As the use of video becomes more and more popular as a marketing tactic, the need to optimize your video content becomes critical. Recent statistics show that video is no longer a “fad” and it’s here to stay. YouTube now has 2 billion users, so if you aren’t already utilizing it, then it’s time to start using this awesome platform. If you are using video as a part of your strategy, then we’ve got tips to help you optimize what you have and really boost your engagement and SEO.
What you’re probably wondering now, is how does it benefit my marketing strategy as a financial advisor? Well, what if we told you that including video on a landing page has shown to increase conversion rates by 80%? Or how about 4X as many customers would rather watch a video about a product than read about it? There’s no denying those facts!
As you can see in the above, according to Optinmonster, video marketers get 66% more qualified leads per year. So how do you stand out among your competition to ensure your videos are being watched? Good SEO is key. Take a look at these top 5 video optimization tips for financial advisors:
5 Video Optimization Tips for Advisors:
1. Title
Your video title is the first thing visitors see when searching for a video, and the title should not only be compelling but be concise and clear. Consider keeping your title short (40-60 characters) and including the major keyword(s) for which you want your video to rank is also key for SEO. For example, you may consider including keywords such as financial advisor, retirement planning, wealth management, etc. Google Trends is a great (and free!) tool to identify relevant keywords to help drive more traffic to your video.
Using Google Trends, when looking for the word “Wealth Management” in the past 90 days, it pulled relevant topics and queries to help advisors see what is out there and boost SEO by using strong keywords in their titles.
2. Description
YouTube only displays the first 100 characters in video descriptions before users have to click “show more.” Remember – your viewer came to watch a video, not read a story so keep your descriptions concise but informational. The description is also a good place for financial advisors to include a clear CTA, link back to your website or targeted landing page. Again, it’s not a bad idea to include relevant keywords in your description as well.
Following your first 100 characters in the description, you may also consider including a video transcript to make it easier to articulate the value of your video and make it easier for viewers who may be watching on mute.
As you can see in the image above in a YouTube video from the Twenty Over Ten channel, the description briefly describes what the video will be about, and that is video marketing and how you can start recording marketing videos right on your phone.
3. TAGS
YouTube’s tagging system was developed to understand the context of your video. As you’re uploading a video on YouTube, you have the option to upload it under a particular category relating to your video that it’s most likely to fall under. Tagging will help further identify your video from the various categories. For example, for a financial planning firm in Syracuse, you can tag words like ‘financial planning’ or ‘Syracuse.’
4. Category
By navigating to the advanced settings in YouTube you can choose a category for your video. A category is another way to group your video with similar content on the platform. We recommend choosing the category where most people would expect to find your video. For example, as a financial advisor, you may want to choose a category such as “how-to” or “education.”
5. Subtitles
Video subtitles improve accessibility. You can include subtitles through the advanced tab of every video on YouTube. The subtitles that YouTube creates are automatically generated, which will work fine in most situations but can come with some errors. If you’re looking for someone more customizable, consider using a tool like Headliner, which allows you to create a transcript of your video. The video transcript can be used to create subtitles. But, if you’re uploading your video into a blog, the transcript can also be included to provide search engines with context, as they are great at reading text, but not videos.
6. Channel Cards
Many videos include cards calling attention to websites, information and additional videos. Just like in a blog post, these guide users to other helpful content and can be included when uploading a video to YouTube. Make sure the elements you include are related to the current content the viewer is watching. For example, in the image below, the videos outlined in blue are related to attracting clients and social media, a similar subject to the video the current video.
7. Thumbnail
Your video’s thumbnail goes hand-in-hand with the title as it’s one of the first things a user sees when scrolling through a list of video results. While YouTube will auto-generate thumbnail options we highly recommend financial advisors upload a custom thumbnail. YouTube Creator Academy reports that “90% of the best performing videos on YouTube have custom thumbnails.” A good rule of thumb is to use a distinct thumbnail for each video and one that lets viewers know what to expect.
As you can see, Twenty Over Ten has thumbnails in all of our YouTube videos with the title on it and images that make each individual video stand out for viewers.
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