Have you ever found the perfect YouTube video to help explain an idea you’re writing about? Did you want to embed that YouTube video into your WordPress website? It’s easy! And a great way to connect with your visitor and keep their attention. 

YouTube has established itself as THE major video-sharing platform in the world. It boasts over 2 billion users and generates billions of views every single day.

People go to YouTube for a variety of reasons: to find funny clips, watch music videos, learn new skills, find solutions to their problems, and more. Warning…it can be addicting and take you down all kinds of rabbit trails!

However, YouTube is a great resource for website owners as well. You can find some inspiration when you have writer’s block. You can even incorporate a relevant YouTube video into your blog post.

Using Videos on Your Website

Videos are a great way to add an engaging visual element to your website. Stock videos are a great option if you don’t need audio, but I prefer YouTube videos.

There are all kinds of ways to use videos on your website. Add a funny video to share a laugh with your audience. Or, use a video to reinforce the information you’re providing in your blog post. The possibilities are endless.

We recommend you do not store videos in your WordPress media library. It can take up valuable storage and cause your site to run slower.  Instead, use YouTube or Vimeo to store your website videos.

Embedding a video into your WordPress site is easy. Watch this short video clip from a webinar training and learn how.

 

Steps to Embed a YouTube Video:

  1. From a desktop or a laptop…Go to YouTube.
  2. Search for the video you would like to embed into your website and click on it.
  3. Click on “SHARE” right below the video and choose “EMBED.”
  4. Select/deselect the options under “EMBED OPTIONS” the way you want.
  5. Click on “COPY” to copy the embed code.
  6. Go to your website page or post editor where you want to embed the video.
  7. If you’re using the Classic Editor, go to the Text tab. Put the cursor where you want the video to appear, and paste the YouTube embed code that you copied in step #5 above. (If you’re using the Divi Builder, Elementor, or the Gutenberg block editor, you will need to insert it as you would any other HTML code).
  8. Update (publish) the page/post.

Or You Can Use a Plugin

YouTube WordPress Plugin by Embed Plus
By Embed Plus YouTube Plugin Team

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Another way to embed a YouTube video on your site is with the YouTube WordPress Plugin by Embed Plus. This plugin allows you to easily embed YouTube videos on your WordPress website. Plus, it offers other features like customizable video player parameters, gallery layouts, and automatic video detection. With this method it’s very easy to add a YouTube video from a desktop, laptop, tablet, or yes even your mobile phone!

Is it Legal to Embed a YouTube Video on Your Website?

Yes, it is. That’s one of the services YouTube provides its content creators. Remember that the user who uploaded the video can control whether it can be embedded. 

YouTube allows users to embed videos from its site by providing the HTML code to do so. So you won’t get into trouble with YouTube if you follow their terms of service.

In fact, YouTube content creators like it when you embed their YouTube videos on your website because it increases their ad revenue and can drive additional traffic to their YouTube channel. DO NOT copy videos and post them yourself, as if you created them.

Also, be sure to periodically check for missing videos on your site, which will happen if the person who created the video changes the “embed” setting.

One final note. I’m not a copyright expert and cannot give you any legal advice. I’m sharing my thoughts and experience on this topic. But if you’re concerned about the legalities of copyright infringement, I recommend you speak with an attorney.

Final Thoughts…

When you’re writing content, having great visuals (images and videos) is key to keeping your readers attention. Adding a relevant YouTube video is a great way to connect with your visitors and communicate an idea in an interesting way.

YouTube has millions of videos that you can use, and you’ve seen how easy to embed a YouTube video into your blog post or page. I teach more on this topic in the Website Marketing Workshop.

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So, if you already have a WordPress website and know all about pages, posts, menus, themes, and images, then check out my intermediate WordPress Training Program, the Website Marketing program: Go here to the enrollment page to find out more:

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WebsiteMarketingWorkshop.com

If, instead, you don’t have a WordPress site yet, check out when my next training program will start.

 

(Originally published in September 2017)