An effective Youtube playlist description can help viewers better understand the purpose and contents of your playlist. Here are some tips for writing optimized and engaging playlist descriptions on Youtube:
Be Concise Yet Descriptive
When writing the opening of your YouTube playlist description, you want to hook viewers and let them know what to expect – without revealing all the details upfront.
Aim to summarize the essence of the playlist in just 1-2 sentences right off the bat. Explain the general topic or niche, but don’t give away the full contents just yet. You want to pique interest, not satisfy it completely.
Also, be sure to work in relevant keywords for the playlist’s subject matter. This helps with SEO and getting discovered by people searching for related terms. But use them naturally within flowing sentences, not just jammed in awkwardly.
Highlight Key Topics
After your opening hook, provide a preview of some main topics, categories or video types that viewers can expect to find within the playlist.
For example, if you created a cooking playlist, briefly call out that it includes recipe videos for things like breakfast foods, lunch ideas, weeknight dinners, healthy snacks, and delicious desserts.
Giving viewers a taste of the variety helps get them excited to start watching the full playlist. Just don’t list every single video or it will feel repetitive. Highlight some of the hits to showcase the diversity.
Explain the Playlist’s Purpose
Give some context about why you created this playlist and what you hope viewers will get out of it. Is it purely for entertainment? To educate people about a topic? Provide useful tutorials? Background information on a complex subject?
Knowing the motivation and intended goal of the playlist gives helpful perspective. Viewers will engage with a funny cat video compilation differently than a series of tutorials for new pet owners.
So take a sentence or two to explain the underlying purpose driving the playlist’s creation. It makes the content feel more meaningful and personalized.
Share Background on the Playlist
Give some insider insight into how and why you picked the particular videos featured in the playlist.
For example, you can note if they are your personal all-time favorite videos on the topic. Or videos you previously watched and found helpful when you were new to the topic yourself.
Adding this type of backstory makes the playlist feel less generic and more special. It adds a human touch when you share your motivations for curating this specific set of videos.
Describe the Playlist Structure
Explain whether you organized the videos in the playlist in a purposeful way, or if they are mostly random.
For instance, you may have arranged them starting with basics and moving into more advanced tutorials on the topic.
Or you can let viewers know the videos are in no particular order and they are welcome to shuffle as desired.
Giving insight into the structure helps viewers know what to expect as they work through the playlist. It also shows you put thought into the sequencing rather than just throwing videos together arbitrarily.
Make a Clear Call to Action
Wrap up your playlist description with a strong call to action to engage viewers. Give them a specific prompt to subscribe, like, comment, share their perspectives, or watch more videos.
You could say something like: “I hope you enjoy this playlist! Let me know in the comments which recipe you want to try first. And don’t forget to subscribe for new videos every week.”
A strategic CTA gives viewers a reason to actively participate rather than just passively watch. It also gives your channel a boost when people subscribe or share the playlist.
Optimize for SEO with Keywords
Naturally incorporate relevant keyword phrases throughout the description where you can. This helps YouTube’s algorithm understand the playlist topic and surface it in searches for those terms.
Include synonyms and longer keyword variations too like “easy weeknight dinner recipes” rather than just “dinner recipes.” The more contextual semantics, the better for SEO.
Just be sure to write smoothly and conversationally, not jam in keywords awkwardly. Organic optimization works best.
Format for Readability
Break up large blocks of text with line spacing, headings, and short paragraphs. This improves scanability and makes the description easier to digest.
You can also use basic HTML tags like <br> for line breaks and <b> for bold text to add visual interest. Just don’t overdo it or the text will become messy. Test it on mobile to ensure the formatting displays properly on small screens.
Check Description Length
YouTube allows up to 5000 characters for playlist descriptions. Aim for at least 150+ words, but likely closer to 250-300 words if you include the different sections.
Avoid extremely lengthy descriptions that require heavy scrolling. Find a balance between thorough details and concision.
Remember that playlists continue to evolve, so you can always come back and update the description later if needed.
Proofread Before Publishing
Before making your playlist public, carefully proofread the description you wrote. Double check for typos, grammar errors, and awkward phrasing.
Read it aloud to catch mistakes your eyes may gloss over. Clean, polished writing strengthens your credibility and professionalism.
Don’t let easily avoidable errors undermine your expertise.
Learn from Top Creators
Spend time studying playlist descriptions from leading creators or brands in your niche for inspiration on what works.
Analyze what formatting, style, and descriptive tactics they use to effectively engage their target audience. Take notes on specific strategies that catch your attention or make their descriptions stand out as compelling.
Then incorporate any relevant learnings into your own description. Emulate best practices from creators who already have a solid viewer base.
Refresh Stale Playlists
Don’t forget about older playlists you’ve already published. Over time a playlist’s focus may shift as you add or remove videos.
Revisit playlists that no longer seem relevant based on their initial description. Rewrite descriptions that are outdated or no longer accurately reflect the actual contents.
This keeps things fresh and current for regular viewers who are already subscribed to the playlist.
Personalize with Your Brand Voice
Think about ways to infuse your playlist descriptions with your unique personality and brand voice. Share a bit of your own perspective within the topic.
For example, if appropriate, you could add a dash of humor or wit. Or link to your other social media accounts to cross-promote your brand.
Just ensure the tone aligns well with the playlist topic itself. Don’t go overboard with branding that distracts from the central focus.
Use Rich Text and Emojis
Emojis and text formatting like bold, italics, or lists can add visual appeal and make your description more scannable.
But use them judiciously. You still want the bulk of the text to be easy-to-read sentences. Too many competing fonts or emojis quickly look chaotic.
Test how rich text displays on mobile to ensure it translates well on small screens.
Monitor for Changes
Youtube sometimes truncates or alters descriptions when updating site designs.
Periodically check back on your live playlists to ensure the descriptions remain intact.
If you notice missing sections, you may need to re-paste your original description in full. This ensures viewers see the complete text you crafted.
Integrate hashtags strategically
Well-chosen hashtags can help surface your playlist to broader audiences. Avoid cramming in excessive tags. Research popular, relevant tags in your niche first.
Playlists benefit entire channel
Optimized playlist descriptions boost discoverability for both playlists specifically and your channel as a whole. Driving playlist views ultimately grows your overall subscriber base.
Test different strategies
Not all playlists need the same description formula. Experiment with different approaches and track viewer response. Find a descriptive style that fits each playlist’s vibe.
Prioritize mobile optimization
Many viewers will read your descriptions on mobile. Use short paragraphs and bulleted lists. Ensure text is legible and formatting displays properly on small screens.
With these tips in mind, you can craft playlist descriptions that inform viewers and entice them to start watching your carefully curated selection of videos. An optimized description improves the viewing experience and helps your channel continue growing its audience on YouTube.
