9 Marketing Strategies that Grow Your YouTube Channel and Brand
It seems like everywhere you look, short form video content is taking over. But one video sharing platform still rules them all–YouTube. It’s the second most visited site on the web and has more than 2.1 billion users worldwide. But in order to harness the platform’s potential, you have to learn how to properly promote your YouTube channel.
We’ve rounded up some of our favorite tricks for optimizing and promoting your YouTube content that will help new users find your channel.
1 | Choose Search-Friendly Keywords
Any great YouTube channel starts with great SEO. First, start by researching what users are searching for. Having an understanding of this will help you create content they are looking for and allow you to use keywords they are searching for. This will help your videos show up in search results on both YouTube and Google.
Here are some areas to use these keywords on the platform:
- Video title
- Description box
- Timestamps (done in the description box, but also helps you show up higher in Google search results)
2 | Use Descriptive But Concise Video Titles
Other than a thumbnail, the video title is the first thing users see when they come across your content. If your title isn’t punchy or doesn’t convey what a user will get from watching your video, it could be the last time they look at your content.
Here are some tips to help you craft better YouTube video titles:
- Keep it Short and Sweet: The most popular videos on the platform tend to have the shortest titles, so keep it to 60 characters or less.
- Include Keywords: Keep your keywords in the first half of the title to avoid losing valuable information, and because users read the first half of titles and tend to skip the rest.
- Don’t Engage in Clickbait: The best headlines offer an obvious benefit or create an emotional reaction. While clickbait can be tempting, it can damage your channel’s reputation in the long term.
3 | Create Eye-Catching Thumbnails
Thumbnails matter. Some say they matter even more than the title, probably because people love visuals and YouTube itself is a visual platform. Don’t just select a suggested thumbnail from your video, but instead, create your own custom, eye-catching thumbnails. Add text and colors that encourage clicks and choose close-up images if you can. Don’t forget to be consistent with branding across all of your thumbnails.
4 | Optimize Your Video Descriptions
There’s a lot of tips out there for writing better video descriptions for YouTube. But in a nutshell, here’s what you should consider:
- Front-load your keywords–the earlier you can naturally write them in, the better!
- Stick to the character limit, placing the most important information in the first 100 to 150 words, which will appear above the “show more” button.
- Create a “contents page” with timestamps that help viewers find what they are looking for within your video (and will also place your video higher up in Google searches).
- Add links to relevant playlists.
- Include a few relevant hashtags–the first three will show under the title of your video, so put the top three keywords first!
5 | Be Active on the Platform
Real engagement doesn’t end with sharing content. The most successful YouTube channels constantly monitor and interact with their fans. Respond to comments, even the negative ones, and react to your favorite comments. You can even post response videos. Don’t forget to use analytics to identify your top fans and show them some extra love.
On a broader level, be active in your community on the platform. Here, it’s all about finding your niche and building a following within it. Subscribe to channels that target a similar audience as your brand and then watch, like, and share their content. Leave thoughtful comments or mention them in your own videos. Not only will this give you a better sense of what your competition is up to, but it can help you reach new viewers.
6 | Create Series and Playlists
Consistency pays off on this platform. Post videos on a regular schedule to keep viewers coming back to your channel over and over. You might also consider creating a series or breaking a longer video up into multiple parts to encourage viewers to come back and finish the series.
Playlists are also a great way to get users watching more of your content in one go. As soon as one video in your playlist ends, the next one begins, giving you more views and better ROI (return on investment). Playlists can also increase your discoverability. So make sure that you use keyword-rich titles and descriptions for your playlists as well.
7 | Cross-promote with Link-Based Platforms and Newsletters
Cross promoting your YouTube channel on your other platforms and in newsletters will help bring in audiences from other channels that haven’t yet found you on YouTube and help increase views among subscribers.
Cross promoting on link-based platforms like Facebook, Twitter (formerly X), and Pinterest are ideal, but you can also promote on TikTok or Instagram too. Newsletters are the perfect option to notify subscribers of new videos, and many email marketing platforms allow you to embed your video into your emails, allowing subscribers to see your custom thumbnail and click to watch right from their inbox!
But don’t forget to promote your channel as a whole, not just specific videos. Encourage users on other platforms to subscribe to your YouTube channel and to turn on notifications, making it more likely users will watch your videos not long after you upload them, and increasing your subscriber count.
8 | Share Evergreen Content
While keeping up with trends is awesome, it’s important to make a few evergreen videos too. These timeless videos will have subscribers returning to them time and time again, but they can also be a great way to capture new subscribers without more work!
Evergreen content can rank well for years, increasing channel traffic, boosting SEO, and solidifying your channel rankings.
9 | Go Live
Once you’ve reached the subscriber minimum threshold, you can go live on your YouTube channel. Lives are one of the most popular forms of video on the internet and can be highly engaging with viewers. Going live on your YouTube channel is a great way to promote your channel and get in front of new audiences. Webinars, Q&As, events, and tutorials are all great options for Lives on the platform.
Final Thoughts
YouTube is the perfect platform for showcasing what your brand has to offer in an engaging format–video. But to get the most out of it, focusing on aspects such as SEO, creating content users are searching for, engaging with viewers, and cross promoting can all help to build and grow your YouTube channel into a community around your brand!
Need help developing a better YouTube strategy? Tintero would love to help! We help brands tell their story in a way that works with their industry, digital trends, and marketing best practices. Book a discovery call today!