So, you’ve made your first explainer video, and now you want to share it with the world.
What’s your next step?
Considering that there are a plethora of video platforms out there, which one should you choose? Obviously you can upload your video to all available video sharing networks on the Internet and see how many views or downloads you get there, but most of us don’t have time to hunt down every single site. So, which one will you choose?
There are a lot of options, but we are going to tell you about the three platforms that we feel are the best. Drum roll please!
Top Three Video Sites
1. YouTube
2. Vimeo
3. Wistia
Getting started with YouTube
Why YouTube?
One thing’s for sure, YouTube is the largest video platform out there. There are more than 1 billion people using YouTube and they generate 4 billion views per day. If you want to get your video out there and make sure that it’s searchable (through Google, other search engines, and YouTube), you should upload your video on YouTube ASAP.
How to Upload Your Animated Explainer Video on YouTube?
1. Prepare Your Video
Before you start uploading your video, there are several things that must be considered beforehand. Fact is, there are tons of videos on YouTube. One way you can make them stand out is to cross your T’s and dot your I’s. And that means making your video as close to perfect as possible. Here are some things to check before you upload:
a. Check the size of your video
Youtube uses a 16:9 ratio so you should try to format your video to use one of the following sizes:
1920px x 1080px
1280px x 720px
640px x 480px
480px x 360px
320px x 240px
The larger the better, so use the largest HD version available. This way you can be sure that your video will be shown in the best quality on any size screen because YouTube will automatically resize the video based on the size of the viewer’s screen.
While file size is important, it’s not the most important factor. This is because YouTube will convert the video for streaming purpose.
b. Check your video format
This is perhaps the most important thing because YouTube does not support all video formats. Here are some video formats that are supported by YouTube:
MOV
MPEG4
MP4
AVI
WMV
MPEGPS
FLV
3GPP
WebM
If you video isn’t one of the formats listed above, you will have some notification from YouTube like this picture below:
This is because YouTube doesn’t want their viewers to see a ‘stranded’ video, that doesn’t look good when it’s played. It automatically detects if the bitrate is good enough or not. However, there’s a caveat to this, when you are uploading a compressed animated video, it doesn’t always need to have a high bitrate.
Here’s a guideline on the minimum bitrate you should have to avoid any issues when uploading to YouTube:
2. Start Uploading
After you are sure about the compatibility of your video, you can start uploading your video onto YouTube by hitting the “upload button”. Sometimes, an error may occur during the upload process. These are some problems that may occur:
a. “We have encountered unexpected problems”.
If you get this message the problem probably come from YouTube itself. You can try again after waiting a bit.
b. “The server has rejected the file”.
This typical error come from your file. Make sure you are naming your file with standard character.
c. “An error has occurred while sending data over the network”.
If you get this message, check your browser. Do you use the latest version or not? This is usually caused by an outdated web browser.
d. “An error has occurred while reading the uploaded file”.
This problem may occur if your video file located on an external drive, be it a flash drive, external hard drive, or camera. Put your file on your internal hard drive and make sure it can be opened.
e. “A security error has occurred”.
Check your antivirus, firewall, or other anti spyware setting to resolve this issue.
3. Publishing Your Video
Once you have your video uploaded, you will be given options on how to publish your video.
There are three type of viewing preference:
a. Public
Use this option if you don’t want to restrict anyone from seeing your video. This is the best option for promoting video.
b. Unlisted
Only people who know the video URL can see the video. Use this option if you only want to share your video with specific people, for example your work team.
c. Private
Only you as the owner of the video and YouTube subscribers you choose can see the video. Your video won’t appear on any newsfeed or search results.
4. Spread the Word
Now, it’s time to let the world know about your video and to ensure that your video is being watched and also driving traffic to your website or landing page.
a. Facebook
Facebook can drive traffic to your video. Share with your family and friends. Ask them to help spread your video.
b. Twitter
Tweet your video to your followers and ask them to retweet your post.
c. Blog
Post your video on your blog so your blog’s subscribers can see your video immediately.
d. Online forum
If you are an active user of an online forum, try to create a thread about your video. It can easily drive traffic for your video.
For more details on how to promote your video, read our previous article that covers promoting on Internet for more detailed steps.