Branding means creating your channel’s identity and attracts viewers and makes them permanent by bringing them back for more. Most viewers will be looking for a particular video which he will be introduced to, and then from that, he will be introduced to your channel. Branding on YouTube will let the audience know that it is you from just a glance.
There are few techniques which one should keep in mind to design impactful branding and feature it across YouTube.
- Create a Sensational Brand on YouTube.
- Focus on the Content: The brand which you create on YouTube should correspond to the content you produce and should convey the essence of what the viewers are expecting to see now and in the future to come.
- Keep it Conversant: Maintain the theme of your channel/brand, so that the viewers know what you are trying to communicate and what the viewers should expect.
- Make it Discernible: Branding of your YouTube channel should be done is such a way that it is easier for viewers to find your video. Try using consistent metadata such as titles and also try posting it on Social Media which will help viewers sift your channel easily.
- Channel Icon
The Channel Icon which you create represents your channel everywhere across Google and YouTube, so make sure that it is properly visible. Your icon will appear on the left-hand side of your Channel’s Art Banner and also on the Watch Page.
Your icon can also be featured on the right-hand side of somebody else’s Channel’s page if they select you as one of their featured channels.
- Channel Art
Channel Art is the banner of your YouTube Channel which appears on the top of the channel. You can flaunt your channel’s personality which appears on different platforms like TVs, Mobiles, and Laptops using Channel Art where the viewers can view your channel. The image of your Channel Art should be at least 2560 X 1440px.
- Channel Description
The channel description is shown in the About tab of your YouTube channel which gives the overview of your channel where the viewers get to know what your channel is all about. You can include up to one thousand characters and can also have links which redirect the viewers to the pages of your Social Media.
- Custom Thumbnails
Custom Thumbnails provides a consistent look to all the videos of your YouTube Channel so that the viewer from the thumbnail itself can come to know that the video he has viewed belongs to a particular channel. Custom Thumbnails helps the channel to increase the number of views and subscribers for the YouTube channel. Canva and PicMonkey are the two tools that help you create Custom Thumbnails
- Cards
Cards are clickable overlays that appear at the time of your video which provides information about related videos, associated websites and more which have been announced to replace annotations. Cards do appear in the mobile as well as desktop. Content creators can insert cards for merchandise sales, fundraising efforts, other videos, YouTube playlist, and web links and so on.
- Hover Cards
Hover Cards are pop-ups so when anyone rolls his mouse over any channel name or over the channel’s icon one can get the description like Channel Name, Channel Art, Channel Icon, Description and Subscribe Button if the viewer has not subscribed.
- Watermark
Watermark is an embedded logo which appears at the bottom right corner of each of your videos of your channel. Watermark logo helps you promote your brand at a certain moment across every video. Watermark can also appear throughout the video till the time it is running. The watermark helps the viewers subscribe your channel without having to stop or leave the video. Watermarks allow the viewers to see that the video comes from the watermark.
- What type of visual messaging do you want to convey using a watermark?
- Do you want to use your logo, or instead add an image that invites viewers to subscribe?
- Channel Trailer
When you want to introduce the viewers to your channel, you can create a channel trailer in such a way that it creates a great impression in their minds and encourage them to subscribe to your videos.
- Featured Video or Playlist
Featured content is the best way to promote a new video to all your fans. Featured content enables you to embed a chosen video or playlist across all the videos on your channel and ensures the returning of subscribers to your channel.
After clicking on Featured content, one can choose to feature a video or playlist.
- Most Recent Upload: To automatically feature the most recently uploaded video.
- Specific video or playlist: Select any video or playlist you want to feature from your uploads or enter a YouTube video or Playlist URL.
- Optimizing time: You can try to choose the best time to show your promotion, based on the past viewer behavior in each video.
