Since their inception in 2007, hashtags have proven to be effective groupers of content. They are so good at putting content on any platform in categories. Because of hashtags, it is now easier for social media users to find content that interests them. For example, on YouTube, users don’t have to scroll through an endless list of videos to find what they are looking for. While they can use the native search function to narrow it down, the search results are still not specific. Hashtags remove this inconvenience. Using them in searches will make those and only those videos using that hashtag appear. People can also click on a hashtag to see more videos revolving around the subject.
Hashtags are everyone’s friends. They allow efficient use of viewers’ free time by making searches easier to do. Then for content creators, using hashtags improve the discoverability of their videos. For businesses looking to promote their brand and products on the platform, this is important. In fact, it is highly recommended that brands use hashtags on their videos. Not doing so means losing lots of potential views.
Likely, a brand has spent some cash for its marketing campaign on YouTube. So, some way to earn that money back is much appreciated. Now, YouTube provides that opportunity. It is known as a social media that empowers its users by letting them earn money through views. If the brand’s videos can garner lots of views, the company would not just break even. There is a high chance that they can earn more than what they brought out. And a key to ensuring this is the correct use of hashtags.
Here, we will discuss everything you need to know about hashtags on YouTube.
How to Add Hashtags To Your Videos
Attaching hashtags on your YouTube video is relatively easy. You just include them in your video title or description. Now, there are three places where hashtags will be displayed – and they have different interactions. So you should keep this in mind.
You can enter up to 15 hashtags on your video description. Be sure to keep count as YouTube will not read all of them as hashtags if you enter more than that.
The first of three of those will appear at the top of your title. However, if you put a hashtag on the title, the ones in the description will not appear at the top. It will overrule them.
1On mobile, there is also an option to add location hashtags. Like hashtags in the title, location hashtags overrule hashtags in the description.
All hashtags will be hyperlinked. Clicking on them will bring a user to a search result page where the hashtag is used as the keyword.
Also, the hashtags may not immediately show after you make the post. This is normal. Wait for about 10 – 15 minutes, and then reload the page. The hashtags should be visible by then.
Which Hashtags to Use
The first thing that would occur to you is to use the most popular hashtags. However, according to YouTube Autosuggest, the ten most popular hashtags include ‘#nurseryrhymes,’ ‘#peppapig,’ and ‘#kidssongs’ Obviously, not all brands can use these, like not all brands can buy YouTube views.
What you need to find is something more specific. These are popular topics that relate to your content and are relevant in your location. Also, it would be best if you reserve one of the first three hashtags for a branded one. This will bring people to a page dominated by your content when they click it.
Where Can You Look for Relevant Hashtags?
You can start by looking on YouTube Trending for a video related to yours. See if it contains a hashtag, and if it does, enter it on the search bar. Filter the results so that it only shows recent posts. Then, observe which ones have many views. There, you would find hashtags you can use. You can also look at the channels of your biggest competitors or famous people. For example, cooks can search for hashtags in Gordon Ramsay’s videos.
Also, you can try online tools outside of YouTube. Hashtagify and RiteTag are primary examples. These will show you trending or popular hashtags and even those that do not work well.
YouTube Hashtag Policies
YouTube enforces a group of rules to ensure that there will be a proper use of hashtags on the platform. Always keep these in mind to avoid troublesome situations.
No Over-tagging
A video should contain no more than 15 hashtags. Otherwise, YouTube will ignore them all. You are better off simply going to the top 10 sites to buy YouTube views.
Misleading Content
You should never use hashtags that are not related to your video just so you can drive more traffic to your channel.
Harassment & Hate Speech
Hashtags should not be used for humiliating, threatening, or cyberbullying any group or individual. Likewise, users should not use them to promote violence or spread hatred against any individual or group.
Sexual Content
Videos containing sexual or explicit hashtags or sexually provocative will be removed from the platform.
Vulgar Language
Hashtags with profanity and offensive terms are semi-forbidden. Two things can happen if you use these.
One, your video could become age-restricted. Users cannot view these if they are under 18 or signed out. Also, these videos will not be viewable on most third-party websites. So, if you embed your videos on your website, this could be a problem.
The other thing that can happen is your video being removed altogether.
Non-Hashtags Hashtags
YouTube will impose a penalty or remove the videos of users who will repeat sentences in their video’s description as hashtags.
Summary
The purpose of adding hashtags is to improve searchability. Hashtags make it easier for people to find your video. That results in more views, likes, comments, subscribers, and shares you will have. Thus, it also results in affecting your SEO and YouTube rankings positively. Though you should choose your hashtags carefully; else, you would not be able to enjoy those benefits. Still, that should not dissuade you from using hashtags – especially since all you need to do is adhere to the guidelines. Not doing so is passing on a great opportunity.