YouTube video tips

If you checked out some YouTube video ideas and want to take the plunge, there are several things you can do to ensure that your video is a cut above everyone else’s. With the exception of speaking well, none of these recommendations are particularly difficult to implement, and yet they can greatly enhance the quality of your YouTube video.

1. Shoot the video with care and use good video production practices. This means ensuring that the subject is well lit and not darker than the background. If you are using a webcam or a cell phone to shoot this video, paying attention to the lighting conditions is especially important. If all you have is a cell phone, by all means go ahead and shoot your video — just make sure that the video is not shaky and that the main subject is brighter than the background.

2. If the YouTube video you are making is a “how to video”, it is particularly important that whatever you are showing us is clearly visible. You could be showing us your favorite car, your stamp collection or pretty much anything else you care to share. Whatever it is, we’ve got to be able to take a good look at it, otherwise the “tour” will be pointless and frustrating.

3. Pay attention to what is going on in the background, especially if you are a total video newbie. I have seen a lot of YouTube videos get flamed or derided as a result of something going on in the background that the viewers found annoying or worse. One excellent video blogger recently posted a video that he shot in a hotel room because he was on a business trip, and a large fraction of the comments focused on a figure that was faintly visible on the bed in the background, and speculation abounded on who it might be. YouTube viewers are incredibly good at spotting anything in the background that is in any way noteworthy, so be very careful.

4. If you are making a blog-type video, speak clearly and be as compelling and concise as possible. One thing that all successful YouTube video bloggers have in common is that they speak very well, and tend to be something of a character. Those who do poorly are very long-winded and speak in a monotonous voice. They upload 10-minute videos in which they ramble without making a point. Their videos feel “slow” and very few viewers make it to the end.

Conversely, successful video bloggers are amusing to listen to and pack a lot of useful information and insights into their videos. Almost everyone watches the videos all the way to the end and then goes back to the beginning and watches again. With good video bloggers, people cannot wait for the next installment.

5. Make sure that the title of your video is both accurate and keyword-rich. This will help users to find your video and is very important when you are in the process of building your YouTube following.

6. Here is the big YouTube video tip: no matter what kind of video you’re uploading, make sure that it fully complies with YouTube’s recommended settings in terms of frame size and aspect ratio. If your video’s aspect ratio or frame size does not match the settings, YouTube will resize it and/or display in the incorrect aspect ratio, which is incredibly annoying. For HD YouTube videos, the best settings are H.264, MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 format, 1280×720 resolution, 44.1KHz Stereo MP3 or AAC audio. Make the frame rate the same as that of the original video.

Good luck with your YouTube videos!

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