YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world. Ranking your videos there means long-term, compounding traffic you don't pay for.
**Before you film:**
- Research your keyword using TubeBuddy or VidIQ (target 1K-50K monthly searches)
- Validate demand by checking the top 10 results for view count and upload date
- Plan your hook around the search intent, not just the topic
**Title optimisation:**
- Include your primary keyword within the first 40 characters
- Add a curiosity gap or number ('7 mistakes', 'why I almost quit')
- Keep total length under 60 characters to avoid truncation
**Description:**
- First 2 lines appear before 'Show more' — put your keyword and CTA here
- Write 200-400 words naturally incorporating 3-5 related keywords
- Include timestamps, links to related videos and social profiles
**Tags:**
- 5-8 tags maximum — quality over quantity
- Lead with exact keyword, then variations and broad niche terms
**Other factors:**
- Upload an SRT caption file (auto-captions have 10-20% error rates)
- Add chapters with keyword-rich names
- Pin a comment with your CTA within the first hour of publishing
- Enable all end screens and cards
**Before you film:**
- Research your keyword using TubeBuddy or VidIQ (target 1K-50K monthly searches)
- Validate demand by checking the top 10 results for view count and upload date
- Plan your hook around the search intent, not just the topic
**Title optimisation:**
- Include your primary keyword within the first 40 characters
- Add a curiosity gap or number ('7 mistakes', 'why I almost quit')
- Keep total length under 60 characters to avoid truncation
**Description:**
- First 2 lines appear before 'Show more' — put your keyword and CTA here
- Write 200-400 words naturally incorporating 3-5 related keywords
- Include timestamps, links to related videos and social profiles
**Tags:**
- 5-8 tags maximum — quality over quantity
- Lead with exact keyword, then variations and broad niche terms
**Other factors:**
- Upload an SRT caption file (auto-captions have 10-20% error rates)
- Add chapters with keyword-rich names
- Pin a comment with your CTA within the first hour of publishing
- Enable all end screens and cards
Tags
#youtube#growth#marketing