How To Create A Web Video App For Tv

If the recent rapid growth of the video on demand industry has taught us anything, it's this:

You need to create a video website .

More people than ever before want to watch – and pay for – premium video content, and launching your own website is the best way to profit from that demand. Why?

Because even though there may be more attention on platforms like YouTube and Twitch, the money these platforms pay to their video creators is down. (Like, really down!)

This means if you're a creator who wants to future proof your business and earn a sustainable income, you need to learn how to create a video website.

In the rest of this article, I'm going to show you the exact steps you need to take to do this.

Let's go!

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How To Create A Video Website

Pick Your Online Video Platform.
Upload Your Videos.
Optimize Your Catalog.
Customize Your Website.
Connect Your Marketing Tools.
Optional: Launch Your OTT Apps.

1: Pick Your Online Video Platform

The first step is to choose a professional video monetization platform.

Though general website builders are great, they won't help you build the type of platform you need.

Instead, you need a purpose-built video monetization platform that will allow you to seamlessly stream content and take payments, without having to use code or hire a developer.

Uscreen is a great example of this.

We have everything you need to get your business online. With us, you can:

Create your own video website.
Optimize your site for search engines – SEO.
Upload and organize your videos with ease.
Distribute your content with OTT apps on TV and mobile devices.
Monetize your content any way you choose.
Accept worldwide payments.
Stream live videos to any device.
Track subscriber growth and churn.
Own your audience.

We are currently #1 in the industry, and our clients just cleared $100 million in revenue for 2021!

Click here to watch the video -> youtube.com/watch?v=XVDb8aOfnSY

I also know Uscreen isn't the right choice for everyone, so you should take the time to shop around and find the VOD platform that's right for you.

To help you, check out these 3 guides:

18 Things to Look for When Shopping for the Perfect OTT Platform
12 Best Membership Platforms & Website Builders in 2021
11 Best OTT Platforms for 2021

2: Upload Your Videos

The next step is uploading your content to your video website.

Having content on your website before you customize it will provide a type of "framework" you can use to construct your website. Let me explain…

Your homepage should highlight the content in your catalog. After all, your catalog is your product; it's what your customers will sign up to access.

You can see how Coreology Live expertly uses thumbnails, descriptions, and categories to showcase the content on their eLearning video site here:

This is what we refer to as an optimized content catalog.

Having your content displayed like this can provide a better user experience and provide context to your website. This will result in a higher conversion rate.

So:

I highly recommend you upload your content and optimize it to a basic level before you start customizing the design.

Your chosen video hosting platform should allow you to do this through their central dashboard, so check their support materials on how to do that.

If you're a Uscreen customer, you can find that information right here.

3: Optimize Your Content Catalog

The next step is to ensure your content catalog is:

Easy to use.
Enjoyable to navigate.
Focused on helping users find the content they need.

Optimizing your content catalog is a little beyond the scope of this article. Especially if you're using a platform other than Uscreen.

However, there are 3 universal tips you can follow…

First, use intuitive categories for your content that match your audience's goal, like GUEtv's diving tutorials:

Next, create descriptive, specific, attention-grabbing titles, like Cakeflix uses for their popular video series on cake-decorating:

Finally, add appealing thumbnails that give context to your videos, like Naturally Sassy's ballet skill catalog:

If you want to learn more about how to fully optimize your content, check out our guide: How To Organize Your Video Content.

4: Customize Your Website

Okay, now for the fun part…

It's time to customize your video website.

Your video monetization platform should give you a suite of website customization tools and functionality so you can adjust the design of your website and add your own branding.

For example, Uscreen lets you create stunning home pages and landing pages with our plug-and-play page builder. These pre-designed templates let you easily upload content and adjust the text, typography, layout, and color schemes to suit your needs.

Image Source – Uscreen

With the page builder, you can create a visually appealing platform that customers look forward to using.

Image Source – Uscreen

Or, if you prefer a more structured design option, you can use one of Uscreen's 19 fully-customizable website themes to help you.

Now…

How you choose to customize your video streaming website is up to you. But one of the key things to remember is brand consistency across your online presence.

You'll want to use colors, images, and copywriting that match how you present your brand on other platforms, like social media or YouTube.

For example:

On The Beat is an online video fitness platform that brings high-energy cycling classes to consumers at home. Take a look at this short clip of their video website and marketing platforms:

You can see that across all of their channels they use the same…

logos
typography
pink, purple and blue color scheme
style of photography

…to subliminally assure the reader that they're in the right place, and they're visiting the website of a brand they've already interacted with and trust.

You should aim to do so when you create a video website too. This will save you a lot of time, money, and effort on lost leads and positively impact your conversion rate.

5: Connect Your Marketing Tools

The final essential step is to connect your marketing tools.

Your chosen platform should empower you to promote your video website by:

Integrating with your existing marketing tools.
Providing a suite of marketing tools.

At Uscreen, we let you do both.

Uscreen's marketing tools give you the essential functions to:

Send abandoned cart emails.
Create "reduce churn" sequences.
Offer high-converting free trials.
Share promotional coupons.

Once you have those set up, you can then connect with 1000+ marketing tools using Zapier, so you can tailor your marketing strategy to your current needs.

As a minimum, I recommend you connect your site to…

Google Analytics
an email marketing platform
Facebook Pixel

…to help you understand your new website's traffic, connect with your customers, and launch social media advertising campaigns.

Optional: Launch Your OTT Apps

If you want to supercharge your offering you could also look to expand into launching your own OTT (over-the-top) apps.

OTT apps allow your customers to access your content on an app that's specifically designed for their favorite device, like:

Smartphones.
Smart TVs.
Tablets.

OTT revenue in the US will increase more than 100% by 2023, so apps are definitely worth considering. You can learn more and get ideas for your own app right here.

Wrapping This Up…

If you're a video content creator, you need to learn how to make and launch your own video sharing website. It's the best way to futureproof your business and take control of your income.

You can do this in 6 steps:

Pick Your Platform
You should choose a video monetization platform that allows you to build a website, upload your content, control your pricing, and monetize your service. Uscreen is the current market leader.
Upload Your Content
Having content on your site will create a "framework" to build your website around. So before you customize, get all the essential content onto your site.
Optimize Your Content Catalog
Once your videos are uploaded, you need to optimize your content catalog. You can do this by creating intuitive categories, descriptive video titles, and eye-catching thumbnails.
Customize Your Site
Now that your catalog is ready, you can focus on customization. Creating a unique design and brand for your site will help your business stand out. If you use Uscreen, you can choose from 19 customizable templates. Ensure your website looks and feels consistent with your branding on social media and YouTube channels.
Connect Your Marketing Tools
Before you launch your site, you need to connect your marketing tools. You should also activate any marketing features offered by your platform. At a minimum, you should have: Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, and an email marketing platform connected to your site.
Optional: Launch OTT Apps
Expand the reach of your awesome video business by creating an OTT app that will allow your audience to stream your content to their favorite device.