Companies often hire SEO experts because there are many interlocking parts necessary to ensuring your content not only retains subscribers but adds them at a sustainable rate. Video tags are a part of that.
Any quality YouTube channel audit for creators will look at the intersection of titles, descriptions, and video tags, then analyze how each affects viewer behavior. Auditing your YouTube video tags involves assessing relevance, alignment with search intent, and consistency across your channel.
Why Audit YouTube Video Tags?
Tags are an important part of success for YouTube channels because they help the system categorize videos for which titles or descriptions are ambiguous or misspelled.
Video tags should not be thought of as a growth strategy in their own right, but rather a supporting structure or safety net. Because of this, it’s important to occasionally assess your tags as they relate to search trends and your viewer base to make sure all your bases are covered.
The Role of Video Tags
First, you must understand the role of tags so that you can accurately assess their value and performance.
Video tags can:
- Provide alternate spellings and phrasings
- Clarify topics
- Reinforce themes
Video tags do not:
- Make up for weak titles
- Change retention or watch time
- Compensate for substandard thumbnails
Video tags are part of an SEO plan that includes multiple factors. Knowing what they can and can’t do for you is necessary to auditing them.
Tags to Remove
Next, find the video tags that aren’t putting in any work for you or may be damaging your content. Watch every video and remove tags that are too generic or based on broad keywords that could apply to any video.
Replace these with tags specifically tied to content they’re meant for. You should also delete tags that are left over from old content or messaging your channel has moved away from.
Eliminate redundant tags (for example, the same word spelled as a singular and a plural). Also be sure to check that your tags are not competing by pointing to different specific topics.
You want your tags to be clear and specific. They should drive viewers to what they’re looking for and reduce internal competition across your videos.
Consider Search Intent
A key part of effective SEO is knowing how people search for content, not how you or other businesses talk about it. Quality audits compare title choices with top search terms related to your content.
Once you’ve done this, review your tags again and make sure they reflect the language your audience uses. Look at trends and habits, then put yourself in your (both existing and targeted) viewers’ shoes.
Standardize Tags
Channels of all sizes benefit from standardization. If you’re starting out, it’s important your content is quickly recognizable as your brand. If your channel is established, standardization can save you time on every video you release.
A standardized tag framework should include:
- Your channel name
- Your brand name
- The specific topic or niche your content relates to
- Any subject that is part of a recurring series or chain of videos
YouTube’s algorithm seeks to connect videos within the same environment, so auditing your tags can help with your suggested video placement.
Look for Patterns
One of the best tools for a YouTube channel audit is learning to uncover patterns. Even though video tags aren’t the engine driving your channel, a thorough audit means making a chart of your high and low performing videos. Break down the data to see views, retention, and click-through rates for videos, then look at the tags applied to each of them.
Do your most successful videos have something in common? Do underperforming videos use or lack the same tags? Completing a useful YouTube channel audit can be difficult because of the massive amount of data and the expertise required to see the patterns inside it. This is one of the reasons it’s a smart move to hire an expert.
Let grouphugs Help
For brands and content creators looking to understand the role of video tags and how to grow their channel, grouphugs is the one of the best resources. We specialize in channels of all sizes, and we can do what individuals can’t.
The experts at grouphugs know how to effectively ensure consistency across content libraries, understand viewer intent, standardize metadata, and track detailed performance numbers. We understand why video tags matter, and how to tell if you’re leaving potential viewers on the table. Avoid common YouTube channel audit mistakes by letting us take the wheel!
