Video SEO: The Best Practices

Imagine having brilliant video content and spending weeks even months for research and production, but it doesn't even come close to getting the attraction you've expected. After all, videos will account for 82% of all internet traffic by 2022. It's extremely easy for your videos to get lost and buried in the sea of content out there.

In this digital era, the quality of content you put in is indeed crucial, but you can't just simply create the video, upload it to a platform, and cross your fingers-- hoping someone will find it, right?

You also need to pay attention to video search engine optimization (SEO), so it can maximize the exposure and reap all the limelight it deserves.

What Exactly Is Video SEO

SEO isn't all about articles and textual content. The principles of SEO also apply to videos, which is known as video SEO.

And when we talk about video SEO, it’s identical to YouTube videos optimization as the platform itself is the biggest video-sharing platform and second-largest search engine worldwide.

Google owns YouTube and often displays videos in relevant search results. It means that if you can optimize your videos for search, it's likely that they'll also rank well on YouTube.

Video can boost your website's SEO as long as they are optimized for the web and do not harm users' experience.

Just like with website SEO, you want your videos to rank high in the search engine results pages (SERPs) for certain keywords or queries. This will result in more people finding and watching your videos.

Ranking factors for videos are similar to those for websites, but there are a few specific factors that apply to videos only, including:

• Video file name
• Title
• Description
• Transcripts
• Tags
• Closed captions

To make your video SEO journey less daunting below is a comprehensive guide, complete with actionable tips and tools you can use to ensure that your videos are optimized for search engines.

Why Does Video SEO Matter?

The main goal of investing in video SEO is to make your videos much easier to find. But, there are other benefits for your businesses that can result from ranking your videos in SERPs, such as:

Increasing brand awareness and reach

When your video content is more visible and accessible, it means that you have a higher chance of people stumbling upon your videos-- even if they weren't looking for you specifically.

This can help increase brand awareness and reach, as people will start to associate your business with the keywords that you're ranking for. And solid brand awareness is such a powerful asset as it can eventually lead to brand loyalty.

Generating leads and sales

Ranking your videos for relevant keywords can also help you generate leads and sales for your business.

Remember that the larger audiences you reach, the more chances you have to capture their attention and generate their trust. This is where you have the potential to convert visitors to leads or even paying customers.

For example, if you sell products or services online, then ranking your marketing or product demonstration videos for certain keywords can help increase the chances of people finding and watching your videos-- and eventually making a purchase.

Boosting engagement and social shares

High-quality and informative videos that are properly optimized can also help boost engagement and social shares.

When your videos are easy to find and watch, people are more likely to engage with them by liking, sharing, or leaving comments. This increased engagement can further help improve your video SEO as social signals are one of the ranking factors for videos.

The better you create engagement with your audiences, the more likely they are to remember your brand and come back for more in the future.

Drive more traffic to your website

The higher your video ranks, the more traffic it will get.

But, unlike with website SEO where you want people to spend more time on your site, the goal with video SEO is to get viewers to watch your videos all the way through and then take action-- whether it's subscribing to your channel, visiting your website, or making a purchase.

You can include links to your website in the video description to make it easier for viewers to find your site and take action.

Bring you a higher ROI

Well-optimized video content can also help you achieve a higher ROI for your online marketing efforts.

This is because videos are more engaging and can help keep people on your site longer, increasing the chances that they'll take some desired action such as buying a product or subscribing to your channel.

How to Optimize Your Videos for SEO

Now that you understand what video SEO is and the ranking factors involved, it's time to learn how to optimize your videos for maximum exposure. Here are some tips:

#1. Choose the right keywords

Just like with website SEO, you want to target keywords that have a high search volume and are relevant to your business.

But, because of the unique factors involved in video SEO, you also need to consider including long-tail keywords in your targeting. These are specific queries that have low competition but high search volumes.

This is because the videos that rank for these keywords are likely to be those that offer more in-depth and informative content, which is what you want for your business.

So, when choosing keywords to target, make sure to include both short-tail and long-tail keywords to get the most out of your efforts.

Also, it's always best to make your videos keyword-rich. This means including your target keywords in the title, description, and tags of your video.

For example, when you create a list of blockchain games, try keywords like, “best blockchain games” or “popular blockchain-based games to play.”

Or, if you use the video to promote your business– let’s say, digital marketing online courses, then your target keywords could be something like "digital marketing courses.”

But, you could also include long-tail keywords like "digital marketing free course” or “digital marketing x months course.” They make your keyword more specific, so you can rank for videos that are more relevant to your business.

Tools you can use:

• Google Keyword Planner
• Google Trends
• YouTube Keyword Tool
• Keyword Tool Dominator

#2. Research your competition

As with anything SEO-related, you also need to research your competition when it comes to video optimization.

This means finding out what keywords they're targeting, what kind of content they're creating, and how they're promoting their videos. This will give you an idea of what's working for them and help you come up with ideas for your own videos.

It's all about how you can differentiate your content and make it even better than what's currently out there.

Ask yourself, "what they're lacking and how can I do it better?"

