Want more people to watch your YouTube videos? Start using its analytics update, expert urges

Google has released more analytics features for YouTube that will allow webmasters to get a better understanding of how they can use video to better connect with their customers, and create more engaging content.

The new features include the ability to see how many people are getting rid of “annotations” – messages that appear on the screen – and it can also show how many people stop watching a video within a matter of seconds.

However, Reseo chief executive Chris Thomas says while the new features are welcome, webmasters still want to see the marriage of both Google and YouTube analytics into one account.

Currently, the two operate separately.

“A lot of companies that run videos on YouTube and manage Google Analytics as well find it a pain to compare. It’d be better if they could just bring into an account the new features and manage your website from the one platform.”

Google first launched YouTube analytics last year, giving users the ability to track where particular users dropped off, or how many actually watched videos in full.

Now, the updates include features like a report on estimated minutes watched, and whether users are switching off the annotations included on a video. This is important, because some of these annotations can include links to other parts of a company’s profile or website.

A big new feature is the ability to see click-through rates for those annotations as well. A few different customisation options have also been included to compare metrics across several date ranges.

Thomas says businesses using video should be paying attention to these analytics, especially as they play a large part in SEO rankings. Google is more likely to rate your site favourably if you have constantly updated video – if your viewers are actually watching those videos, then so much the better.

“You can see what type of videos are working for you. And the reason the analytics is there is to help you test and learn what people want.”

“If you see a lot of people dropping off in the first 10 seconds of the video, it’s obvious there’s something wrong, and you need to fix it. Analytics just help you improve.”

For more on how to maximise your SEO, watch SmartCompany video blogger Jim Stewart’s weekly updates about the world of Google and SEO.