Search engine optimisation (SEO) encompasses a range of strategies designed to improve the visibility of websites on search engine result pages. While many of these strategies apply to textual content, video content can also benefit greatly from optimisation. In particular, having accurate transcripts of video content can aid in improving search engine visibility. Firstly, we’ll discuss why transcripts of video content can help with SEO. Secondly, we’ll look at how closed captioning and subtitling can improve SEO. Thirdly, we will look to provide a list of things you can do to aid search engine optimisation. Finally, we will look at what to avoid.
Why Transcripts Matter
Transcripts of video content provide search engines with valuable textual content. This enables search engines to assess the relevance of the video to particular search queries. Search engines like Google analyse a range of factors to determine whether a video is relevant to a particular search query. Factors that are considered include the video title, description, and tags. It will also look at the textual content that surrounds the video. By providing an accurate transcript of your video content, you can help search engines understand what your video is about. It is this, therefore, which can improve visibility in search results.
Another reason that transcripts of video content are helpful for SEO is that they can be used to create captions and subtitles. Captions and subtitles are important for accessibility purposes. According to the World Health Organisation, more than 1.5 billion worldwide suffer from some form of hearing loss, which roughly equates to 20% of the world’s population. Closed captioning enables your content to be enjoyed by the hearing impaired. Therefore, it enables your content to access those 1.5 billion people worldwide who suffer hearing loss. However, closed captioning and subtitling can also improve search engine optimisation. Closed captioning can help search engines identify the topics covered in a video. This can help them better match the video with relevant search queries. Subtitles can also improve the visibility of the video by making it more accessible and shareable to a wider audience.
How Closed Captioning and Subtitling Can Help SEO
Closed captioning and subtitling are important tools for improving SEO for video content. It involves adding text to videos that is synchronised with the audio. Closed captions provide accessibility for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. However, they also provide the added benefit of making the video more search engine-friendly. Closed captions make it easier for search engines to understand the content of the video, which can help to improve search engine ranking.
Subtitling, on the other hand, involves adding text to a video that is not synchronised with the audio. Subtitles are typically used to provide translations of the audio into other languages, but they can also be used for other purposes. Such as providing a transcript of the video or highlighting key points. Like closed captioning, subtitling can help to improve SEO by providing search engines with additional textual content that they can use to understand the content of the video.
If you want to know more, why not read our blog post: why should you add closed captioning to video content.
Five Most Important Things to Do to Aid SEO of Video Content
1. Create accurate and detailed video descriptions: To improve the visibility of your video content, it’s important to create accurate and detailed descriptions. Your video description should include relevant keywords and key phrases that are related to the content of the video. This will help search engines to correctly categorise and rank your video content.
2. Optimise video titles and tags: In addition to creating accurate and detailed video descriptions, it’s important to optimise your video titles and tags. Your video title should be catchy and descriptive, while your tags should be relevant to the content of the video.
3. Use transcripts to improve search engine visibility: As discussed above, transcripts are an important tool for improving the visibility of your video content. Make sure to add transcripts to all of your video content, including closed captions and subtitles.
4. Share your video content on social media: Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube can be powerful tools for promoting your video content. Share your videos on these platforms to increase visibility and drive traffic to your website.
5. Use high-quality video production: The quality of your video content can also impact visibility and search engine ranking. Make sure to use professional-grade equipment and editing software to create high-quality videos that will catch the eye of potential viewers.
What to Avoid When Aiding SEO of Video Content
• Overusing keyword stuffing: While it’s important to use relevant keywords and key phrases in your video descriptions, titles, and tags, it’s also important to avoid overusing them. Overusing keywords can lead to a penalty from search engines, which can hurt your overall visibility.
• Creating low-quality video content: Low-quality video content can negatively impact search engine ranking. Ensure that your videos are well-produced and provide value to viewers.
• Neglecting to add transcripts, captions, or subtitles: As discussed earlier, transcripts, captions, and subtitles are important tools for improving SEO for video content. Neglecting to add these features can harm your visibility and make your video content less accessible.
• Forgetting to share your video content on social media: In addition to optimising video content for SEO, it’s important to promote it on social media. Social media platforms can help to drive traffic to your website and increase overall visibility.
• Ignoring analytics data: Analytics data can provide valuable insights into which videos are performing well and which ones are not.
• Failing to repurpose your transcripts as additional content.
How Can We Help?
Here at OutSec, we transcribe video content daily! We have trained webcast transcriptionists at hand to transcribe your content. So why not join the thousands of clients who prefer to use OutSec and let us help you grow your audience. Our Media and Interviews Division will be happy to help.
About OutSec
OutSec is the UK’s leading online transcription company whose business has grown substantially since 2002. We are one of the most successful transcription companies in the United Kingdom.
OutSec provides secure outsourced transcription services to the medical, legal, property and surveying, universities, media and interviews, advisory boards, conferences & seminars, inventories, financial, corporate, HR, recruitment and Executive Search sectors.
Why is Dictation More Efficient than Typing?
Well, the simple fact is that we can all speak considerably faster than we can physically type:
“The average person types between 38 and 40 words per minute”.
A “good rate of speech ranges between 140 -160 words per minute.”
In other words, dictation is up to four times faster than we can type. Therefore, simply dictating a document is more cost-efficient, giving you more time to dedicate your efforts elsewhere in your business.
Therefore why not add OutSec as a business continuity option for your business? Accounts are free, you pay on a per-minute basis (rounded to the nearest minute) on a pay-as-you-go basis, with no contracts or minimum spend. What do you have to lose? Why not open an account today!
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