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As part of our ongoing YouTube Brand Glossary Series (see last week’s post on “YouTube End Cards“), we’re taking an in-depth look at YouTube’s Annotation feature. YouTube annotations are a powerful way to increase a video’s value to the viewer and, when used properly, can help increase engagement, boost video views, and provide a consistent lead funnel through clickable links embedded in the YouTube video content. By integrating additional information into videos and creating an interactive experience, annotations also encourage viewers to watch each YouTube video longer and/or drive viewer traffic towards external landing pages.
Google’s Creator’s Academy describes YouTube Annotations as “clickable images and text you can add to each of your videos that encourage viewers to take an action at specific time points in your video.” In practice, they appear as text boxes, images, or video previews that pop up while a YouTube video is playing – in some cases, these text boxes or images contain clickable links to videos or to other websites. Unlike YouTube End Cards, YouTube Annotations are visible to viewers on desktop only.
There are several different types of YouTube Annotations that YouTubers and content creators can add to videos. Identifying which annotation style is most effective will help keep audiences engaged for longer and/or drive conversions towards a brand’s landing page or site.
Top YouTuber Channel The Slow Mo Guys partners with brand Tide. Watch to see how Tide leverages YouTube Annotations to promote additional YouTuber content.
YouTube Annotations are often implemented to increase engagement, either by encouraging viewers to watch related videos, providing additional information for them to explore, and/or including links to the sponsoring brand’s website, merchandise, or other sponsored content that users might enjoy. For brands partnering with YouTube Influencers, YouTube Annotations are valuable opportunities to share brand messaging and/or include a succinct call-to-action (CTA) within sponsored videos.
Annotations are notably effective at integrating CTAs into YouTube videos. By including an eye-catching annotation at the right time, YouTube content creators can increase the likelihood that viewers will “Explore More,” “Buy This Product,” “See Related Videos,” or “Subscribe.” For brands, a strategically placed annotation can earn qualified leads and guarantee increased brand exposure.
Finally, because watch time is an important metric in determining how YouTubes measures (and ranks) a video’s value, creating more ways for viewers to interact with videos can keep people watching longer. Many top YouTubers have developed creative ways to keep audiences engaged with annotations, and YouTube rewards lengthy watch times with higher rankings.
Annotations can be used in an endless number of ways. Here are a few top Google tips on how to best use these powerful YouTube video additions.
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