How to Get More Views on YouTube

21
Oct 2014
Photo credit: @pixel_the_frenchie
Photo credit: @pixel_the_frenchie

When creating a YouTube channel, one of the biggest fears business owners have is that nobody will watch their videos. After all, YouTube can be one of the most personal and time-consuming social networks available. While it can be intimidating to get started, the power that quality video has on social media should be strong enough for smart social media users to set their reservations aside.

Here are some tips to get the most out of YouTube and get more eyes on your video content:

Optimize your videos.

If you’ve created a treasure trove of wonderful video content, then consider your keywords the map. By tagging a video with relevant words and phrases, you drastically increase the odds that someone will find it in a search. YouTube is owned by Google, and search results on Google come down to these carefully-selected terms.

Keep it brief.

Did you know that the attention span of the average adult is 8 seconds? With that said, keep your videos under 90 seconds whenever possible. People are better able to digest videos that do not demand a large amount of their time, so use smaller video segments to illustrate a bigger story.

For example, a tennis pro’s minute-long video about how to perfectly execute a volley is likely to outperform a 20-minute video going over every swing in the game. By keeping videos short, users are more likely to explore what else your channel has to offer.

Create playlists.

Have you ever caught yourself losing an entire weekend to your favorite show on Netflix? Queueing videos up on a playlist takes away the need for a conscious decision to watch more of your content. Rather than depending on someone to say “sure, I’ll watch one more” before clicking on a new video, a playlist changes that mental conversation to say, “okay, I’ll stop after this next one.”

For example, putting our tennis pro’s volley tutorial on an instructional playlist increases the odds that the user won’t stop at one video. Since the content is all lined up in a loose narrative and the viewer got some great information on volleying the first time around, chances are they’ll stick around to learn more about how to ace a serve or properly keep score.

A lesser-known advantage of creating playlists is that it allows your content to appear multiple times in search. Not only would your volley video come up as a standalone result, but the playlist will also show up separately in search results.

Interact with your community.

As with other social platforms, the content posted on your YouTube channel is only part of the conversation. Contribute to what other users are doing by commenting on videos and giving some the thumbs up.

Interacting with other videos not only gets your company’s name out in the YouTube community, but it shows that you are an active user that takes the time to watch other people’s content. You just may be surprised by how far this interaction will take your view counts.

As always, don’t forget to share your channel across your other social media platforms and communications! Customers and friends are usually happy to see what you have to say, and video is a great way to tell that story.

Have you seen success in racking up views on your YouTube channel? Share your link and tell us what’s worked for you in the comments.

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