Let us break the silence! About 500 hours of videos are uploaded on YouTube every minute. It equates to 300,000 of new content per hour. 

To keep up with such a growing world of content creation, creators must brainstorm, film, and edit their video content perfectly to get the audience. However, while creating perfect video content, they often forget one thing: YouTube descriptions. 

But not anymore. Learn how to write click-worthy YouTube descriptions quickly that attract both the audience and YouTube’s algorithms. 

Types Of YouTube Descriptions

A YouTube description is a short piece of content that tells your viewers and YouTube algorithms what a video or YouTube channel is all about. 

That said, there are two types of YouTube descriptions: 

• YouTube video descriptions
• YouTube channel descriptions

As the names suggest, a video description explains what they will watch in the video and why. On the other hand, a channel description (usually 3-4 sentences) provides a short insight into your brand.

Tips For Writing Attractive YouTube Descriptions

1. Do a Thorough Niche-Related Keyword Research. 

Keywords act as clues to help YouTube’s algorithm understand the focus and theme of your content and YouTube channel. Algorithms also analyze keywords and their placement in the description to categorize and rank your content. 

Here is an example of how important keywords are:

In short, keywords are necessary to embed in descriptions to get a better ranking on YouTube. Therefore, do thorough keyword research to find specific, niche-related keywords before you write the description. 

TIP: Use tools such as Google AdWords, Google Trends, and Keyword Planner to find keywords. The more specific the keywords are, the better. 

2. Place keywords Strategically Inside the Description.

You cannot simply copy and paste the keyword you find in the description. There are a few rules to embed these in an SEO-friendly way. 

1. Include your main/primary keyword naturally in the video title.
2. Use the primary keyword in the first sentence or two of the description.
3. Try to use two to three related/secondary keywords in each video and channel description.
4. Don’t repeat; simply use each related/secondary keyword once in the description naturally.

NOTE: AVOID keyword stuffing; DO NOT repeat the keywords more than recommended. Doing so increases the risk of de-ranking or even a YouTube penalty for keyword stuffing. 

3. Always Write Like a Human for the Humans.

No doubt, YouTube algorithms analyze keywords to know about a video’s intent and rank it. This is why many people start using keywords many times in the descriptions, thinking their videos will rank this way.

However, YouTube doesn’t want you to stuff SEO-optimized keywords in the descriptions. Instead, it suggests writing human-focused content. When crafting a description, always use easy-to-read, engaging terms. 

So, don’t focus too much on the algorithms. Instead, think about your audience. Write a description in a way to attract your audience and grab their attention. 

4. Use the First 100-150 Characters Properly to Boost CTR.

The inverted pyramid structure is the best way to write a YouTube description. According to this structure, place the most fundamental information in the beginning, followed by the remaining detail. 

Here is an example: “Guitar Lessons for Beginners Join us today and start your journey towards becoming a skilled and culturally aware guitarist!” – SIFF Guitar

The first 2-3 sentences (or 100-150 characters) of a YouTube video description are shown in the search results and just under the video, above the Show More button. 

We have to leverage emotions in this part. For example, use terms like “helpful”, “luxurious”, etc., along with some numbers or facts to catch the audience’s attention and improve click-through rates (CTR). 

5. Add As Much Value to Descriptions As Possible.

Once you have added the fundamental information and certain terms in the first 2-3 lines of description to catch readers’ attention, it is time to deal with the next.

Always remember that YouTube prioritizes value for the viewers. So, in the next part, keep it short yet provide as much information about the video as possible.

To add value, tell your viewers the following things through the descriptions box:

1. What have you shown/described/reviewed in the video?
2. How will your video advantage the viewers?
3. Why should someone subscribe to your YouTube channel?

In addition, you can add numbers in the description as these are associated with facts. Numbers act like magic! They subconsciously influence the readers to believe your content is authentic and worth watching. 

6. Keep the Descriptions Comprehensive Yet Shorter.

There are many reasons to write short descriptions. First, is human psychology. In the current era of short-form content, nobody likes a wall of text. 

Secondly, since YouTube has a limit of 5,000 characters (about 714 to 1250 words), you have to cover all the things you want to add to this limit. Use bullets, line breaks, and paragraphs to make the description easy to read.

But what if you already have written a long, long description? If so, you’ll need to make it shorter, under the 5000-character limit.

You can do this by either removing certain parts or summarizing them manually. You can also use tools such as a summarizer tool to save time.

7. Don’t Forget to Include a Call to Action.

Answer this: What is the motto of writing a YouTube description? Other than SEO ranking, a description tells a reader about the video and convinces them to take action.

The action can be to subscribe to the channel, watch the video, check another video on the channel, read a blog, etc. Well, the process of convincing your audience to take certain actions is incomplete without a Call to Action (CTA). 

Therefore, we always suggest your readers add a call to action in both your channel and video description. This will motivate your viewers to subscribe, like, comment, or do whatever you want them to do. 

Here is a perfect example of using CTA in a description:

8. Video Tags are Important But Not That Much.

Tags can help viewers find hard-to-spell content. However, they are not so important that you become stressed out about them. In fact, according to YouTube, the role of tags is “minimal” in discovery and ranking.

Still, it is a good exercise to consider using in the description. However, the rule of thumb is to use only about 6-8 tags per description. DO NOT use excessively as it is considered spammy and YouTube doesn’t like it.

9. Organize Your Video With Timestamps.

Timestamps act as a table of contents to go through different video parts. Not only the YouTube algorithm but also humans like timestamps to engage in video. 

Always add timestamps to your video. Use keywords to express the timestamps. This way, YouTube will rank your user-friendly video better. 

10. Know How to Put Links in YouTube Descriptions.

Last but not least, attach relevant links in your YouTube video descriptions and/or channel descriptions to boost engagement with your audience.  

Here are a few tips when adding links in descriptions:

1. Must add https:// or http:// at the start of each link/address. If you don’t do that, the link won’t be accessible. 
2. Always put links at the description’s end or middle, not at the beginning. 

The following are a few types of links you can add to a YouTube video description:

1. Timestamp links
2. Subscribe links
3. Social media channels’ links
4. Other related videos or playlist links
5. Blog posts’ links
6. Affiliate links 

Conclusion

An attractive, click-worth YouTube description is one of the important factors in enhancing channel growth and engagement, whether video or channel description.

To write a good description, always start by researching niche-related keywords. Then, employ SEO tactics, add value, optimize the first 100-150 characters for higher CTR, and keep descriptions concise.

Don’t forget to add a call to action, write in a human tone, use relevant tags but avoid excessive tagging, and incorporate timestamps.