Include the most critical information, including the keyword, at the beginning of your title.

The most critical factor in ranking YouTube videos is their keywords. Consider the question you’re attempting to address with your video when choosing your keywords. These are the terms that users will enter into Google or YouTube searches.

Indicate a distinct and special benefit. Indicate in the title why the viewer should watch your video. How will this affect their lives?

While brainstorming potential titles, conduct a Google search and compare your ranking competitors. Consider a variety of various approaches to the questions to see which will have the highest likelihood of ranking YouTube videos. Consider the search results and proceed accordingly.

If one variety already has a few really strong videos, it is not the ideal choice. Consider a new approach.

Keep in mind that Google tends to display YouTube videos results for the following types of keywords:

• “How To”
• “Review”
• “Tutorial”
• “[Year in title]” (eg, How to Rank Videos Fast in 2020)

If it is appropriate (considering your content) to include these keywords in the title, then you are sure to snag some Google search volume.

2. YouTube Tags

Although keywords help you rank on Google, tags help YouTube videos rank within YouTube.

To determine which tag to use, visit TubeBuddy and enter your keyword suggestion. After that, choose all tags associated with your term (these are often more than one word). Take care not to overdo it! While you can use up to 500 characters for tags, I recommend sticking to less than 400. You do not want to cause the YouTube algorithm to become confused. Maintain a focus on tags that are relevant to the keyword/phrase for which you are attempting to rank. Do not attempt to rank for many keywords.

Additionally, you may utilize TubeBuddy’s Chrome Plugin to view tags associated with other people’s videos. This ties into the previously discussed idea of developing “Similar Content.”

3: YouTube Video Description

You have the option of adding a description to each movie.

If you truly want to rank YouTube videos quickly, ensure that your video description adheres to the following guidelines:

• At a minimum, your description should be 250 words long.
• Include your keywords in the opening 25 words of your essay (eg, in the first sentence)
• Repeat your term (“naturally”) approximately three to four times.

As a bonus tip, I recommend you always add the following details:

• A Synopsis of you or your company – Don’t count on people returning to your profile. Inform them about your cause directly in the video description.
• A call to action – What is your video’s purpose? Do you want them to purchase something, subscribe to your YouTube channel, or visit your website? Inform them of their obligations!
• Resources – If they enjoyed the video and want additional information, do not force them to return to Google. Provide them with resources that will assist them in resolving their follow-up questions. Provide another video or a link to your website for additional information if possible.
• Social media profile links – Congratulations, your videos have shaped them into people that resemble you. Now inform them where else they can obtain additional supplies of you. Chances are, if they’re on YouTube, they’re also on Facebook or Twitter.
• Hashtag – Yes, hashtags are currently popular on YouTube. If you include a hashtag in your description, it will appear above your title as a blue clickable link.If you’re aiming for a keyword strategy, it’s critical to fill out the description for each video with as much data as possible.

Related: How to Establish Long-Term SEO Strategy in 2021

4: YouTube Thumbnail

YouTube will automatically assign your video a thumbnail. It might be flattering or a good representation of your brand, but it might not be.

Reclaim control and build the ideal thumbnail for your film, replete with descriptive and enticing overlay text. This will not immediately help you rank YouTube videos more quickly, but it will enhance the likelihood that people will click on your video when they see it in the search results. If your video is ranked but no one clicks on it, it will not remain ranked for long.

Suggestions for making a thumbnail for YouTube:

• Large text describing the advantages of watching the video
• Your face or the face of another person expressing a great deal of emotion (happy, sad, chocked etc)
• Outline the thumbnail by drawing a circle around it or by outlining a picture within the thumbnail.

Generally, I recommend that you simply search for your keyword on YouTube and examine the thumbnails for the videos that are currently ranking, then create a nicer, brighter thumbnail! For the win, arouse curiosity.

5: YouTube Caption File

I used to advocate that if you want to rank YouTube videos, you should have a caption file. However, I believe this is no longer true.

If you’re unfamiliar with the term, a caption file is a file that associates the written language of what you say with a timestamp.

Rev charges $1 per minute to make a caption file from a video. For longer videos, you can utilize Otter.ai, a “AI-powered assistant,” to transcribe them.

Once the file is created, it is simply uploaded to YouTube.

I’ve experimented with rating videos without a caption file and found that they still rank. However, SEOs continue to recommend that you utilize a caption file.

This, I believe, is less critical now that text to speech technology has advanced to the point that Google understands what your video is about even without the transcript. This is merely my theory; however, if you wish to be certain, obtain the caption file.

6: YouTube Backlinks

When other websites or social media profiles connect to your video (backlinks), Google recognizes your video as relevant and valuable. Google will prioritize YouTube videos with a large number of backlinks.

To increase the number of backlinks, post it on social media platforms and leave a comment on related sites with the URL to assist others in answering their questions.

However, not all links are beneficial. If an untrustworthy tabloid website links to you, you are associated with an untrustworthy source. Too many of these low-quality links will undermine your efforts to rank YouTube videos.

You might use your video as a “answer” on Quora, Reddit, and other platforms. Additionally, you might create a blog post about the movie by embedding it on your blog and blogging about it (or even better, post the that transcript as a blog post).

Bonus Tip: As soon as your films are launched, you want to maximize traffic and engagement. If you have an email list or other substantial following, it’s a good idea to promote the video to them immediately after it’s published.

Conclusion

Online video communication is the most effective method of communication. With these techniques, you may create an archive of amazing YouTube videos and aid in their discovery on Google and YouTube. You’re only six hacks away from achieving explosive YouTube success of your own. Develop a reputation as the go-to person in your niche.

Make it happen now!