Visibility

Lights, Camera, Attraction. How To Get Your Web Videos Noticed: A guide to utilizing Google’s Universal Search to optimize your online videos for indexing in Google’s organic results.

Online video is exploding. Online video is estimated to surpass traditional video distribution (TV) in total reach by 2012. Consider that, in August 2007, Internet users in the U.S. viewed 9.13 billion online videos - up 26% from 7.24 billion in January, estimates research firm comScore Inc. Nearly 25% of those videos were viewed on Google’s YouTube™. This certainly is not a new trend in online usage.  However, it has presented the brain trust at Google an opportunity to revamp their algorithms to support this strong upward trend and shift in internet usage.

Enter the need for universal search - search results with multiple sources of content. “Google's vision for universal search is to ultimately search across all its content sources, compare and rank all the information in real time, and deliver a single, integrated set of search results that offers users precisely what they are looking for.” – Google, Inc.

Think video, audio, and podcasts in organic search results.

What is Universal Search?
Let’s take a quick step back - Google’s domination started because they created a user-centric search engine that worked as transparently as possible for its users, while somehow intuitively presenting the most relevant results in milliseconds. And now, they’re taking another step forward with universal search. Google’s formula for indexing content before May 2007 was largely reliant on indexing and presenting web pages. Although successful, they learned over time that they were still only presenting silos of information in their results. Through observed changes in Internet and search usage, they have discovered that relevant search results are no longer just web pages, but individualized bits of related content.

In other words, there are many pieces of information other than web pages that could provide a fuller picture for their end users. Content such as videos, audio files, books, images, podcasts, news and shopping information, etc. are now included in the organic results without the need for isolating your search to just videos or images or PR. In other words all content is now integrated in the organic results.

Enter the need to optimize and distribute all web based content. Since we’re dealing with video here, we’ve listed 7 tips to get you started on that front. Remember this is a starting point and to net good results takes continued effort, measurement and refinement.

7 tips to get stared with Google's Universal Search for your web videos:

1. Develop a good video, one worthy of being watched and referred to by other people/sites/blogs, etc.
2. Optimize your video with meta data. (Hint:  You may want to do some keyword research to find phrases around your video topic that people are actually searching for.)
3. Post the video on your site in a format that's capable of being distributed, such as RSS feeds.
4. Find video content sites that influence search results.
5. Submit your RSS feed or individual videos.
6. Increase video relevance by finding blogs or sites on the topic and obtaining a link or write a press release on the video and send to the online news wires.
7. Consider signing up for a feedburner.com account or something similar to review the analytics. Find out what's working well and do more of it. Prune the rest.

“A search engine marketing professional’s greatest value is determining how search engines get their various types of listing and then helping their clients enter the appropriate databases with optimized content.”
 -- Adam Hayes - Brandwidth, LLC

Encl. Case Studies

Two quick case studies of universal search in action:

Client: Vectren Source
Web: www.vectrensource.com
About: Vectren Source is a growing natural-gas marketer serving Indiana, Ohio, New York and Georgia.
Objective: Extend branding life of a sponsored event
Event: Race car sponsorship (Star Mazda Series, Team Mundhill, Car #51 – Road Atlanta)
Search Optimization: In car footage from Star Mazda series at Road Atlanta
Search Results: Ranked #3 organically for “Star Mazda Atlanta,” netting 2,103 video views in one month.

Client: SecondOpinion.org
Web: www.secondopinion.org
About: SecondOpinion.org is an online health portal focused on mind, body and spirit wellness.
Objective: Position the brand as a trusted health resource with consistent videos on relevant health topics
Search Optimization: Numerous videos on various health topics
Search Results: Several videos have made the top 10 organic list for high traffic keywords, netting 18,687 videos views in 75 days.