Tools you can use:

• SEMrush
• SEOBook Competitive Research Tool
• Ahrefs Content Explorer

#3. Create an engaging content structure

When it comes to video SEO, the content of your videos is just as important as optimization.

Your viewers need something that's both informative and engaging to watch. This means creating a structure for your videos that keeps people interested from beginning to end.

Some tips for doing this include:

• Start with a hook to capture viewers' attention
• Keep videos short and to the point
• Use visuals and animations to break up text
• Add call-to-actions throughout the video

The key here is to boost retention rate and session time. You want your viewers to watch your videos all the way through and keep them on the video-sharing platform, like YouTube to watch more of your videos.

When YouTube sees that your videos keep people on the platform, they will promote your videos. Naturally, a quality Youtube editing platform will help with this. You can also use the timestamp features to create chapters and make your video more structured.

#4. Pay attention to your video file names

We're so used to giving the file random names, like "video_1234" or "vid_0001." But, did you know that a video file's name affects your video rank?

When you're uploading your videos to YouTube, be sure to give them file names that are keyword-based.

This means using your target keywords in the filename and not including any spaces or special characters. So, for the digital marketing course example from before, a good file name would be "digital_marketing_course.mpg."

The reason why your video file name can impact your ranking is that YouTube (and other search engines) looks at the file name when determining what your video is about.

If you have a keyword-rich file name, it's more likely that your video will show up in relevant searches.

#5. Create transcripts for your videos

Adding transcripts to your videos is one of the best ways to optimize them for SEO.

This is because transcripts make your content more accessible and help search engines understand the main points of your video. This, in turn, helps improve your ranking.

Plus, including transcripts can also help you rank for long-tail keywords that you may not have considered before.

To create transcripts, you can either type out the dialogue of your video or use a speech-to-text program.

Once you have your transcript, all you need to do is add it to the description box of your video.

Tools you can use:

• Google Translate
• OTranscribe
• Rev

#6. Customize the thumbnail

Your video thumbnail is the first thing people see when they come across your video in the search results.

As such, you want to make sure that it's optimized for both users and search engines.

When it comes to user experience, you want to choose a thumbnail that's eye-catching and representative of the content of your video.

When it comes to SEO, you want to make sure that your thumbnail includes your target keywords and is as descriptive as possible. Here’s an example from Authority Hacker’s YouTube channel:

Tools you can use:

• Canva
• Adobe Creative Cloud
• Visme

#7. Make the video mobile-friendly

With more and more people watching videos on their mobile devices, it's important to make sure that your videos are optimized for those viewers.

This means using a responsive design for your website or making sure that the content of your video is easy to see and hear on all types of mobile devices.

Tools you can use:

• Google's Mobile-Friendly Test
• MobiReady
• Responsive Design Checker

#8. Optimize your videos for social media

Just like with website SEO, you also want to optimize your videos for social media.

This means formatting them correctly so they look good when shared on Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms.

It also means including social media-friendly titles, descriptions, and tags.

Here are some tips:

1. Make sure your videos are the right size for each platform. For example, Facebook prefers square videos while Twitter prefers landscape videos.

2. Include social media-specific keywords in your title and description. For example, if you're promoting a video on Facebook, include keywords like "Facebook video," "social media," and "watch now."

3. Include a strong call to action in your videos. This could be something like "subscribe to our channel" or "visit our website for more information."

Tools you can use:

• Vidyard Social Video Publishing
• Hootsuite Media Library
• Buffer Video Posts

#9. Understand when to publish your videos

The timing of when you publish your videos can also impact your ranking.

This is because YouTube (and other search engines) looks at the timestamp of when a video was published when determining its relevance.

So, if you want your video to be found in relevant searches, it's important to understand when is the best or right time people are searching for your keywords.

Tools:

• VidIQ (for YouTube)
• Google Trends (for general search trends)
• SEOMoz Video Analyzer (to see when your competitors are publishing their videos)
• SEMrush YouTube Competitor Analysis Tool (to see what keywords your competitor is targeting in their videos)

#10. Promote your videos

Finally, don't forget to promote your videos! Just because you've optimized your videos for SEO doesn't mean that they'll start ranking right away.

You still need to promote them through social media, your website, and other channels.

The world's biggest search engine, Google, will gather data from all of these sources to rank your videos in the first 24 hours of your videos being published.

The more people who see your videos, the better your chances of ranking them high in the search results.

Tools you can use:

• Promo by Slidely
• Wistia's Turnstile
• AdWords Video Campaigns
• YouTube Sponsored Videos Ads

Wrapping Up

In this crowded digital world, coming up with brilliant video content ideas is something and optimizing them for SEO is another. Although YouTube or other search engine algorithms keep on changing, following the above tips will surely give you an edge to rank your videos higher in SERPs.

By following the tips and tools in this guide, you can make sure that your videos are optimized for both users and search engines, which will help you get more views and generate more leads for your business.

But as with anything else, there's no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to SEO. So, experiment with different tactics and see what works best for you and your business.