Top 10 YouTube SEO Myth

On this week's Creator's Tip, we are going to tackle the top 10 myths for optimizing your YouTube video to make it rank higher. Some of our assertions are going to be pretty controversial but there's a lot of false info out there….OK, so what better way to make your content perform than by optimizing it and having it show up as high as possible in the YouTube (and Google) search results? But getting those high rankings isn't as easy as many "video marketers"

like to claim and there are also different strategies that work for different brands and creators, depending on their vertical, the amount of competition, target audience etc. There's a lot of advice flying around; Do this! Do that! No, try this! A lot of this advice is out of date or conflicting, so we are here to put the record straight.

YouTube SEO Myth #1: You Must Add Keywords to the File Name

 

The first persistent myth that ReelSEO see a lot of is to always add your target keywords to your video file name before uploading it to YouTube. A lot of people think that this is the first indication that YouTube picks up on regarding the content of your video but YouTube DOESN'T CARE what your file name is!! This myth started around the time that YouTube were making some other changes to one of their algorithims and someone popped up and said, hey, adding keywords to your file name works y'all!

 

YouTube SEO Myth #2: Captions Make Your Video Rank Higher

 

Captions are valuble because they help YouTube and Google to know a little more about what to rank your video FOR, it doesn't determine how high up in the rankings it may eventually appear. The biggest factor for that is watch time. The more time people spend watching your video, the more signals that sends to YouTube to inform them that content has worth and value. A captions file may help in returning your video for a number of other results but, again, there's no guarantee where they will rank.

 

YouTube SEO Myth #3: Adding the Transcript & the Tags Will Help Your Video Rank Higher

 

Many creators think that adding the transcript of your video description helps their videos rank better. They also think that copy and pasting the meta tags they have used for their video into the description box also helps with rankings. Not true. Regarding the transcript, if you have nothing else you could possible write then adding it is better than nothing BUT it is far more valuable to write even a couple of paragraphs so your viewers know what they are about to watch and why. As for adding the tags to the description, that's actually a violation of YouTube's TOS so avoid that, it is far from best practice and could have very negative repercussions.  Plus, it’s spammy and lazy, and you are better than that.

 

YouTube SEO Myth #4: Likes/Dislikes Influence Rankings

 

This is absolutely not true and the biggest reason is that it is far too easy to game. Go on Fiver.com right now and you can buy thousands of 'thumbs up' for $5. What's more, you can buy thousands of 'thumbs down' for a rival's video. YouTube knows this and while it doesn't always stop it, it makes sure that it isn't a contributory ranking factor. However, a like in context (given alongside a share, a view, a comment etc) may have a positive impact but there are so many other factors that need to be involved. A single like or dislike on its own will make no difference.

 

YouTube SEO Myth #5: 'Favorites' Influence Video Rankings

 

So, the more people that 'favorite' my video on YouTube, the better it will perform, yes? NOPE. Why, the same reason as Myth #4, it is too easy to game. However, just like #4, there could be a positive ripple effect if a user makes a video a favorite and other users in their network pick up on that and share it, or like it or favorite it too. Nothing really works in isolation on YouTube, the site has made sure of that. So, the mere act of adding a video as a favorite doesn't have an effect, but the activity may drive discovery in the “all activity” feed on YouTube and thus lead to more watch time.

 

YouTube SEO Myth #6: No of Embeds Influences Search Rankings

 

Although it's a lovely thing to have lots of different websites embed your YouTube video on their posts and pages, it makes absolutely no difference to search rankings. This assertion does come with a caveat though. It doesn't matter if your video is embedded on 1,000 different websites, the sheer volume of embeds makes no difference, if those sites have low authority and  drive no views of your video. However, if your video gets embedded on high authority sites with lots of traffic (like ReelSEO!) and readers of those sites click play, and like, and share, then it could reflect positively on your video.

 

YouTube SEO Myth #7: No of Shares Influences Search Rankings

 

If viewers are organically sharing your video and that activity is complimented with likes, and views etc then, of course that's a very positive signal to YouTube. It can even drive watch time. However, if 1,000 Twitter Bots are sharing your video and nobody is responding then it means zilch. Sharing is also something that can be gamed very easily, and as such, taken in isolation, it really has very little value in YouTube's eyes. Save your pennies and plough them into authentic video marketing practices.

 

YouTube SEO Myth #8: No of Playlists Influences Search Rankings

 

Without trying to sound like a broken record, adding a video to a playlist won't really make a difference unless that playlist has some influence and viewers are responding to it. Adding a video to 10,000 different YouTube playlists that are never seen or interacted with is going to be a waste of time, particularly if they are all on your own channel. Adding a video to a another channel's playlist that gets views and plays is a good thing though, and to be encouraged.

 

YouTube SEO Myth #9: No of Subscribers Influences Search Rankings

 

This is a tricky myth to bust. Obviously if you have a lot of subscribers to your YouTube channel then you are more likely to drive a lot of watch time (good thing) especially in the first week after publishing. However, if you have two different videos on two different channels with the same amount of watch time, will the channel with more subscribers see their video rank higher? We can't say for certain that it's a myth, but we think it is. Why? Because it doesn't really fit in with the Google/YouTube overall search philosophy, strategy and values.

 

YouTube SEO Myth #10: The Age of a Video Matters

 

The age of a video really doesn't have any great relevance in terms of YouTube search rankings. In fact, in some cases, the older a video is, the less useful it can be to viewers. People looking for reviews of the latest Samsung smartphone aren't going to be particularly interested in a video from 4 years ago. As with the other myths, there are always exceptions to any rule and sometimes there's a positive ripple effect for videos that have been around a long time, but that's because they have accumulated a number of views, shares etc. Generally though, the age of a video is no indication of how well it's going to rank.

 

Bonus YouTube SEO Myth #11: More Views = Higher Rankings

 

In terms of authentic video metrics, view count is one of the ones you need to take with a pinch of salt. If a high number of views really mattered, then we could just order 100,000 right now for very little budget. Heck, we could order 1,000,000 views if we wanted. But, YouTube looks out for the watch time of the video, and if a high number of views were generated organically, then that watch time would matter. You could effectively out perform a higher ranking video, if your video had twice the watch time.

 

Conclusion

 

Video SEO is hugely important but optimize for people, not for search engines. Google and YouTube are continually moving towards what works for people, and the more that you can craft your content towards that goal, the better your videos will naturally perform.

 

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Milan Tomic

Hi. I’m Designer of Blog Magic. I’m CEO/Founder of ThemeXpose. I’m Creative Art Director, Web Designer, UI/UX Designer, Interaction Designer, Industrial Designer, Web Developer, Business Enthusiast, StartUp Enthusiast, Speaker, Writer and Photographer. Inspired to make things looks better.

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