Every video shared online needs an effective description. Whether you add an explainer video to your website or upload an unboxing video to YouTube, you need to write a short text that explains what your video is all about.
Today, we will talk about how to create a compelling video description. Let’s dive into the topic and find out how you can maximize your video marketing efforts.
Why should you write a video description?
You need to write video descriptions for two reasons. Firstly, well-written descriptions engage the target audience and increase click-through rates.
Secondly, SEO-optimized descriptions improve the visibility of your content. By adding relevant keywords to the video description, you “invite” Google bots to crawl your website and rank it in the search results.
Tip #1 – Research keywords
First things first, you should create a list of keywords relevant to your video.
Let’s consider an example to understand what type of keywords you should add to your list. Imagine you created a video to promote your time management solution. Here are a few examples of keywords you may use:
- Long-tail keywords: time management solutions, time management problem, and solution, time management solutions tips
- Questions: how to improve in time management, how to use time management, how to overcome time management problems
- LSI keywords: time management meaning, solutions for business, business process optimization
- Keywords relevant to the current stage of customer journey and search intent:
- Informational – what is time management
- Navigational – advantages of XYZ time management software
- Transactional – time management software install now
- Commercial investigation – best affordable time management solution
Tip #2 – Put the most important information first
Once you define the words you need to use, you can start crafting the first draft.
Keep in mind that the opening line of your video description is the most important one. It should present the key idea of your video and entice users to click on the “play” button.
You should understand that modern people are busy people. They don’t have time to watch each and every video they come across on the web. If you don’t give the most important information upfront, convincing users that your video is worth their time, they will likely skip it.
How to write a killer opening line? Answer the users’ question, “What’s in it for me?”. Make it clear to the users how they will benefit from watching your video.
Let’s get back to our example and consider a few ideas for the opening statement:
- XYZ software will ease your life. Watch this video to know how you can free up an extra hour in a day.
- Check out our step-by-step guide on how to use XYZ software.
- Discover a time management solution that will take your business to the next level.
Tip #3 – Speak your customers’ language
Your video description should be written in your customers’ language.
Let’s say you have created an explainer video to introduce students to a new sophisticated topic. You should write a video description in simple language – you should use the words that students are familiar with. Why? If you use professional jargon, you will scare students away – students will wrongly believe that the topic of your explainer video is too challenging for them to understand.
Here are a few things for you to consider when writing a product description:
- You need to decide whether it’s appropriate to use jargon, slang, shortenings, acronyms, and idioms.
- You should set a suitable tone of voice. The tone can be educational, professional, friendly, or engaging. It should match the tone of your video.
In case if you target a global audience, you should write everything in plain English. You should simplify the text to make sure that even non-English speakers will be able to read and understand it.
Tip #4 – Keep it short and sweet
If you want to engage your audience with your video description, be brief. Provide only the most important details and create intrigue – make people want to click the “Play” button and watch your entire video.
The shorter you keep your video description, the higher the marketing results you will achieve. Here are a few tips on how you can improve your video description and make it easy to read:
- Don’t use the passive voice where you can write a sentence in an active voice.
- Keep your sentences short. Break lengthy sentences into smaller ones.
- Replace wordy phrases with one word if possible. For instance, you can use the word “daily” instead of “on a daily basis” and the verb “decide” instead of “make a decision”.
Tip #5 – Proofread it
Make sure that your video description is free from grammatical and spelling errors. Proofread the text aloud or use online grammar checkers.
Don’t skip this important step of writing a description! Be aware that poor grammar affects credibility and results in a bad first impression. If users spot at least one mistake in your video description, your video marketing efforts will be doomed to failure.
Tip #6 – Add tags and hashtags
Are you going to share your video on social media? Make sure to add a few relevant hashtags and tags. It will help you improve the visibility of your content and reach a wider audience.
Write a killer video description to maximize your marketing efforts
You don’t have to be a professional writer to create a compelling video description. You just need to have a clear understanding of who your target audience is and what your video is all about. Use these six tips, and you will complete this writing task with ease.
About the Author:
Jessica Fender is a copywriter and blogger at Ultius with a background in marketing and sales. She enjoys sharing her experience with like-minded professionals who aim to provide customers with high-quality services.