YouTube SEO: How to Rank YouTube Videos in 2021

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Steps to Rank Youtube Videos in 2021

Research Youtube Keywords

SEO for Youtube begins with researching the right keywords, just like it happens with the blog posts and other content on Google. The keyword research for Youtube can be slightly different from other search engines like Google and Bing. For instance, It starts with questions like "how to."

YouTube's Search Suggest feature gives a bunch of keywords when you type a word or a phrase. Pick a popular video from your niche and see how it has optimized its title, description, and video tags.

If your channel has fewer subscribers, target the low-competition keywords. You could also use keyword research tools like Semrush, Ahrefs, Keywordtool.io, and Keywords Everywhere to get the relevant keywords.

To generate 2-5x the general views, optimize your YouTube videos around keywords that have video results in Google.

Optimize Youtube Video

Optimizing your Youtube video is the second step for ranking after you have collected the list of valuable keywords. The simple way to initiate this process is to mention your keyword in the video. This way, your video gets optimized easily!

Having relevant keywords in the video's title is also essential. Your 100 characters title limit should be practical and precise for the audience to understand.

Moreover, the optimization has to be implemented in the description section. It needs to have a valuable and unique description with all the primary and secondary keywords used in the first 2-3 lines to make the algorithm function. This should also include the website URL to direct viewers to the destined page.

The tag section can include a decent variety of targeted keywords that helps to improve the rankings. It is one of the best YouTube SEO practices that boost the chances of being shown in the suggested video section.

Publish High-retention Video

In the long run, a video having high-quality content will only rank on Youtube. A crucial factor to rank higher is audience retention. This is gained by engaging a viewer throughout the video.

You can create high-retention videos by publishing content that is valuable and interesting. If your videos don't produce useful content, there is no use in optimizing the SEO. It is already published that people are watching 70% less misinformative or borderline content on Youtube.

Content creators are often found saying in their videos to subscribe, like, click and comment. The Youtube metrics favor the videos that hit more likes and get maximum.

Similarly, subscribing to a Youtube channel is also a big move. It is one of Youtube's vital algorithms, which means the user will watch the content regularly.

An eye-captivating thumbnail and title also attracts viewers and prompts them to click. Make sure that it is not clickbait and represents the exact story you wish to tell the viewers. Youtube pays close attention to the click-through rate and decides the rankings accordingly.

Promote Your Video

Audience retention, engagement, and experience are crucial when it comes to implementing SEO strategies for YouTube. You can only measure these signals when your video gets the maximum views. The recommendations from YouTube are based on its algorithms that comprise 70% of a user's total view.

Content creators need to focus on intelligent strategies that target views on the videos. It is a good idea to share and discuss ideas on forums, Quora, and Q&A sites and get backlinks to your videos.

A pipeline for views can be set up by adding the link of your latest videos in the email signature. Similarly, embed videos in the blog post or website can attract quality views. It works both ways for the video and the content.

Video on YouTube can be promoted faster if they are well-structured. You could also consider creating a playlist to organize all the content that has familiar content.