Image via WikipediaComScore Media Metrix, October 2008 showed over 100 million YouTube video viewers, for a total of 2.5 billion searches! When optimizing your video for YouTube remember to treat YouTube like it’s a search engine because it does have a search algorithm . The search variables to optimize for in your video submission should include the values that algorithm is looking to discover about your video.

The YouTube search algorithm includes variables such as  title, description, tags, views and ratings. So be sure to include keywords in your title and description, write your description as a call to action and include of course your websites’ URL. Treat your tags as an opportunity to fine tune your keywords and widen the breath of search query possibilities.  Handle these variables properly and you can improve your placement not only within YouTube itself but Google’s “Universal Search” also.

Remember you are trying to get into the “Universal Search” SERP for your keyword selections and because Universal Search is optimized for 4×3 thumbnails do not use YouTube’s new 16×9 widescreen settings.   

Keep in mind you only get 27 characters for the anchor description (the 1st line) so  be creative and don’t waste them squeeze in a clickable URL on that important 1st line. (27 characters maximum or it gets truncated) Think Twitter by 1/4 !

Brand your video throughout with a watermark or lower third  if you don’t know how to do that join AskMrVideo.com and take advantage of the expertise available and grab the awesome free software that can handle that task and many others as well. Include a call to action within the video itself that is a reference to the URL in your anchor description. If you are including a phone number put it on a solid background.

All videos on YouTube include the “nofollow” except the “Recent Activity” section. Bear that in mind and think of systems that you can implement that keeps your video located on “Recent Activity”

More on optimizing your video tomorrow.

to be continued…

Tags: ComScore, Google, search, Search engine results page, Twitter, Universal search, Web search engine, YouTube