How To Navigate and Optimize The New YouTube For Your Practice

How To Navigate and Optimize the New YouTube for your Practice

YouTube unveiled their 'new look' in December 2011, and although these changes were met with a wave of criticism at first, they are here to stay. Believe it or not, this is good news for you and your health practice. Although there have been many complaints from consumers about the navigational changes to YouTube, they have actually made it easier for businesses to thrive.

However, in order to know what your health practice has to do to adapt to the new YouTube, it's important to first understand what the new YouTube has to offer:

1. The New YouTube Homepage – A new homepage may not seem like a big deal, but it absolutely is. The main difference is that instead of showcasing the most popular videos on YouTube, the home page now features a feed of all the video channels you have subscribed to. In other words, your videos are featured on the homepage of all your subscribers.
   
   The implications of this change are pretty huge for your health practice. It means you no longer have to have a video go viral in order to get exposure. Instead, concentrate on building a network of subscribers to your channel, and update constantly. Even if you don’t have a new video to post, add a comment or update. With the new YouTube, you can constantly be present to your subscribers.

2. Channels Are Searchable – Remember the old YouTube search function? The one that would only bring up videos? Well, your videos are still searchable, but now your channel will show up in search results too.
   
   This is great news for your health practice, as you want to get as many people to your channel as possible. In order to do that, however, you’ll need to optimize your channel for the YouTube search engine. Make sure the title, description and especially the tags for your channel are properly filled out using your main keyword phrase. Be sure to make your channel look nice too, so that when people do find your channel they’ll want to stay.

3. Analytics – Analytics are your best friend, and YouTube’s updated analytics are more detailed and helpful than ever. There are two parts to this update. The first is the audience retention analytic, which shows you the exact point at which your viewers are clicking off of your videos. This allows you to see what is working and what isn’t. The second is playback locations, which lets you see whether your videos are being watched on YouTube, on mobile devices, or embedded on another website. If you know where your viewers are coming from, you know where to go to get more of them!

In short, don’t be afraid to embrace the new YouTube. Change is good, especially this one. If you can get adjusted to the new YouTube, then you’ll be able to give your health practice a leg up on your competition.

FeelGoodNow Contributor: Frazer Lockhart

Few people have ever actually seen Frazer's face because it is usually buried behind a camera. When he isn't filming for FeelGoodNow, he is usually working on his own documentaries (although he does make it a point to take regular hiking and skiing breaks). He has an insatiable case of wanderlust and an incredible capacity for lattés. 


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