Ranking YouTube videos to get a high volume of views involves a combination of YouTube SEO

(Search Engine Optimization) and audience retention strategies. It's about making your videos
discoverable and then keeping people engaged.
Here's an easy-to-follow process and method:
I. The Foundation: Content is King (and Retention is Queen)
Before anything else, focus on creating high-quality, engaging content that provides value to
your target audience. YouTube's algorithm prioritizes videos that keep people watching.
1.​ Solve a Problem or Fulfill a Need: What questions can your video answer? What
entertainment can it provide? Think about what your audience is searching for.
2.​ Hook Viewers Early: The first 15-30 seconds are critical. Grab their attention
immediately.
3.​ Maintain Engagement: Keep the pacing good, use visuals, varied camera angles,
background music, and clear audio. Avoid dead air or unnecessary rambling.
4.​ Optimal Length: While longer videos (over 8 minutes) allow for mid-roll ads and can
accumulate more watch time, ensure every minute is valuable. Don't stretch content for
the sake of length.
5.​ Quality Production: Good audio and video quality are non-negotiable. Viewers will click
away from poor production.
II. The Discovery Phase: YouTube SEO
This is how people find your videos through search and recommendations.
1.​ Keyword Research (The Most Important Step):
○​ Think Like Your Audience: What would you type into the Youtube bar to find a
video like yours?
○​ Youtube Bar Autocomplete: Start typing your topic into the Youtube bar. The
suggestions YouTube provides are popular search terms.
○​ "People Also Ask" / Related Searches: Look at these sections on Google and
YouTube for ideas.
○​ Competitor Analysis: Look at the titles, descriptions, and tags of top-ranking
videos in your niche (tools like TubeBuddy or vidIQ can help with this, or you can
manually check).
○​ Google Trends: See what topics are trending in your niche.
○​ Aim for a Mix: Include broad keywords, specific keywords, and long-tail keywords
(longer, more specific phrases).
○​ Low Competition Keywords: Especially when starting out, look for keywords that
have decent search volume but aren't dominated by massive channels.
2.​ Optimize Your Video File Name:
○​ Before uploading, rename your video file to include your main target keyword.
Example: instead of "Video_001.mp4", use "How_to_Tie_a_Tie_Easy_Steps.mp4".
This gives YouTube an early signal about your content.
3.​ Craft a Compelling Title:
○​ Include Your Main Keyword: Ideally, put it at the beginning of the title.
○​ Be Clickable & Engaging: Use numbers, power words, questions, or benefits to
entice viewers.
○​ Keep it Concise: Aim for around 60 characters to avoid it being cut off in search
results.
○​ Accurate: Don't use clickbait titles that mislead viewers; it will hurt your audience
retention.
4.​ Write a Detailed Description:
 ○​ First 2-3 Lines are Crucial: Include your main keyword and a hook that makes
people want to watch. This is what shows up before "Show More."
○​ Elaborate & Keyword Rich: Provide a comprehensive summary of your video.
Use your main keyword and related keywords naturally throughout the description
(aim for 2-4 times).
○​ Timestamps/Chapters: For longer videos, add timestamps to help viewers
navigate. This also gives YouTube more context about your video's content.
○​ Call to Actions (CTAs): Encourage viewers to subscribe, like, comment, or check
out related videos/playlists.
○​ Relevant Links: Link to your social media, website, products mentioned, or other
relevant videos.
5.​ Strategic Tags:
○​ Include Your Main Keyword: Use it as your first tag.
○​ Use Variations: Add variations of your main keyword and related topics.
○​ Don't Keyword Stuff: Use relevant tags only. Irrelevant tags can hurt your ranking.
○​ Use YouTube's Suggestions: As you type tags, YouTube will suggest others.
○​ Competitor Tags (Use Sparingly): You can include competitor channel names in
tags if your video directly relates to content they produce, but focus primarily on
terms relevant to your own video.
6.​ Design an Irresistible Custom Thumbnail:
○​ High Resolution: 1280x720 pixels (16:9 aspect ratio) is recommended.
○​ Clear & Engaging: It should stand out, be easy to read, and clearly convey the
video's topic.
○​ Use Text (Sparingly): Keep text short, bold, and easy to understand.
○​ Emotion & Curiosity: Use facial expressions or intriguing visuals to grab attention.
○​ Consistency: Maintain a consistent branding style for your thumbnails.
7.​ Add Closed Captions/Subtitles:
○​ Improves accessibility.
○​ Provides more text for YouTube to understand your video's content, boosting SEO.
○​ Edit auto-generated captions for accuracy.
III. The Engagement & Promotion Phase
YouTube doesn't just look at SEO; it also heavily weighs how viewers interact with your content.
1.​ Encourage Engagement:
○​ Ask Questions: In your video, ask viewers to leave comments.
○​ Respond to Comments: Engage with your audience; it builds community and
signals to YouTube that your channel is active.
○​ Likes & Shares: Encourage viewers to like and share your video if they found it
valuable.
2.​ Use Cards and End Screens:
○​ Cards: Appear during the video to link to other videos, playlists, or your website.
Use them to keep viewers on your channel.
○​ End Screens: Appear in the last 5-20 seconds of your video. Use them to
encourage subscriptions, promote other videos, or link to a playlist. This increases
watch time on your channel.
3.​ Create Playlists:
○​ Group related videos into playlists. This keeps viewers watching more of your
content, increasing channel watch time. Optimize playlist titles and descriptions with
keywords.
 4.​ Cross-Promote Your Videos:
○​ Social Media: Share your YouTube videos on other platforms (Facebook,
Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.). Don't just post a link; create compelling
snippets or graphics to entice clicks.
○​ Website/Blog: Embed your YouTube videos in relevant blog posts or on your
website.
○​ Email List: If you have an email newsletter, share your latest videos there.
5.​ Consistency is Key:
○​ Regularly uploading content trains your audience to expect new videos and gives
YouTube more content to recommend. Develop a content calendar.
6.​ Analyze Your Analytics:
○​ YouTube Studio Analytics: This is your goldmine.
■​ Traffic Sources: Where are your views coming from? (Youtube, Suggested
Videos, Browse Features, External). This tells you what's working.
■​ Audience Retention: Crucial! See exactly where viewers drop off. This tells
you what parts of your videos might be boring or confusing.
■​ Click-Through Rate (CTR): How often do people click on your video after
seeing its thumbnail and title? A low CTR means you need to improve your
thumbnails or titles.
■​ Watch Time: The total accumulated time viewers spend watching your
videos. High watch time is a strong ranking factor.
○​ Use these insights to refine your strategy for future videos.
By implementing this easy process and consistently focusing on both discoverability (SEO) and
viewer engagement (retention), you'll significantly increase your chances of ranking your
YouTube videos and attracting a high volume of views.