how to create a link in youtube videos

In this hub I will be discussing how to create a link in youtube videos, as well as in the description box of the videos themselves. First, the description box.

Creating a link in a youtube description is fairly easy.

Some people suggest that if you type in your link like this: www.HumaneMeatUSA.com

that the link will not work. That instead, you have to type the link like this: http://www.HumaneMeatUSA.com

However, not even that always works. Sometimes, you will type in the HTTP:// and the link still shows up in black text, not as a hyperlink. This is what happened to me, and as you can see in the description of this video, I was able to get a hyperlink in the description box anyway: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsiNcBz36bQ

If this has happened to you and you still want to hyperlink a url in a youtube description, follow the VERY EASY steps below.

STEP 1: Sign into your youtube account, then on the upper top right corner, click "MY VIDEOS" (I'm assuming you have already uploaded your video of course).

STEP 2: Find the video you want the hyperlinked url in, and click "edit"

STEP 3: OPEN your word document program, like microsoft word, or Open Office word, etc. Type your url into the word document using the "http://" in the front of the url. So in other words go ahead and tpe out your url into microsoft word like this: http://www.yoururl.com

STEP 3: at the end of typing this, press the space bar so that your link is hyperlinked (it should show up in blue, or whatever color you have set your clickable links to.) if it does NOT show up as a clickable link in your word program, then this will not work. You will have to find another way to make the link clickable by using html and then going to the non html view of the code (perhaps in a website, myspace, etc).

STEP 4: Copy and paste your clickable link out of your word document and paste it into the description box of your youtube video, and press save.

STEP 5: check out how your video looks on its video page (the link will NOT look clickable in the editing box, only once it's playing on it's video page. To do this, click the "VIEW ON VIDEO PAGE" at the top of the video in the editing section of your video/

The link should now be clickable. If not, please post a comment below.

 Youtube allows you to create links "ON" or "IN" your video itself, (not the description area) but only if it is pointing to another internal youtube link.

How can you get a link to an external site in your youtube video?

Well, sadly I don't know of any way to do it for youtube viewers. However, there is a program called "Linked Tube". It is device on a website which will allow you to add external links to your youtube video once it's embedded in another site.

Viewers who are watching your video on youtube.com still will not be able to see the link. For these folks, please follow the instructions listed above to make a link in the description area of the vide.

Below is how to use linked tube to create a link in your video.

 Step 1: Go to http://www.linkedtube.com/

Step 2: Follow the instructions in the box titled: Create your free video link widget"

I've filled one out in the photo so you can see what to do.

For instance, take your video's url of the address bar once viewing it in its video page on youtube, and copy and paste it into the top box of the widget maker.

While making your widget, you can hover your mouse over the sample link as you create it to see what the completed embedded video will look like.

In "button URL" put the url where you want people to go to once they click the link.

Click the blue question marks if you need help on what goes in each of the boxes.

You can now click "SAVE AND GET CODE"

Take that HTML EMBED code, and place in on your website. The video will now show up with a link to your other (non youtube) website. Yes, an actual working external link on a youtube video!

Now, here are some of the drawbacks.

1) I haven't found any way to autoplay or loop such videos, and I experimented with the code a lot. If anyone knows, please post a comment below so I can update.

2) using this widget may permanently change your youtube video embed code. It will show up as a linked tube code in your youtube video embed code box for probably at least 12 hours. after that, it seems to dissappear, and you can only use this widget once. so save the code it gives you in a word document or somewhere retrieveable.

3) the video I did this to, no longer owns a en external link if the embed code is copy an pasted direct from youtube. however, it has been changed to have a link at the top referring back to itself on youtube (once placed on websites). Blech.

4) Once you "click" the link on the video, another page pops up to your website (it's a pop up not in the same window). Once you return to the original website the viewer clicked your video on, all of the source codes are revealed and you have to press the red x at the top corner to get back to viewing your video.

Due to the many current issues with linked tube, I do not personally like the widget. However, it is a tool which is out there to create a url in you youtube video (once embedded on non youtube sites.) And probably, the widget will get better and more user friendly over time as it is developed.