What YouTube Can Do for You

Tech

YouTube is an interesting platform for our web design clients to accomplish a variety of goals, whether it be to provide a visual of their new product to sell, or simply an interesting new way to connect with their clients and break free of the “normal” way of showcasing information on a page. YouTube is diverse in that you can post a 30-second commercial spot or an hourlong in-studio podcast and get the same results. What can YouTube do for you? YouTube can:

  • drive traffic to your site from a targeted audience
  • help sell your product through interest in your videos
  • establish an identity for your company as modern and tech-savvy

We have many clients come in and ask what YouTube entails and what they can do to apply their business to YouTube. In most cases, you’re only limited by your creativity and the amount of time you have on your hands. Good video quality and production are important. Think about if you were only able to watch Breaking Bad in shaky cell phone quality instead of enjoying the crisp visuals on your HD television. The quality of your output is a reflection on your company. If you put out a high-quality video, then part of your battle is already won.

The other important element is having a goal in mind before the video is created, much less available to the public. Are you shooting to sell products? Engage existing customers on a new platform? These are the questions that need asking before a video is shot. Communication with the client is important to establish these goals and ensure traffic from the video on the web site accomplishes these goals.

Once the goals are established, it’s important to treat the video as if it were a page on the web site. When it’s uploaded, does it have an appropriate and descriptive title, tags, and detailed description? These are crucial elements to moving yourself ahead of potential competition and getting you noticed in the sea of videos uploaded every day to YouTube. Consider using Photoshop or another image program to craft an eye-catching thumbnail. It’s the first thing those potential customers on YouTube will see when they discover your video, and you only get one chance to leave a first impression. Make sure it’s the right one.

Finally, if your goal is indeed to drive traffic to your web site, make sure you have an annotation as well as a link in the description of your video linking to the appropriate site. YouTube is the second-largest search engine behind Google. Make sure you’re utilizing it in the best way possible, and you may be surprised at the results!