Search & Discovery
Oct 9, 2021

How to Write a Good YouTube Description

Justin
Justin

A YouTube Description is creator supplied text that describes a video’s content, which appears under the video and helps the YouTube algorithm better surface videos in search and suggested videos. They may also help your viewers stay engaged with your brand on YouTube and on other platforms with CTA and links.

YouTube Description Length

A good YouTube description length is 150 to 400 words, though the maximum length is 5,000 characters. Descriptions that are too short aren't helpful. Descriptions that are too long can appear spammy or hard to read.

How to Write a Good YouTube Description

Here are 5 simple steps to write a good YouTube description:

1. Lead with the most important information.

Your first sentence is the one that anyone skimming your description will for sure read, so make it count. If your videos are part of a series, you could link to the next video. If your video is a product review, include a link to buy the product. In many cases, the best first sentence is one that describes your video in a concise, engaging way.

The first few sentences may appear by default without a user expanding to see more text. Additionally, the words that appear in the first few sentences may be more influential for Search and Discovery.

2. Write 50 to 150 words that summarize and describe your video.

This text is helpful for viewers, but it's primarily there for bots. You should use any important keywords or phrases in this description.

For example, if I made a "How to Make Frosting' video, my YouTube description might say:
"Learn how to make frosting, including basic icing, dark chocolate frosting, and my famous cream cheese frosting, which is perfect for cupcakes."

This description is good, because it's written naturally, describes the video, and includes keywords (like "frosting"), without looking spammy or awkward.

3. Link to a few more of your relevant videos. 

List a few more videos (or a playlist) that viewers might like. Focus on your best, most relevant content for the subject matter of this video. This helps keep viewers engaged and helps train the Google recommendation algorithm, so your videos are suggested more often.

4. Remind viewers to subscribe. 

It never hurts to remind viewers to like and subscribe.

5. Add links to other platforms. 

It's always a good idea to build your audience on other platforms, to help make sure you can always reach your core audience. Include a short bio (like 1 sentence) and link to social media (like Instagram), your website, or your merch store.

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