So, you’ve read our previous post on getting started with YouTube, you’ve explored the basics — maybe posted some videos to share — and decided you like playing with the platform. Now it’s time to really up your game and have YouTube do some proper marketing for you and your business. 

In this article we’re going to explore:

• YouTube business branding
• End cards
• Adding your logo to videos

Let’s get started…

Branding your YouTube channel

It’s worth taking a bit of time to optimize and brand your actual YouTube channel. This is in addition to your video thumbnails, so if someone searches specifically for your channel, they recognize your brand and know they’re in the right place. Thankfully YouTube makes this super simple to do.

You can customize these elements on your channel, so it’s aligned with your branding style guide:

• Profile picture – usually your logo but can be a picture of you
• Banner image – the narrow image that heads your channel
• Channel description – a short description of what your channel is about and who it’s for
• Social links – so viewers can jump directly to your other content
• Channel trailer – this is a short video introducing who you are and what you do
• Custom URL – so instead of a string of numbers and letters after ‘https://www.youtube.com/channel/’ your chosen channel name or business name will display instead

Banner images are easy to create in Canva. Just do a search for the YouTube banner template to get the correct dimensions. Note: you might need to tweak your design, so it shows well on mobile and desktop. 

Add end cards

Once you’ve set up the branding and customization for your channel, the next tweak you can make is to your videos themselves by adding end cards — or “End Screens” as YouTube now calls them — to your videos.

What are end cards

End cards are often used to link to other videos; they’re essentially a “card” on the screen at the end of a video that links to somewhere else. They encourage your viewer to do something such as purchase a product, subscribe to your channel or watch another video.

The easiest way to create visually appealing end cards is to create a graphic in Canva. Include a place holder spot for a visual link to another related video and a placeholder for a clickable image for people to subscribe.

When you create your video, add 20 sec of your end card image with some music over it. Then, when you upload your video to YouTube, you can add the links to your end card.

If you don’t want to create a template, you can also add them in YouTube directly without the use of a specific graphic.

End card example:

Creating end cards in YouTube

When you’re in YouTube studio, select a video to edit (or do this step when you upload a video), then click on “End screen”:

You’ll see this:

Choose the configuration of elements you want. (You can easily drag the elements around to find a layout you like.) Then select the elements you want to add — videos, playlists or a subscribe link — by clicking on the “+ Element” button at the top. Finally, set where in your video you want the elements to appear and how long you want them on screen.

Calls to action (CTAs)

The elements in end cards are specific “calls to action” links, aimed at keeping your viewers’ interest with more videos or having them interact further with your channel by subscribing.

But you can also include a call to action in the content itself (although this needs planning to include as part of the script). A typical CTA is when a YouTuber says something like “Smash that subscribe button” but it doesn’t have to be that cheesy. “Subscribe now”, “Check out this video” <points to video in top right corner of screen> are all typical CTA’s. You can even include the next step in your marketing funnel by saying something like “Download X here/Get your free…” and having a link button or image appear in your video.

Add your logo to videos

And finally, you can make videos recognizably yours (and harder to steal!) by adding your logo to the videos you create. You can do it in video editing software, but YouTube makes this very easy.

Click on your profile image to open the dropdown menu. Choose “YouTube Studio” to be taken to your dashboard.

Once you’re in the dashboard, go to “Customization”.

Then scroll waaaay down the page until you find “Video watermark”.

From here you can upload your logo image if you’ve not already done it. Then set where you want your logo watermark to appear through your videos.

Where to start?

If your brain is reeling with all the information, you might be wondering how to get started without drowning in the tech. But you already know how to break big projects into manageable pieces — you’re a dog trainer!

Think, plan, do…

Just like anything, to create effective videos for YouTube marketing, it helps to have a plan before you start. Decide on what your video topic is going to be and the message you want to get across. Keep it focused! Create a rough outline for your video. The usual format is teaser, intro, content.

A typical video outline:

• Open with you talking to the camera – intro to topic
• Quick intro to your channel – so people know they’re in the right place (include a call to action to subscribe!)
• Cut to video of the actual dog training with voiceover describing process/what you’re doing
• Cut back to talking head with call to action (CTA)
• Cut back to content of dog training + voiceover
• End card
• Wrap-up screen

If you don’t like talking to the camera, try just having a voice over instead. Still shy? Have text annotations in the video. You can add these with video editing software such as iMovie. Your video doesn’t have to rival the latest blockbuster movie to be effective!

Create your video (or choose one you want to use), including a thumbnail. Upload them to YouTube with an optimized title and description then add end cards and CTAs as you want.

On the fence?

If you’re not ready to hold your nose and jump in the YouTube deep-end, I recommend dipping your toe in with the following:

• Pick a few videos to make public (even if they’re just short 45 second clips of you doing something you’re well-known for)
• Optimize their titles and descriptions 
• Consider creating one additional “optimized” video per quarter 
• Do the “set and forget” YouTube branding steps (channel branding and info, thumbnail template, add your logo on your videos)

Sharing your stuff

Whether you go all in, or just do some toe-dipping, you’re going to want to share your content. It pays to help the algorithm along by putting your videos in front of eyeballs to get things started — but when sharing, keep in mind:

• Don’t share the YouTube video link on social! The social media platforms don’t like sending people away from their platform, so your post won’t get much traction that way. 
• DO share YouTube links in emails and include them in blog posts.

So, there you have it. All you ever needed to know to become a YouTube marketing whizz for your business. We always love your feedback so be sure to let us know things go in the comments.