How to use and manage your YouTube account

YouTube has become an incredibly powerful tool for businesses of all sizes, using video to market services, products, how-to guides and so much more.

YouTube is an easy to use Social Media platform and the mass market audience means that it is a great channel for businesses, but like all social media platforms, it does need to be used well in order to get the very best out of it.

Our top YouTube tips!

• Create a branded YouTube channel – this step is often overlooked by businesses – Your YouTube channel is your profile to upload and share your videos to everyone. A customised YouTube channel gives you the opportunity to showcase your company on YouTube though a branded channel that incorporates your company logo, colours, website address and information. You can also link to your other social media channels and give your viewers the chance to subscribe to your channel with the click of a button.

• Make sure that your content is relevant. Videos that show your viewers how to fix an issue or provide a solution to a problem, how-to videos or providing a series of videos that are released monthly will help to build a loyal fan base and trust.

• Make a good quality video – decent video cameras are no longer expensive so you can make a professional video without breaking the bank. Pay attention to things like lighting, backdrop, sound quality and shakiness of the camera. It would be better to use a tripod or place the camera on a stable surface. If you are interviewing someone or reading something, you should script this prior to making your video. In the same way you would write a story, your script should include an intro, beginning, middle and end – structure your script well.

• If you are demonstrating a product or showing your viewers how to use a piece of equipment, make sure that you show your users the product from all angles and if it’s an electrical item make sure you switch it on to show your viewers how it works.

• Don’t make your video too loooooooooong. The optimum / recommended length would be 2-5 minutes long.

• Optimise your video – According to Wikipedia, “In April 2011, James Zern, a YouTube software engineer, revealed that 30 percent of videos accounted for 99 percent of views on the site” YouTube claims that more than 24 hours of video are uploaded every minute, so the number of specific videos on the site is constantly changing, therefore it is important you do everything you can to make your video easily found.

• Your videos should be easy to find both within and outside of YouTube. Videos will often appear on the first page of Search Engines and are a proven method of leap-frogging your competition to the top of search engine results pages. It is important to consider that Google does own YouTube can’t be overlooked.
• There are three main areas to focus on when uploading your videos to YouTube – the title needs to contain relevant keywords to your video – for example if your video is showing a how-to on knit, a good example of a video title would be “How to knit – the step-by-step beginners guide to knitting”. The description needs to be as descriptive as possible – so the more text the better and the easier it will be for people to find your video(s). It is always a good idea to start with the website address too. Be sure to include as many tags as possible that relate to the topic/nature of your video in the tags field.

• Participate with others on YouTube – take the time to look around and make ‘friends’. Visit your competition and see what they are doing well and not so well. By engaging with others on YouTube will prompt them to engage with you in return which helps spread your information to others.

• Share your videos on other social media platforms – include videos on Facebook posts – and using a video on your Facebook landing page is an effective way to welcome visitors to your profile, share your newest / latest video link on Twitter messages, add your videos to Google+ and try to include hashtags where possible to assist in the promotion of your videos.

• Call to action – try to include your website address and vital contact details where possible on your videos – this will encourage viewers to visit your website or call you. Another excellent suggestion would be to include special discounts, coupons or other special offers within the video.