Remember YouTube in the good old days? In the beginning, YouTube was a sandbox for the lazy creative. Families would post home-videos, schoolchildren would post clips of teachers being hit with various forms of fruit – and cats stole the limelight in dazzling acrobatic displays. Oh how things have changed.

Later, a new class of “YouTube Stars” took to the stage. Amateur Chinese comedians were getting millions of views, babies who bit each other became overnight sensations, and nerds playing with lightsabers became instant heroes. But now, in 2013, we stand in a YouTube environment that is inundated with corporate identities. The once-happy avenues of the YouTube village are now clogged up with advertising road-blocks. The big companies are moving in, and these are the six biggest crimes they have committed against YouTube.

1. Focusing too hard on “going viral”

We all know that viral videos are real, we’ve all seen those clips that we’ve then passed on to 10 or 12 people – but for corporate videos to go viral is a big ask, and it’s usually not the only measure of success. So what if a video reached 1 million people – were they your target audience? You’re better off forgetting about virality, and making sure your video reaches the right people – but more importantly – captivates the right people. Fewer than 1% of YouTube clips go viral anyway, so narrow down your approach and just maybe you’ll get lucky.

2. Not paying attention to detail

Behind Google, YouTube is the worlds second-largest search engine. And like all search engines, you can optimise your video so that it is easily found by the masses. I’m sure no one needs reminding about just how many videos are out there, so its essential that your video pops out among the rest. Here’s what Mashable suggests:

• 1. Only 160 characters of your video description will show in search results, so make sure the first few sentences of your video description are the most compelling.

• 2. Never underestimate the importance of eye-catching thumbnails. Think of them as mini-marketing posters for your content on YouTube. You should always create custom poster-frames and upload them along with video titles.

• 3. Titles should include what the popular content site Upworthy calls the “curiosity gap.” In other words, they should stoke — but not completely satisfy — a viewer’s curiosity.

3. “Post and Pray”

Some brands seem to think YouTube is just a matter of creating a video, and posting it online. You can just hear the ad men saying, “People will find it. Hey, they’ll  fuckin’ love it!” Well, in a matter of words, no. The sad fact of the matter is that 50% of the videos on Youtube never get more than 1,000 views. Mashable suggests doing the following if you want to really get noticed:

• Paid Placement: YouTube is built atop Google’s ad platform and offers a variety of ways to increase viewership with paid placement at great value. You can target your content based on age, gender, geography, keywords, search terms and interests. This is not cheating. I repeat: This is not cheating.

• PR and Influencer Outreach: Scoring placement on a popular blog or content site makes a difference. If people see an influencer tweet your video, or read about it on their favorite blog, chances are they’ll watch the content and share it themselves. But don’t “boil the ocean” with PR outreach. A post of your video on a niche trade blog might make more waves than one that’s hidden inside the depths of a tier-one publication, far from surfacing on its home page.

If you’re keen on seeing the other three reasons why brands fail on YouTube, head over to Mashable.

[Source : Mashable]