By Shree:
The content industry is full of talented creators who produce blogs, videos, apps, games and shorts that all have the same goal: to capture the attention of the viewer. But this is easier said than done, because in recent years the competition for attention has become very high, and with new platforms like Tiktok on the rise, veteran platforms like YouTube are having to improve and innovate their strategies to keep their audience engaged.
YouTube Shorts has recently helped creators reach a newer audience who are familiar with the short-form content available on Tiktok and Instagram Reels. Taking inspiration from its predecessor Vine, short videos are bite-sized and easier to distribute and re-watch, adding to their viral nature.
But long-form videos are still in high-demand. With Spotify rolling out their video feature for podcasters and newer video sharing platforms on the rise, it’s no wonder that YouTubers are having to get creative to get more views and subscribers on their channel.
So how does one get high-ranking videos on their YouTube channel? There are several strategies that many top-tier YouTube channels apply to rank higher with their videos in their niche:
1. YouTube Search:
The best way to find high-ranking videos is staring right in your face. The “YouTube search bar” is one of the best and easiest tools to find the right combinations of keywords on particular video topics. Whatever word you type, YouTube gives you a list of things that your audience is currently searching for on the same topic.
For instance, right now if I type “art” in the search bar, what follows are keywords such as “art and craft”, “art simple”, “art for kids” etc. Similarly, if I type the keyword “finance”, what follows are keyword combinations like “finance management”, “finance podcast”, “finance course”, and so on. Making videos on similar topics will help you rank higher in your genre.
You can also try typing a longer combination of keywords like “top 10 reasons” or “the truth behind” followed by your niche to get even specific video ideas.
2. YouTube Analytics:
The YouTube analytics page can be found on the backend of your channel, where you can find helpful tools such as Content, Audience, Research and so on. Here you will find out your audience demographics, region, and what they watch most along with other videos in your niche.
It also shows you your highest ranking videos and the least popular ones, along with channels similar to yours and other keywords your viewers are interested in. This is a great tool for new YouTubers to better understand the YouTube landscape.
Google trends is another great tool for a broader search of topics that are trending all over YouTube and Google. These help you locate trending topics in your niche and see what viewers want to watch most.
3. Related Videos:
Videos that show up below/on the right side of your video are the related videos in your topic that viewers are also watching. Pay attention to these videos, along with related videos in other similar channels’ content, as these are closest to your niche and you can get inspiration for future video ideas.
4. Engaged Audience:
An even better metric to judge the popularity of a video is the amount of likes, comments and shares the video gets. Word of mouth is also a strong indicator that a video or topic is very popular. Views and subscribers are helpful but an engaged community of viewers means that people are really enjoying the topics, style, content and the creator that they are watching. Pay attention to these details and you can figure out what topics or content style will help your channel rank higher.
5. Social Media:
The “search” and “for you” pages on Reddit and Twitter can give good indications of trending topics in your niche. While they have a more general overview of what people are interested in, narrowing down your search can give you an idea of what topics are being searched the most. You can also follow hashtags on Twitter and Instagram to see what the audience is currently buzzing about on social media. These can help you cover more seasonal topics that you might have missed out on.
Outside of social media, Google News is another great tool that aggregates the most trending news stories of the week. You can narrow down your search by looking at trending news in your niche, like tech news or gaming news.
6. Search Volume:
Keyword research tools such as VidIQ or Tubebuddy can give you an indication of the search volume of the keyword you are typing in. A high search volume means more people are actively searching for that current topic, and that will help you have a better ranking for your videos. Google trends also help you look for search volume in keywords that gives you a general idea of what most people are interested in across the board.
7. Popular Channels:
Famous YouTube channels can give you a general idea of the types of videos that have the best chance of getting views. There have been many similar channels like Mr Beast after his success on YouTube. But just because you are making similar videos that match a popular YouTuber’s style does not guarantee your success.
My rule of thumb is to look for YouTubers whose channel growth is 10x than mine, not 100x. Which means that when I was starting out, I was looking at people with 100+ subscribers, as I was reaching closer to 1000 subscribers, I was looking for content ideas from channels with 10,000 subscribers, and so on. Popular YouTubers with millions of subscribers usually have a high production value on their channel, and if you are a solo creator like me, that kind of extra workload may later cause burnout.
8. Top Blogs and Podcasts:
YouTube channels are not the only ones that are covering topics in your niche. Bloggers and Podcasters are stepping up their game, covering trending news stories and evergreen topics that help them rank better in Google Search results and even on YouTube. You can search your niche on Google and podcast platforms, and find creators who are covering topics in your niche, and follow these creators to get an idea of what topics are being searched for the most.
9. Recurring themes:
When you search for a topic on Google or YouTube, you will find “recurring themes” that show up again and again. This could be a related video topic that showed up multiple times in your search results. Pay attention to these videos as they indicate a popular or evergreen topic that has been repeatedly searched for by audiences. This could help you make similar videos with unique and fresh takes on a familiar topic.
10. Audience Demographics:
Lastly, your audience can give you a better understanding of what kind of topics they are interested in. Your audience’s age, gender, nationality, their comments and requests, and other videos they have watched according to YouTube analytics can help you form a better opinion on what kind of video topics that might interest them. If, for instance, you have a younger audience, and you have a music channel, discussing newer bands and rappers can bring you more viewers that are similar to your audience. Alternatively, if you have an older audience, discussing new-age bands may lose their interest. Paying attention to your audience’s preferences can help you target better video topics for your channel.
These are my top 10 suggestions to help you rank your videos higher on YouTube. Did I miss anything? Let me know in the comments below if you have additional suggestions, and also let me know what other topics you’d like me to discuss next.
Subscribe to my newsletter for weekly articles on content creation, marketing, writing, filmmaking, and building an audience.
