Everybody loves YouTube.  Just about anything that you want to know you can find it on YouTube.  Anyone with an inexpensive camera can upload a video that is there for the whole world to see.  But have you ever wondered what it takes to get that video to go viral and make the owner instantly a household name?

 

One of the key things is to utilize all of the resources available to you.  Just having a video on YouTube does not guarantee that they will find your video.  It may be the greatest video ever made but without any way to direct people to it it can easily get lost amidst the millions of videos out there.

 

YouTube Optimization

 

Here is a video from Greg Jarboe about optimizing your YouTube videos. The basics of optimization goals are discovery, watching and sharing of your YouTube videos.

 

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A few little tidbits can help YouTube videos to find you and have an enjoyable experience do it.  First, we need to figure out what the successful YouTube videos are using.

 

If you are using YouTube to encourage people to go to a different site then you should provide that link.  Don’t just give them a site name and expect them to remember and go there.  Make it easy for them to get there.  Which do you think would be easier, a simple click that brings them right where you want them to go or asking them to type in a URL themselves.

 

This also works if you have another video on YouTube that you want them to see.  YouTube is a great place to show a series of videos.  If you can’t get enough info into one video have a continuation.  This way, you won’t leave them hanging in the middle of your message not knowing what to do next.  You don’t want them wondering where to go to get to the next part.  They may give up and not come back..

 

But aside from the technical side of YouTube you have to make sure that you have something to say that other people will want to hear.  If you could come up with an idea that no one else has thought of people will watch.  It may be fun to air your grandma Jane’s dating exploits but will people outside of your own family really appreciate the story.  If you are trying to make a name for yourself then you really have to think more about the viewer than yourself.

 

I know that sounds a little backwards but to draw attention to yourself you have to think about the other guy.  Whether it is in a YouTube video or anything else, this is just common sense.

 

Whether you are promoting yourself on YouTube or promoting a business these rules will apply.  You can’t sell something that other people don’t want.  Learning who your customers are and giving them what they want rather than what you want to give them will help you along the way.

 

Annotations on YouTube are like road signs.  They take you wherever you need to go.  Make sure that your YouTube videos are sufficiently annotated so that you don’t lose them.

 

Take these few little steps and they can be your first steps to success on YouTube.