How To Write The Most Effective Video Descriptions That People Actually Read
VIDEO CONTENT STRATEGIES
5 min read
Meaning
Video description is a written summary or explanation of the content presented in a video. It is located below the video and provides additional context, details, and relevant links to enhance the viewer's understanding and engagement.
Importance
Video description is essential as it helps search engines and viewers understand what the video is about. A well-crafted description with relevant keywords can improve the video's discoverability, attract more viewers, and encourage them to watch the video till the end, ultimately boosting the channel's visibility and success on YouTube.
Best Strategies & Tips (Step-By-Step)
(1) Length: You are allowed to write up to 5000 characters, which is about 800 words, for the description. You should use 300–350 words for your descriptions, as that is the optimal length for them.
(2) Target Keywords: Use specific and searchable keywords as the keywords in your descriptions will help YouTube’s algorithm understand, categorize, and surface your content.
(A) Proper Keyword Research: Optimize your descriptions through proper keyword research. This ensures your videos become easily discoverable by aligning with popular search terms, enhancing visibility, attracting relevant viewers, and boosting engagement and growth potential.
• Evaluate Search Volume & Overall Score: Check the search volume and overall score of each keyword and related keywords to determine their competitiveness and audience reach.
> Impact Of High Search Volume: A keyword with a high search volume will have high competition but a larger audience.
> Impact Of High Overall Score: A keyword with a high overall score will have less competition but a limited audience.
• Use Mixed Keywords: Utilize both high-search volume and high overall score keywords to cover a broader audience.
• Utilize Tools: Use keyword research tools to identify relevant and trending keywords for your descriptions. These tools can optimize your video's discoverability, attract a wider audience, and improve its overall ranking in search results. Some of the best tools are as follows:
> RyRob
(B) Use Related Keywords: Aim to include 2-3 related keywords in your description to enhance searchability and relevance.
(C) Keyword Repetition: Repeating each keyword 2-3 times in your description to make them more noticeable to YouTube’s algorithm.
(D) Avoid Keyword Stuffing: Avoid repeating the keywords too often, or you risk being penalized for keyword stuffing.
(E) Proper Keyword Tracking: Monitor keywords’ performance and make necessary adjustments for optimization.
(3) Summary Length & Keyword Placement: You should use 50-150 words in the description to summarize and describe your video, mentioning a broad match variation of your keyword 2-3 times, depending on length.
(4) Human-Friendly Writing:
(A) Balance Algorithm & Human Appeal: Recognize that descriptions should cater not only to YouTube’s algorithm but also to human viewers by avoiding the list of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) keywords.
(B) Relatable Language: Use language that viewers can understand and connect with to create engaging and user-friendly descriptions.
(5) Format:
(A) Description Above The Fold: It is the initial part of the description that is visible to your viewers without clicking the “Show more” button. It should include essential information about your video. Describe your video in 1-2 sentences and include your target keywords. Only 138 characters will be visible in the YouTube search. You should keep your description around 125 characters to capture your audience’s attention for better CTR (Click-Through Rate).
(B) Description Below The Fold: It gives additional details, which your viewers can see by clicking the “Show more” button. It provides further context, relevant keywords, and additional information for your viewers to aid them in understanding what your video is about. Describe your video in 2-3 paragraphs and include your target keywords in it.
(C) Timestamps: Provide time markers for your viewers to facilitate easy navigation and quick access to specific sections of your video for easier navigation.
(D) Links To Sources (Document): Include credible references or sources used in your video’s content.
(E) Social Media Links: Share links to your social media profiles for your viewers to connect and engage.
(F) Credits: Acknowledge individuals or resources contributing to your video.
(G) Promotional Links (Sponsors Or Collabs): Provide links to promote a sponsor or collaboration mentioned in your video.
(H) Recommended Videos Or Playlists: Recommend related videos or playlists from your channel to keep your viewers engaged by providing them links.
(I) Links To Products Or Services (Website Or App): Direct your viewers to explore your products or services through website or app links.
(J) Affiliate Links: Generate income through earning commissions by using affiliate links to products with tracking codes.
(K) About The Channel: Summarize your channel’s content focus by giving a brief description.
(L) Contact Information (Email ID): Provide an email address where your viewers can contact you for inquiries.
(M) Disclaimer (If Needed): Include it to clarify your video’s purpose or any potential implications.
(N) Copyright Disclaimer (If Needed): Include it to clarIfy about copyrighted material usage or fair use claims. There are two types of copyright disclaimers, which are:
• Original Work Copyright Disclaimer: This disclaimer can be used on blogs, websites, images, videos, music, and even social media to establish your ownership over original content. Having this statement helps protect your work against theft.
• Copyright Disclaimer Under Section-107 Of The Copyright Act: This disclaimer appears on content, commonly YouTube videos, that uses someone else’s copyrighted content. Including this statement of “fair use” helps protect you against copyright infringement claims.
(O) Hashtags: Utilize relevant hashtags for increased discoverability and categorization on YouTube.
• Optimal Number Of Hashtags: While you can publish up to 60 hashtags on YouTube, you should use 5-8 hashtags per video. Every hashtag needs to be closely related to the content of your video. These hashtags should mix broad and focused keywords.
• Identify Relevant Hashtags: Utilize YouTube's autocomplete and tools to optimize your hashtag strategy by finding popular and relevant hashtags that can boost discoverability and reach for your videos. Some of the best tools are as follows:
• Order Of Importance: Out of all the hashtags you add to the video’s description, up to 3 hashtags that are considered most engaging will appear by your title and in your description. List your hashtags in order of importance, from the most important to the least important. Your first hashtag should always be the main target keyword.
• Avoid Excessive Usage: You shouldn’t add too many hashtags in a single video because the more hashtags you add, the less relevant they become for the viewers who are searching. If a video or playlist has more than 60 hashtags, YouTube will ignore each hashtag on that content. It may result in the removal of your video from your uploads or from searches.
• Utilize Competitors’ Hashtags: Use a few relevant hashtags from your competitors’ videos to boost your own discoverability.
(P) Transcript: Enhance accessibility and SEO by providing a written transcript of your video's dialogue or narration.
(6) Utilize AI tools: Use AI-powered tools to write captivating video descriptions that not only engage your viewers but also boost SEO. AI can analyze trending keywords and recommend optimized descriptions, ultimately enhancing your videos' discoverability and click-through rates. Some of the best tools are as follows:
(A) Gemini
(B) ChatGPT
(C) Perplexity