How To Utilize YouTube Cards To Promote Your Content

YouTube isn’t only about playing videos from the beginning to the end. With the addition of features such as YouTube cards, channel owners could make their content more interactive and extend the flexibility of what they can share with viewers.

If you need to inform your viewers about other videos or playlists in your channel, recommended channels, merchandise, or your websites, adding cards and end screens should be the go-to solution.

Here is how you could achieve all of that.

What Are YouTube Cards?

YouTube cards are interactive elements content creators could add to their videos to drive more traffic to other content and promote their brands.

You can take advantage of these teasers to ask your viewers to watch relevant videos, participate in a fundraising campaign, or check out your merchandise.

A common example and effective use of YouTube cards is putting up a link to your online store at the exact time stamp you mention your merchandise in the video.

Your viewers don’t have to waste their time looking elsewhere if they’re interested in your products, and overall, the whole experience will be as informative and intuitive as possible.

How Viewers Can Interact With Cards On Your Videos

Once you’ve set up one or some cards on your video, a small teaser in a small white rectangular box will appear, serving as a preview of your content.

When viewers click or tap a preview, the main card associated with it will appear, allowing them to browse the cards and follow up with your message.

If the viewers can’t see a teaser during the designated period, they can click on the card icon on the player controls. The player of the YouTube app will always show the card icon when the video is playing.

Where YouTube Display Cards On Your Videos

On PC, YouTube cards appear on the top right corner of the video, while the mobile app will show them below the video. YouTube will add a scrollbar for easier browsing if you have added multiple cards to a single video.

What Are End Cards?

Also commonly known as outro cards, end screens, and slate cards, end cards are a visual element at the end of YouTube videos that allow users to promote other content in a similar manner to regular cards.

The most common use of end cards is to encourage viewers to take a specific action or explore more videos.

They have become a powerful part of the toolbox of many YouTubers as these cards ensure viewability on both computers and smartphones; meanwhile, other traditional marketing methods like banner ads could get removed by ad-blocking tools.

End cards can extend Watch Time by adding up to four elements in the final few seconds of your YouTube videos.

Similar to regular cards in the middle of YouTube videos, allowed promotions at the end include crowdfunding campaigns, merchandises, websites, calls for subscriptions, and pointing to other channels, playlists, and videos on YouTube.

How To Add Cards To A YouTube Video

Log in to the YouTube Studio page and select the Content tab on the left-side panel. Choose the video you want to edit.

Click the Cards box at the bottom right to open the editing dialog. Choose the type of card you need to add (Video, Playlist, Channel, and Link).

Pick the destination of your card and add a custom message or teaser text. Set up the time stamp the card will begin to appear.

YouTube will show a preview while you’re editing the card. Click “+ CARD” if you want to insert another card, and click SAVE when you’re done.

How To Add End Cards To YouTube Videos

Go to YouTube Studio and choose Content. Select the video you need to edit.

Click on “End screen” to open the end screen element dialog. Pick an element you need to add to the end of your video.

A video element allows you to link to a specific video, a video that YouTube determines is best for your viewers, or simply the most recent upload. The channel and playlist elements are fairly self-explanatory (links to playlists or other channels).

You can adjust the size and drag the elements around between different positions. The preview will display a grid to help you align elements more accurately. You can select “Snap to element” and “Snap to grid” for more convenient placements.

The control panel allows you to specify the start time for these cards as well.

The timings of all elements are the same by default, but you can customize them so your end cards could appear at different times. Type in the start time in the box or drag it along the panel.

Choose “+ ELEMENT” to add another element. You can reuse the same end cards of another video by clicking on IMPORT FROM VIDEO.

Tips On Using YouTube Cards And End Screens

Here is some advice you should bear in mind when trying to promote other content using YouTube cards and end screens for the first time:

• As elements of end screens are usually prominent and may overlap your content, plan in advance your end cards’ layout and leave some space at the end for the elements to sit.
• Adding an end card to your older content linking to the newest uploads is a simple trick to drive move views for your channel.
• Do not insert YouTube cards into random points of your videos. Consider the context and set up cards at a relevant time to make the most of them.
• When shooting your videos, think about what you should encourage your viewers to do. Film the message that could run along with the end cards to make them more appealing.
• Do not use both branding watermarks and card teasers during the end screen, as they will suppress each other.
• You should not add end cards to a video belonging to a playlist since it could distract and break the viewing experience of your viewers.

Conclusion

YouTube introduced cards to the ecosystem of this video-sharing platform to enhance the viewing experience and complement content with relevant information.

By leveraging YouTube cards and end screens with relevant information, you could express your calls of action in the most effective way.