How to Promote Your YouTube Channel (The Easy Way!)

October 14, 2019

If you’re looking at how to promote your YouTube channel, you’ve come to the right place. Since I came on board, our team has been working on a YouTube channel for one of our shoe drive fundraising brands. We’re thankful to our supporters who have since followed us and for those that continue to subscribe to our channel. Today, we’re sharing with you a few ideas to help your nonprofit or social enterprise get more viewers to your cause, which in turn will get your more fundraising dollars.

The first thing to remember for social media and YouTube promotion is that, like Google, it has bots crawling the platform. Every time I see the word bots, I imagine robot bugs crawling through mainframes like The Matrix. Someone bring back 1999! Moving on, the algorithms work to make sure that users see the videos they want to see, based on past behaviors. So, as an example, if someone enjoys watching music videos, the videos that auto-play afterward and are recommended every time they go to YouTube will have a substantial music focus.

If technology isn’t your thing, that’s okay; there’s plenty of resources that exist to make you an expert in the technical aspects of YouTube promotion.

1) YouTube Creator Academy

For starters, a great resource to learn about YouTube promotion is the YouTube Creator Academy. In it, you’ll find a quickstart guide to YouTube, as well as excellent information to get discovered and grow your audience. The Creator Academy is set similar to a course with multiple lessons and short quizzes. If course work isn’t your thing, plenty of YouTubers offer their tips and strategies.

2) YouTube promotion takes planning

When our team does videos for IGTV or YouTube, planning is always the first step. Our first step in the planning process is always to choose a topic. This topic will also be your keyword that algorithms search for that will help boost and promote your YouTube videos. Your keyword should be in the title of your video, the first sentence in the description box and your fist keyword “tag.” Use descriptive words that your target audience would search. Take the time to research with tools such as Moz or keyword planners. After you’ve chosen your topic, choose the location where you will film. My topic choice usually influences where I’ll film.

3) Write your script and storyboard it

Depending on the length of your YouTube video, you can storyboard and outline it. But, at the minimum, you’ll want to write a script. By the time our team gets in front of the camera, we’ve got our script, and it’s usually an outline pulled from our weekly blog post. It keeps the content streamlined across all platforms. I know that like many people, sometimes I prefer to watch a video, and other times I’d rather just read about it. Therefore, we’ve got content to see, hear, or read, and it goes a long way toward YouTube promotion.

4) Calls-to-action are necessary for YouTube promotion

To promote your YouTube channel, calls-to-action (CTAs) are a must. If you want your brand to grow, you have to ask people to act. Common CTAs include to comment, share, like, donate, download a resource, or visit our site/blog. For example, if you’re offering free materials, templates, or guides, you can ask people to click a link in the description box. That way, you receive further traffic to your site and email capture. It’s also a great way to invite others to join your cause or help you spread the word.

5) Edit your YouTube videos well

When you create your videos, have as much fun with yours as we do with ours. When you’re seeking to learn how to promote your YouTube channel and videos, key things like music, captions, title slide, and bloopers will take your video to the next level. Take time to add these things and cut any dead space in your video that doesn’t make sense. The first 3 seconds of your video are crucial to captivate your audience and get them to continue watching. Be sure that the intro/hook is interesting enough so that your viewers do not click away.

6) Make sure to use YouTube video tags

Once your video is ready, upload it to your YouTube channel. You’ve probably heard about search engine optimization (SEO) which is essential to your YouTube promotion. As I mentioned earlier, your keyword should be in your title, first sentence in the description box as well as your first tag. Once you’ve done that, you can add other tags that are relevant and long-tail keywords that might also be searched. When you tag videos, it helps the YouTube bots to understand the video and when and where to show it. You can find more information for SEO and YouTube here.

7) Use YouTube thumbnails

Another key tip for YouTube promotion is to create click-worthy thumbnails. These help you increase the chances of people who will see your videos. A few tips for thumbnails include the following. Have video resolution of 1280 x 720 (minimum width of 640 pixels) with a16:9 aspect ratio. We use Canva for the majority of our thumbnails because it’s free and they have a huge library of fonts, elements, and templates

8) Get engaged with the YouTube community

If you’re on social media, then you’re used to likes and comments. And, the same holds for YouTube. There’s a thriving community on the platform, and you want to engage with them utilizing the CTAs we discussed earlier. When viewers like or comment on your videos, you’ll go a long way to promote your YouTube videos by taking a few seconds to like and respond to their comments.

9) YouTube promotions benefit from more than one person

While you might want to speak directly to the audience, our team can’t say enough for having good energy. In other words, one person can definitely talk to the camera. But it’s always more fun with two or more people. Get creative with your message. An excellent thing to do for YouTube promotion and energy is to invite guests. Talk to people about your work and mission. Interview, banter, or discuss topics with guests and colleagues.

10) Entertainment and education go hand-in-hand

Finally, what you want for your YouTube promotion is for people to share your content. But, that means you have to be smart about it. First, you have to entertain. Let’s face it. People will watch your videos if their attention captured. However, it doesn’t mean that you can’t inform them. We do it all the time with our work. We share with people what we do, but we try to give them the information in fun and easy ways. For instance, check out what we did when we wanted to share the Top 5 Fundraising Ideas!

We hope you enjoyed our 10 tips on how to promote your YouTube channel. Stay tuned to our blog for more information on fundraising and marketing success for your nonprofit, school, or group.

 

 

Author: Kristy Fonterela, VP Marketing, Funds2Orgs. Kristy Fontelera is a creative professional with a background in corporate and nonprofit social media advertising, content creation, and brand strategy. As the VP of Marketing at Funds2Orgs, she works with a suite of global fundraising brands as well as manages national and local social media accounts for clients and entrepreneurs. Kristy enjoys new books, traveling, Fleetwood Mac, and picnics with her pup. Most of all, Kristy is a passionate individual that loves nothing than more than to help others make an impact in their market and the world.

 

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