The Ultimate YouTube Description Template [With Tips & Examples]10 min read

It can be hard trying to build subscribers on YouTube when you know 1 billion hours of YouTube videos are being streamed every day. With high popularity comes higher competition. That’s why it’s crucial to differentiate yourself using things like proper video descriptions. And to do that, you’re better off using a YouTube description template.

We’ve all been there; binge-watching random videos on YouTube for hours on end. But how can marketers take away all the attention from these famous random videos and bring more video views to their own YouTube channel?

Like any perfect YouTube video title, thumbnail, video size, the perfect Youtube description can get you more views and engagement. YouTubers work hard to create amazing video content to work through YouTube’s algorithm, but to increase engagement, you need good video descriptions too.

In this article, we’re going to discuss video descriptions and go check out some YouTube description template examples, along with some tips to help you with your YouTube marketing.

Let’s dive right in!

What Exactly is a YouTube Video Description?

For starters, video descriptions are the text below your video, in the video description section. Now, you need to focus on descriptions for both your videos and your channel. This will help viewers understand what exactly they’re getting into and what to expect.

A well-written description makes it easier for your viewers to find content and decide on watching it. It also gives them a clear idea of what to expect in the video, and it gives you a chance to share relevant links and additional information.

For long videos, it shouldn’t be necessary for viewers to watch the entire video to know if it fits their search intention. A description would be like a summary in this case.

It is important to optimize your description to fit the algorithm since more than 70% of what people watch on YouTube is heavily reliant on its recommended algorithm. This will make your video easy to find. Also, the goal is to convert those one-time viewers into long-term subscribers.

To make things super easy for you, we have a YouTube description template for different types of video content. Using these you can focus on the heavy lifting for creating and planning amazing video content without having to worry about YouTube marketing.

We’re going to discuss the dos and don’ts for both the descriptions along with some YouTube description template examples for different kinds of video content.

Furthermore, we’ll also go over some basic YouTube SEO to make sure keyword research is done correctly. Lastly, we’ll go over the terms you’ve used, including the ideal length and how to optimize for CTR (click-through rate).

What to Include and What NOT to Include in your YouTube Video Description

There are a few things to keep in mind when writing your YouTube video description.

Firstly, you should be able to explain what your video is about. Keep in mind that YouTube descriptions are completely different from a web page meta description.

You have a limit of 5000 characters in your description box. However, it’s all plain text, and there is no way to differentiate titles from the body copy. Although, you can use asterisks or caps to mix it up a little.

Despite the fact that you have 5000 characters to play with, you should try to include all the main details in the first 3 lines which are visible to the viewer. But, don’t just stuff it with all the keywords at once.

It should be clear and concise to keep your viewers from getting confused. If you think you need to be more detailed, then go ahead with it, but don’t overwhelm the reader. If you have a lot of information to cover, try using bullet points or short paragraphs instead.

Adding timestamps is also important if you have a long video or tutorial that covers a wider range of topics. It’s recommended to add timestamps if the duration of your video is longer than 10 minutes. It helps people who are searching for a selected topic or specific chapter to navigate through the content that you have covered.

This feature is very consistent and extremely helpful; that’s why a lot of YouTubers have adopted it.

All you have to do is manually add timestamps with titles of the topic in your description box. You can even get a featured snippet on Google SERPs when searching for that topic.

When someone does click on the suggested video timestamp feature from Google, it’ll take them to the video on the exact topic timestamp. It’s a great way to be more user-friendly with your subscribers.

Other Things to Add in Your Video Descriptions

Another common practice should be to include relevant links to other related videos, or any additional resources that might help viewers. Anything you talk about in your video, any tool, product, or even person, try to link to it.

Similarly, you can also link to other video content that you’ve created. For example, if it’s a series, you can add the previous and the next part in the description so people can easily navigate through it.

This is important if you later want to monetize your YouTube channel through other affiliated links. This goes for general content creators, but especially those who are or are looking to become influencers.

