Whether you’re a rookie booster clubber or a long-standing booster club champion, you probably find yourself asking these questions: How do you grow and expand your club? How do you raise awareness and build participation? A really great way to grow your club is through booster club Youtube marketing. Yes, we are talking about joining the vast and exciting community of YouTube. This article details some fantastic ways that booster club YouTube marketing can help. We’re going to get really practical, so buckle up.
Booster Club YouTube Marketing – Getting Started
First, sign in to YouTube using your Google account. If you don’t have a Google account, creating one is step zero. It’s easy to create an email address and password.
Once you sign in to YouTube, click the horizontal bars in the top left corner of the page, choose Settings, and click “create a new channel.” You will need a name for your channel and YouTube will default to your first and last name. To use a different name click “use a business or other brand name.” Make sure that the name you choose is simple and accurate. This will make it easier for people to find you and also allows you to have multiple managers on the account.
Once you have created your booster club marketing channel, click the video camera at the top of the page next to the search bar, select the video file you’d like to upload, and add a title and description. Again, the best option is to be as simple and accurate as possible, using searchable keywords. For instance, if your video is about a winter bake sale, you’re better off calling it “Winter Bake Sale!” rather than “Snow and cookies and everything nice!” Boring is okay here. You want to make sure people can find your video without taking a guess on how you feel about winter cookies.
Next, you’ll need to choose a thumbnail, which is the picture a viewer will see before they click on your video. YouTube offers three suggestions, but you can also upload your own. Choose a picture that best represents your video. Look at this as a mini marketing poster.
All of this information and more is actually, believe it or not, on YouTube! The “Quickstart Guide” video series on the YouTube Creators channel is especially helpful.
Booster Club YouTube Marketing Strategies
Once you’ve created your channel and uploaded your first video, it’s time to get to the good stuff. You can upload videos about upcoming events or interview students on what they love about the program. Effective booster club YouTube marketing doesn’t mean you need to upload every single video your club makes. It’s better to ensure that each video you post is a good representation of your program’s values and that your channel presents a cohesive picture of who you are. At the same time, make sure that each video can stand alone. You’re marketing not only to those who search for you but also to the average YouTube surfer who stumbles across your video.
Spread the word about your channel by following other YouTubers. Subscribe to channels for similar programs, school related activities, or others you’d like to connect with, and comment on their videos. As you begin to engage and interact with the YouTube community, you will increase the traffic to your channel. Make sure to keep it classy, though. Rather than openly advertising your channel on someone else’s, engage with them and allow them to find you.
Beyond YouTube, you can easily share videos on Facebook or popular video sharing sites, or embed them in posts on other social media sites so that a viewer doesn’t need to leave the site to watch the video.
Note that in online marketing it’s important to be consistent. This is the only way you will build a following and increase your number of subscribers. Plan to post a video a week and if you aren’t able to post, take advantage of YouTube live.
For more great tips that can help with booster club YouTube marketing, check out the video “Advice for New YouTubers – 10 Mistakes New YouTubers Make.”
Booster Club YouTube Marketing and SEO
SEO, in case you’re unfamiliar with the term, stands for Search Engine Optimization. Simply put, it means using key words that will move your video to the top of a search engine’s list, allowing it to be found by more people. Take note that since Google owns YouTube, we’re talking about Google searches as well as YouTube searches here. When you create your video, use keywords in your title and description as well as in the tags on your video.
You’ll want to do some research first to know what keywords to use. Put yourself in your audience’s place, try searching for groups similar to yours, and see what comes up. Make sure that you first know who your audience is. Who do you want to inform about your booster club and what would catch their attention? What would they find entertaining or interesting? (Remember, these are the primary reasons people are on YouTube.)
It’s important to make sure that the videos you are uploading are impactful and get people’s attention. Videos around 2 1/2 to 3 minutes have been shown to be the most effective, with the first 10 seconds of the video being the most crucial. You want to pique the viewer’s interest right at the beginning to increase watch time. This is another major factor in booster club YouTube marketing SEO since watch time, or the amount of time someone spends looking at your video, also helps determine how easily your video comes up in a search.
Other ways to capitalize on booster club YouTube marketing and increase traffic to your channel include interactive videos which have CTA overlays containing links back to your website. Or, keep it simple and just include a link in the comments section.
Sound like a lot? This is only an introduction to all you can do to grow your booster club with video marketing, so keep exploring. It’s okay to start small, but don’t forget: consistency is key. Good luck!
