The Start of my YouTube Video Adventure and SEO – Part 1

Over the last 3 months or so it’s become startlingly clear to me how much of a dramatic impact YouTube Video can have on the SEO of a website. Whilst I’m now actively seeking out info on video and how to optimise it for SEO, there was a period of time that this stuff just seemed to be all I got in my inbox! Call it what you will, but it seemed like fate or The Universe nudged and nudged until I DAMN WELL TOOK NOTICE!

I’m part of a very competitive industry, there are hundreds of providers out there that do what I do, providing payroll outsourcing services (though I’m working on my differences). But what became a shocking and interesting discovery was, that when going onto YouTube and searching for the holy grail of payroll keywords, there was no one like me. Whilst there are a quite a few highly polished YouTube video showing beautiful people in offices having meetings and lots of arty shots of skylines in London, with a silky London accent giving a voiceover, I could only find one video of a person who was actually talking to the camera, in essence to his ‘potential’ clients, explaining what he does and why they should use his service.

There was nothing that appealed to my clients, nothing that said ‘I’m here to help the new employer, the first time employer, the small business’. It was all big corporate. The images and presentation would make the first time employer shy away, feeling as if they weren’t big enough for a company with big offices and a skyline view. And would beg the question, ‘How expensive must their payroll services be?’

But then you want to be seen by your clients at your best. You want to be seen as professional and trustworthy, knowledgeable whilst being friendly and approachable. And that’s without even considering the ABSOLUTE TERROR that comes with the idea of putting yourself out there into the world.

And the more you think, the more you realise that you’re really not ready, and you give up, right?

There was nothing that said ‘I’m here to help the new employer, the first time employer, the small business’

But think of the number of things you’ve done in life that have scared the bejesus out of you! And you survived those days, those things. This isn’t marriage, or being a parent. Moving to another country or buying a house. It’s just video, for your business. Something you love and are passionate about. Something you can talk about without batting an eyelid with unlimited enthusiasm. You know what you do, and you’re knowledgeable, an expert in your field. And the weight of evidence that shows what YouTube video does for your SEO can’t be ignored if you’re serious about getting your business out there and seen by potential customers.

So where do you start?YouTube Video

My first piece of advise is that you need to think carefully about who you’re speaking to when you sit in front of a camera. Get very clear on who are they. You’ve got them to a point of being willing to give you time to tell them about yourself and your business, and you don’t want them escaping now. But all they really want to know is what you can do for them. That’s it in a nutshell! How can your make their lives easier?

There’s lots of technical info out there, and lots of equipment you can buy. But as a small business there’s cost to think of, whilst you likely have plenty of time if you’re a start-up. So invest your time!

Work out who your target audience is, and what problems you solve for them. Find their ‘Pain Point’ and explain how you take that away without it costing them the earth. Make sure they know you’re value for money, not cheep, and that they’re buying a quality product or service with integrity at it’s core. Be friendly and approachable, but an authority in you field. And consider what action you want them to take after watching your video. Are you compiling an email list? Do you want them to contact you for a quote? Do you want their contact details to call them and discuss how you can help them? Tell them what they need to do and make it easy for them.

Working out who you want to speak to and honing your closing ‘call to action’ will make everything else further down the road so much easier.

YouTube VideoThe next blog will be around fear! I’ll talk about getting over the fear of being ‘out there’ whether it’s a minor wobble or debilitating and making things impossible.

Later blogs will cover the technical side of things. I’ll tell you what I’ve learned about light, sound, and background. How to get your videos on YouTube and all I’ve learned about optimising. And of course you!