Music videos cost a lot of money and take a lot of time to make. That’s why it’s important they get seen by more fans, not just on YouTube. But often, when people search for a video like “Band Name – New Song,” they get a YouTube link. The problem? On YouTube, fans get distracted by ads and other artists. What’s better is if they land on your own website—like yourband.com/video. There, they can watch the video, buy merch, check tour dates, or join your mailing list.
This is why video SEO matters. It helps Google show your site instead of just showing YouTube. But to do that, your site has to follow some rules. The goal is to make Google think the video is the main thing on the page. That’s the first step in ranking your video pages.
Make the Video the Main Focus
Back in late 2023, Google changed how it sees videos on websites. Now, just putting a video on your page isn’t enough. Google checks if the video is really the most important thing. If it’s not, Google won’t show a video thumbnail in the search results.
A big mistake people see in Google Search Console is: “Video is not the main content of the page.” This means Google found the video, but it doesn’t think it’s important enough to index as a video.
Why This Happens
When the video is low on the page or hidden in a blog post, Google thinks it’s just there to help the text. If it’s next to a lot of other videos or tucked into a gallery, Google gets confused about which one is important. So it just skips showing a video result.
How to Fix It
To fix this, make sure the video is the star of the page.
- Placement: Put the video at the top of the page so it’s seen without scrolling. That’s called “above the fold.”
- Size: The video should be big—full width if possible. That way, it looks like the main content.
- One Video per Page: Don’t put too many videos on one page. It’s better to make one page per video and link to each one.
Help Google Understand the Video with Code
Just adding a YouTube embed is not enough anymore. Google can’t watch the video like a person. It needs extra info in the website code. This is where Schema Markup comes in.
Use VideoObject Schema with JSON-LD
Schema Markup is hidden code that gives Google the facts. It tells Google, “Hey, here’s a video, and here’s what it’s about.”
Use the JSON-LD format. It’s the easiest and most accepted way to show this info. Below are the parts you must include:
- name: The song or video title
- description: A short summary full of keywords, but not the same as your YouTube description
- thumbnailUrl: A link to the video’s thumbnail image (should be high-quality)
- uploadDate: When the video was first uploaded
- embedUrl: The full YouTube embed link
If you use tools like WordPress or Squarespace, some SEO plugins can help with this. But they have to be set up right so they pull the video info from YouTube the right way.
Use a Video Sitemap If You Have Many Videos
If your site has a lot of videos, like one for every song, you need a Video Sitemap. This is a file that lists all your videos and tells Google where they are. You upload this file to Google Search Console.
Without a sitemap, Google might miss older videos or ones deep in your website. A sitemap keeps things organized and makes sure Google sees everything.
Speed Matters: Don’t Hide the Video
Google cares a lot about speed and user experience. That’s where Core Web Vitals come in. If your video slows down the page, Google may rank it lower.
Lazy Loading Can Hurt
Some sites use lazy loading to make pages faster. This means the video doesn’t load until someone scrolls down to it. That’s okay for some things—but not for your main video.
If the video is the main part of the page, don’t use lazy loading on it. Google might not scroll like people do. It won’t find the video, and then it won’t show it in results.
Always Use a Good Thumbnail
When Google shows a video in results, it pulls an image from the page. If your embed is missing a clean, high-res image, Google might skip the video.
Fix This with a Hosted Thumbnail
Instead of just using the default YouTube thumbnail, upload your own image to your website. Then, use that image in your Schema Markup under thumbnailUrl. This makes sure Google always has a good picture to use.
Build Pages the Right Way
The way your website is set up makes a big difference. Many bands put all videos on one big page, like “Media” or “Videos.” But that doesn’t help with ranking.
Use Dedicated Watch Pages
Make a special page for each music video. That’s better for SEO.
- Bad: yourband.com/videos (One page with all videos)
- Good: yourband.com/videos/song-title (One video per page)
Now you can write a special title and heading for that song. Google sees that the video is the focus of the page. That helps a lot with ranking.
Add Extra Text to Help Google
Google also needs words to understand what the page is about. If the page only has a video, it won’t rank well.
Add Lyrics
Putting the full song lyrics under the video helps with searches like “[Song Name] lyrics.” This is common, and it brings more traffic to your site.
Add Behind-the-Scenes Info
Write at least 300 words about the video. You can talk about:
- Who directed it
- Where it was shot
- What the story means
- Any fun facts about the filming
This makes your page different from the YouTube page. It gives Google more reasons to show your site in results.
Check If It’s Working
After setting all this up, don’t just guess if it’s working. Use Google Search Console (GSC).
Go to the “Video pages” report under the “Indexing” section. This tells you:
- How many pages Google indexed with video features
- What problems are stopping others from ranking
You’ll see status colors:
- Green: Good. The video is indexed.
- Grey: Problem. Google saw the page, but didn’t index the video.
Read the error. It may say things like:
- “Video not main content”
- “Video too small”
Use that info to make fixes.
Final Thoughts
Getting your embedded YouTube videos to rank on your own site isn’t hard—but it takes planning. You must treat each video like its own special page. The video should load fast, show clearly, and have text that tells the story.
Use Schema Markup and sitemaps to help Google. Make sure each page is built for that one video. That way, fans find your site first—not just YouTube. And once they’re on your page, they can support you by buying merch or tickets. That’s how you take control of your content.