You should also link to anyone or anything when you need to give them credit for something, such as music, services, or even quotes. This brings credibility to your account and will make the viewers trust you more. It also saves you from copyright issues and violations that can potentially lead to deleted content.

You should also have video thumbnails that also show what the video will be about since that is the first thing that will catch a viewer’s attention after the title. However, you need to make sure that you understand the ideal YouTube thumbnail size.

Last but not least, always remembers to add a CTA (call-to-action). You need to have a CTA to grow your audience, whether it’s your YouTube subscribers, Facebook likes, Instagram followers, or Twitter followers.

For whatever reason you are making videos, add a CTA to it, regardless of whether you’re trying to increase the number of subscribers, trying to increase sign-ups to your website, or even bringing followers to your social media links.

YouTube Video Description Keywords

You need to find the right keyword for your YouTube video descriptions. One way for YouTube to know what content is in the video is the keywords used in the YouTube descriptions.

YouTube is the second-largest search engine in the world, with 3 billion searches every month. That makes it bigger than Yahoo, Bing, Duck Duck Go, and other search engines.

That is why it’s important to do keyword research to get to know what your target audience is searching for. Keywords also help with choosing the best video tags and your video title.

It’s also better to use your keywords early in the description. Think of it as a YouTube SEO shortcut of sorts. When you’re optimizing, it’s not only for one search engine, it’s for all of them, but your first priority should be YouTube and Google.

Afterward, there is a possibility to find out how your tactic worked out by using SE Ranking Ranking Tracker. It helps easily to track chosen keywords and understand their rankings across YouTube

Video SEO is somewhat different from other forms of SEO. Therefore, it’s important to understand the techniques for it.

In any case, use the terms that you think people will use when they search for your content. You can do so by checking out similar content or you can use Google Trends to help you out. When you have your focus keyphrase, make sure to use the keyword at least 2-3 times.

3 YouTube Description Template Examples You Can Use in 2021

Now you know exactly what to fill in the blanks for the YouTube description template. Below we have a few copy-paste templates that will help you get your formatting right.

Your video description should be around 200 words for each video, on average. This is enough for potential viewers to understand what to expect from the video.

As content creators, your objective should be to whip up something unique. That’s how you can create the best YouTube description that will help you stand apart from others.

For good practice, try to write like you would be talking to a friend; add your personality and make it brief.

A single YouTube description template will never work for every type of video content, but here’s the general format below:

• First sentence: Should be captivating enough for viewers to get hooked. It can be clickbait but it’s better to write a one-line summary that engages interested viewers.
• First section: 2-4 sentences explaining what the content will be about, or what topics you will cover. This is better off done in bullet points or numbers.
• Second section: Add credits for anything that was included in the video, such as any video reels or music you’ve added, or any product, services, or channels you’ve mentioned. If your video is longer than 10 minutes, try to add timestamps for each section of the video.
• Third section: Add anything you were trying to promote or want to tag in the video. Don’t forget to put in the CTA and your social media links so people know where to find you.

Also, use hashtags, since they will be hyperlinked. The first three hashtags are always shown below the video title, so make sure they’re relevant.

You can add any of the YouTube description template examples below by going to your videos through the Creator Studio. Go to Channel, and then save it to the ‘Upload Defaults’ option if you regularly post new videos.

YouTube Description Template Example #1

YouTube Description Template Example #2

YouTube Description Template Example #3

In conclusion

Using a YouTube description template reduces your time to optimize every video you upload.

If you’re just getting started with YouTube, use a YouTube name generator to choose a name for your channel. Upload a profile picture, but make sure you follow the YouTube profile picture size requirements.

It’s also a good practice to add a banner image; you will need to follow the YouTube banner size requirements for that too. After you’re done, upload your first video and use a YouTube description template from above to write your video description and publish it

I would recommend tweaking the template a bit to make it seem more personal, according to your channel. Use language you know your audience will understand and resonate with. You can always use Pixelied’s editor if you want to create captivating video thumbnails.

Do all of that consistently and you’ll have a fast-growing YouTube channel.