How to Do Video SEO to Be Top Ranked on Google?

Getting a website to rank on the first page of Google search results is getting more challenging than ever. Not only are the ever-changing Google algorithms hard to follow, but the blended search results for videos and images are pushing down some of the best websites due to inadequate SEO practices.

With the recent growth of video content, companies can now engage audiences and reach many people with properly optimized video content. Video SEO is the best way to rank your website on the search results and increase the visibility of your brand videos online. This blog will cover the best SEO practices for a video to rank top on Google search results.

Best Video SEO Practices to Rank On Google Search Results

1. Conduct Keyword Research for Videos

The first step in video SEO is to conduct keyword research. Keyword research helps you identify the keywords and phrases most relevant to your video content and target audience. Then, by targeting these keywords, you can make the videos easily discoverable by users searching for relevant content.

Tips for performing keyword research for videos:

Identify Your Target Audience: Before beginning your keyword research, you must understand your target audience and their needs and interests. This will help you determine the keywords and phrases they will likely search for.
Use Keyword Research Tools: There are several keyword research tools available that can help you identify relevant keywords and phrases, including Google AdWords Keyword Planner, SEMrush, and Moz Keyword Explorer. These tools allow you to enter a keyword or phrase and see related keywords, search volume, and competition levels.
Include Long-Tail Keywords: Long-tail keywords are more specific, targeted phrases that are often less competitive and easier to rank for. Consider targeting long-tail keywords relevant to your video content and target audience. For example, instead of targeting “video marketing,” you might target “video marketing for small businesses.”
Analyze Your Competitors: Analyze the keywords and phrases your competitors target in their video SEO efforts. This can help you identify keywords and phrases you may have missed and give insights into the strategies that work for others in your industry.
Incorporate Keywords into Video Metadata: Once you have identified relevant keywords and phrases, incorporate them into the metadata of your videos, including the title, description, and tags. The title and description should accurately reflect the content of the video and include relevant keywords.

For example, if you are creating a Technology Tutorial Video: it can target keywords such as “tech tutorials,” “digital marketing,” “web design tips,” “programming tutorials,” etc.

The Slow Mo Guys is a YouTube channel that produces videos showcasing slow-motion footage of various objects and activities. The channel has optimized its videos for keywords related to slow-motion photography and videography, such as “slow motion,” “high-speed photography,” “time-lapse,” etc. In addition, the channel’s video titles, descriptions, and tags all include relevant keywords to help the videos rank high in search results for those keywords.

2. Optimizing Titles and Description of the Video

Once you have identified the targeted keywords, you should start optimizing your video title and description. The title and description of your video are two essential elements of video SEO. They provide a brief overview of the video’s content and play a crucial role in determining its search visibility.

Here are some tips for optimizing your video title and description:

Use Relevant Keywords: Include relevant keywords in your video title and description so that search engines can understand the topic of your video. This will make it easier for people searching for that topic to find your video in search results.
Make the title Descriptive: Your video title should accurately reflect the content of the video. A descriptive title will give people an idea of what to expect from the video and help to attract clicks.
Write a Compelling Description: Your video description should provide a brief overview of the video’s content and context for why it’s worth watching. The description should also include relevant keywords to improve the video’s search visibility.
Keep it Short and Sweet: Both the Title and description should be short and to the point. Ideally, the title should be at most 60 characters, and the description should be at most 250. This is because most video platforms, such as YouTube, display only the first few lines of the description in search results.
Include a Call-to-Action: Encourage viewers to take a specific action after watching the video, such as subscribing to your channel, visiting your website, or following you on social media.

One of the most successful explainer video examples is PayPal’s — How Paypal works? This video has a title that includes targeted keywords, such as “Paypal,” “work,” and “easy explanation.” In addition, the title also adequately reflects what the video is about. The description provides a brief overview of how PayPal works and how it can be used to send and receive money.

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3. Embedding Your Video on the Website

If you are a brand that offers products or services, having a website with embedded brand videos or motion graphics is a must in 2023. This will allow you to keep your viewers on your site and increase your viewing experience. In addition, when you embed a video on your website, you create a direct link between your video and your website, which can help to improve your website’s search engine ranking.

Tip for successfully embedding a video on your website:

When embedding your video on your website, make sure to include a transcript and add descriptive text around the video. Embedding videos in websites enables search engines to understand the context of your video and improve its ranking.

Hubspot is a marketing, sales, and service software platform that helps businesses to attract, engage, and delight customers. They regularly use embedded videos on their website to explain their product features and benefits. By embedding videos on their site, Hubspot has been able to rank high in search results and attract more visitors.

4. Add Video Transcripts

Video transcripts have become the latest trend now. Incorporating video transcripts into your website can also help to improve your video’s search engine ranking. Video transcripts are written versions of the audio and dialogue in a video, and they allow search engine bots to rank the video by crawling for relevant keywords.

