As we all know, YouTube is the most popular video hosting site in the digital world. YouTube is Google’s lovely child, and now, more than billions of users join using Gmail.
If you’re done making your first explainer video, the next step is to promote and spread it. Yes, you’re ready to share it with the world. How to do it?
You are considering that there are a plethora of video platforms out there. Which one should you choose? You can upload your video to all available video-sharing networks on the Internet and see how many views or downloads you get there, but most of us need more time to hunt down every site. So, which one will you choose?
- There are many options, but we will tell you about the three platforms we feel are the best. Drum roll, please!
Top Three Video Sites:
- YouTube
- Vimeo
- Wistia
Getting started with YouTube:
Why YouTube?
One thing’s for sure. YouTube is the largest video platform out there. More than 1 billion people are using YouTube, and they generate 4 billion views per day. If you want to get your video out there and make sure that it’s searchable (through Google, other search engines, and YouTube), you should upload your video on YouTube ASAP.
How to Upload Your Animated Explainer Video on YouTube?
Prepare Your Video:
Before you start uploading your video, there are several things that you must consider beforehand. There are tons of videos on YouTube, and one way to make them stand out is to cross yours T’s and dot your I’s. And that means making your video as close to perfect as possible. Here are some things to check before you upload:
Check the size of your video:
- Youtube uses a 16:9 ratio, so you should try to format your video to use one of the following sizes:
YouTube Review
- 1920px x 1080px
- 1280px x 720px
- 640px x 480px
- 480px x 360px
- 320px x 240px
The larger, the better, so use the giant HD version available. This way, you can be sure that your video will show the best quality on any size screen because YouTube will automatically resize the video based on the size of the viewer’s screen.
- While file size is essential, there are more crucial factors than this. The reason is that YouTube will convert the video for streaming purposes.
Check your video format:
This step is essential because YouTube does not support all video formats. Here are some video formats that YouTube supports:
- MOVE
- MPEG4
- MP4
- AVI
- WMV
- MPEG-PS
- FLV
- 3GPP
- WebM
If your video isn’t one of the formats listed above, you will have some notifications from YouTube, like this picture below:
YouTube Review
This is because YouTube doesn’t want its viewers to see a ‘stranded’ video that doesn’t look good when it’s played. It automatically detects if the bitrate is good enough or not. But there’s a caveat: when you upload a compressed animated video, it doesn’t always need to have a high bitrate.
Here’s a guideline on the smallest bitrate you should have to avoid any issues when uploading to YouTube:
Start Uploading:
After you are sure about the compatibility of your video, you can start uploading your video onto YouTube by hitting the “upload button.” Sometimes, an error may occur during the upload process. These are some problems that may arise:
“We have encountered unexpected problems.”
If you get this message, the problem comes from YouTube itself. You can try again after waiting a bit.
“The server has rejected the file.”
This typical error comes from your file. Make sure you are naming your file with a standard character.
“An error has occurred while sending data over the network.”
If you get this message, check your browser. Do you use the latest version or not? An outdated web browser usually causes this.
“An error has occurred while reading the uploaded file.”
This problem may occur if your video file is on an external drive, a flash drive, an external hard drive, or a camera. Put your file on your internal hard drive and make sure you can read it.
YouTube Review
- “A security error has occurred.”
- Check your antivirus, firewall, or anti-spyware setting to resolve this issue.
Publishing Your Video:
- Once you have your video uploaded, you will choose the options on how to publish your video.
- There are three types of viewing preferences:
Public:
Use this option if you want to allow everyone to see your video. This feature is the best option for promoting videos.
Unlisted:
Only people who know the video URL can see the video. Use this option if you only want to share your video with specific people, for example, your work team.
Private:
As the video owner, only you can choose YouTube subscribers and see the video. Your video won’t appear on any newsfeed or search results.
Spread the Word:
Now, it’s time to let the world know about your video and ensure it is being watched and driving traffic to your website or landing page.
Facebook:
Facebook can drive traffic to your video. Please share with your family and friends, and ask them to help spread your video.
Twitter:
Tweet your video to your followers and ask them to retweet your post.
Blog:
Post your video on your blog, so your blog’s subscribers can see the video immediately.
Online forum:
If you are an active user of an online forum, create a thread about your video, and it can quickly drive traffic to your video.
For more details on promoting your video, read our previous article that covers promoting on the Internet for more detailed steps.
Author Bio:
Andre Oentoro is the founder of Breadnbeyond, an award-winning explainer video company. He helps businesses increase conversion rates, close more sales, and get positive ROI from explainer videos (in that order).
