Youtube Annotations Are Going – Now What?
The news that Youtube annotations are going from 2nd May this year greeted me yesterday as I added one to my latest video. I knew it was on the cards (excuse the pun) but not that it was happening so soon. Annotations are clickable messages or boxes you can add to a video if you associate a website with your Youtube channel. For some years they’ve been a vital part of the online marketer’s organic arsenal. Why are they going and what are the options after May 2nd?
Youtube annotations are going, according to Google for one main reason: They only work on desktop computers. It seems now that most of us now prefer to consume video and other content on our mobile devices. I guess this is pretty obvious since we all seem glued to our phones and tablets these days.
The Options To Annotations
After May 2nd existing annotations will still work but won’t be editable. Instead you’ll need to use Cards, which have been around for some time, and end screens, a fairly recent addition. In their statement about why Youtube annotations are going, they claim that cards and end screens are 5 times more effective anyway. So really we have nothing to worry about since both work on mobile and desktop platforms.
Personally I’ve been using cards as well as annotations for some time – to cover both bases. I’ve so far only had a quick look at end screens, which seem pretty straightforward albeit a bit more complicated to set up than annotations or cards.
We can’t really complain. The ability to upload videos and take advantage of organic traffic is pretty amazing no matter what tools are provided to leverage this into sales. Not long ago the only place you could place a link on a Youtube video was in the description area. You would hope that viewers would actually read the description and click.
The Unstoppable March Of Mobile
When annotations came along they were wonderful. I’m a little sad that Youtube annotations are going. They’ve been good to me. But we all have to move with the times. As a 50 something “baby boomer”, I’m more of a desktop person than a mobile person. Like most of us I’d find life pretty tough without my iphone and ipad, but those weren’t around until my 30’s and 40’s.
I personally don’t use my phone much for internet browsing. The screen is too small. I don’t want to have to carry around one of the bigger, slab like phones and I’d rather email than text any more than a few sentences. It’s an age thing – both mentally and physically (eyesight isn’t what it used to be!)
The fact that Youtube annotations are going is just another nod to the fact that we need to move with the times. It’s not optional anymore – adapt or die!
