If you want to be a successful YouTube content creator, you must understand how the video streaming platform works. This is what aspiring content creators and vloggers learned in the recently concluded NextUp Philippines Webinar Series, a collaboration between Smart Communications Inc. and YouTube.
The three-part event–hosted by content creator and talent manager Jako De Leon–gathered speakers composed of YouTube experts, NextUp program alumni, and industry luminaries to impart lessons and tips on community engagement, brand collaboration, content optimization and production to budding Filipino content creators.
Among the speakers who helped content creators maximize YouTube was Andrea Romualdez, Strategic Partner Manager from YouTube’s Creator and Artist Development team, who shared these five helpful tips:
Think like a new viewer
YouTube’s homepage—a top source of traffic to videos—ranks videos by performance and personalization. This means good content can easily be presented to users coming to the homepage, and your video can be among those.
“Make the thumbnail clear and easy to read on desktop and mobile, and have a consistent title and thumbnail style,” says Andrea. Showing the video’s topic sets a clear expectation of what viewers will be in for, further enticing them to click on your video no matter where they see it.
Upload consistently
Arguably, the best way to maintain traffic to your videos is to train your audience to expect a routine of your content uploads, so that they can build anticipation on a specific day of the week or time of the day.
“Build consistency and a routine for your viewers so that they know when to come back to your channel,” says Andrea. This is an easy way to sustain their interest over time. “It’s good to upload frequently, but consistency is better than frequency.”
Create a series
Other than the Homepage, another important source of traffic on YouTube are suggested videos which appear on the sidebar of a video that’s currently playing, enticing the viewer to keep watching.
One way to take advantage of this feature is to create a series of shorter videos, so that the viewer will always be watching your videos. This is because the suggested videos feature tends to offer videos from the same creator. As long as you have a lot of content on your channel, both the suggested videos and the ‘up next’ feature will likely play more of your content as the viewer keeps watching.
End with a call-to-action to watch more
One simple way you can continue to direct traffic to your content is to end your videos with a call to action to watch more from your channel.
A call-to-action is a quick and easy reminder for the viewer that there is more content on your channel, especially if it’s of the same or similar topic as the video they’re currently watching. It’s a bit of a subconscious sign for them to actually keep going because there’s more to discover.
Use playlists and end screens
This extra step can go a long way, especially if you have a lot of content—take the time to fully use YouTube’s extra features to direct your viewers to your videos and keep them watching.
Create playlists of similar videos to ensure that your viewers watch as much of your content as possible, especially if there’s something to learn thoroughly.
For your individual videos, utilize the end screen feature to present more videos that you think the viewer should watch. It can also be other videos of a similar topic, or a new video you’re trying to promote—it’s all up to you, and giving them options will go a long way to retaining their interest.
The NextUp Philippines Webinar Series is a collaboration between Smart and YouTube to provide growth opportunities for Filipinos to discover and cultivate their passions.
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