Here are some tips for creating effective video transcripts:

Accuracy is the key: Make sure your transcript accurately represents your video’s audio and video content. Any inaccuracies in the transcript can be detrimental to the user experience and search engine ranking.
Include timestamps: Timestamps can help viewers navigate your video more efficiently and help search engines understand the structure of your video.
Use proper formatting: Use headings, bullet points, and proper formatting to make the transcript easy to read and understand.
Include keywords: Incorporate relevant keywords into the transcript to improve the visibility of your video in search engine results.
Make it accessible: Use clear, concise language and avoid technical jargon to make the transcript accessible to a broader audience.

One great example of a motion graphic video with a fantastic transcript is the “Save Money, Live Better” campaign by Walmart. The video is well-optimized for search engines, with accurate and informative transcripts that accurately reflect the content of the videos. The transcripts include timestamps, headings, and other formatting to make the content easy to read and understand. They also have relevant keywords to improve the visibility of the videos in search engine results.

5. Host Your Videos on Video Platforms

Hosting your videos on video platforms such as YouTube or Vimeo can increase the visibility of your videos and make them more easily discoverable. These platforms have a large audience and can help your videos reach a wider audience. Additionally, hosting your videos on these platforms makes embedding them on your website easier, improving your chances of ranking high in search results.

Brands like Dropbox and Adobe have utilized various video hosting platforms to rank their videos on search results and reach a larger audience.

6. Promote Videos and Channels

Last but not least, promoting your videos and YouTube channels is essential to reach a larger audience. From sharing your videos on social media, embedding them in blog posts and articles, to including them in email newsletters, there are hundreds of ways you can target a specific audience for your videos and increase their visibility.

Here are some tips for promoting your videos:

Share on social media: Share your videos on multiple social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Encourage your followers to share the videos with their own networks.
Embed on your website: Embed your videos on your website and blog, and include a transcript and other supporting content to improve the visibility of the videos in search engine results.
Optimize by using keywords: Use keywords in your video titles, descriptions, and transcripts to improve the visibility of your videos in search engine results.
Collaborate with influencers: You can reach a wider audience by working with influencers in your industry to promote your videos. This will help you gain exposure to new potential customers.
Run video ads: Run video ads on platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram to increase visibility and drive traffic to your videos.

7. Optimize Video Metadata

As mentioned earlier, optimizing your video metadata allows search engines to understand the content and relevance of your videos, which can improve their visibility and ranking in search engine results. Additionally, well-optimized metadata can improve the user experience by making it easier for viewers to find and watch your videos.

Here are some tips for optimizing your video metadata:

Choose a descriptive title: The title of your video should accurately reflect the content of the video and include relevant keywords.
Write a descriptive description: The description of your video should provide a brief overview of the content and include relevant keywords.
Use tags and categories: Use relevant tags and classes to help search engines understand the content of your video and improve its visibility in search results.
Include a transcript: Including a transcript of your video in the metadata can improve the accessibility of the video.
Add a custom thumbnail: Choose a custom thumbnail that accurately represents the content of your video and is visually appealing.

8. Add timestamps to your video

Timestamps make it easier for viewers to access certain parts of the video quickly. They also make it clear what topics the video is going to cover. But did you know that timestamps can also help your video rank on search engines? Yes, that’s true!

Adding timestamps to a video allows search engines to understand what the video is about. In addition, it makes it easier for bots to crawl the video.

Here are some tips for optimizing your video timestamps:

Include keywords: You can add targeted keywords in your timestamps to ensure your video reaches the right audience.
Only add timestamps of key moments: Your timestamps should only include the key moments of your video.

Examples of successful video SEO campaigns:

1. Mailchimp – “Did You Mean Mailchimp?”

This animated video features a whimsical take on the pronunciation of the brand name “Mailchimp.” The animation effectively conveys the brand’s playful and approachable personality.

2. Dropbox – “Introducing Dropbox”

This animated video explains the Dropbox product and its features. The animation effectively conveys the brand’s user-friendly and accessible approach.

3. Slack – “What is Slack”

This animated video explains the Slack product and its features quickly and easily. In addition, the animation effectively conveys the brand’s approachable and intuitive approach.

Conclusion

Video SEO is a critical aspect of video marketing that enables brands to reach a broader audience, drive more traffic to the website, and improve brand visibility. You can improve the chances of your videos ranking high in search results and reaching a wider audience by administering the Video SEO mentioned in this blog.

Apart from these, it is also essential that the video content is highly engaging and helpful for the audience so that they share it online within their network. Make sure you have the right video production team to handle the video creation so that you can focus on its SEO.