Free DIY Approaches to Design Your Own YouTube Cards

How to Create YouTube Intros & End Cards - Free and Easy

Shanoon Cox

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

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Part 1: Intros

Elements of an Intro

Top Intro Sites

Creating an Intro in Filmora

Part 2: End Cards

Elements of an End Card

How To Make an End Card

Part1: Intros

Elements of an Intro

Intros should only last about five seconds, and that can be cut down to two or three if you have a larger following.

When your intro video is longer than five seconds viewers are more likely to click away. The first 15 seconds of a video is when viewers are most likely to decide to click on one of the recommended videos, or go back to their search results and choose something else. The odds of them leaving within these first 15 seconds are greater if you do not get right to the main point of your video. That is why long intro sequences are bad for your watch time.

Whether it is better to put your intro at the very beginning of your video, or after you introduce your topic, will depend on your viewers. You may want to try it both ways and then look at your retention report (found in your YouTube Creator Studio under Analytics) to see which works best for you.

Top Intro Sites

There are a few different sites where you can download animated intros, customized to include your username or logo. Here are two of the best:

FlixPress.com

This is probably the most popular intro site. There are a lot of great animated intros available for under $5, or even for free.

IntroMaker.net

This is another site with really professional looking intros for $5. They only have two free options, though.

Creating an Intro in Filmora

You can create a simple intro card in Filmora.

1. Choose your background. You may want to use a short clip as your intro, or you may just want a colored background.
2. Drag your clip or background into the video track of your timeline and trim it down to five seconds.
3. If you have a logo, import it into Filmora and drag it into your picture-in-picture track.
4. With your logo selected, click on the Green Screen icon. In the pop-up, select the background of your logo to make it transparent. For this to work your logo cannot be the same color as its background.
5. Click on the editing icon with your logo selected and choose an animation.
6. Go to the Text/Titles menu and choose an animated title that suits your channel. Drag it into your text track and edit it to include your name.
7. The last piece of your intro is sound. You can choose a song from Filmora’s library and cut it down to five seconds, or import your sound effect.
8. Export your video and save it for use in all of your other videos.

Part 2: End Cards

When your video ends, YouTube will recommend a selection of videos users may want to watch next. Often, these recommendations will not include more of your videos.

To keep viewers on your channel, you can create your End Card which recommends other content you have created.

Elements of an End Card

An end card includes clips from two or three of your videos, muted, and shrunk down to thumbnail-size. Using spotlight annotations you can make these thumbnails click-able.

It is also important that your end card includes multiple calls to action. A call to action is meant to spur a viewer to some kind of action. Writing ‘Check out this video’ above one of your thumbnails is a call to action.

You should also have a subscribe link somewhere in your end card, ideally a very noticeable button with a proven call to action like ‘Subscribe Now!’.

Some creators will leave their end cards at that and play music overtop, but it can be even more effective to include a voiceover where you ask viewers to subscribe and watch your other videos.

How To Make an End Card

1. Choose a static background. You may want to download an end card template or create one in a drawing program. If you do, make sure to include calls to action like ‘Watch more!’ and ‘Subscribe’.
2. Drag your background into your timeline at the end of your video.
3. Import two or three of your previous videos and drag them into your picture in picture tracks. Each clip should be on its track.
4. Trim the clips in your picture in picture track down to the same length as your end card.
5. Shrink your clips down to thumbnail-size by dragging their corners in the preview window.
6. Position your clips so they are spaced evenly by dragging them in the preview screen.
7. Mute your clips.
8. If your background does not include any calls to action, choose a title from the Text/Titles menu in Filmora and create at least two – one asking viewers to subscribe, and one asking them to watch your suggested videos.
9. Export your video from Filmora and upload it to YouTube.
10. Go to your Video Manager and select Annotations in the drop-down menu next to your video.
11. Go to your end card in the previewer, as that is where you want to add your annotations.
12. Click Add Annotation and add a spotlight annotation to your video. Stretch it over one of your thumbnails and then check the Link box under your Annotation’s timing. Insert a link to the video you are previewing.
13. Repeat for any other thumbnails. For your subscribe button, change where it said ‘Video’ to ‘Subscribe’ and enter your channel URL.
14. Click Apply Changes.

Shanoon Cox

Shanoon Cox is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Shanoon Cox

Take Control: A Compreeved Guide to iPhone/iPad Screen Recordings on YouTube

How to Record your iPhone or iPad Screen for YouTube

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

There are a lot of reasons why you might want to use footage recorded from the screen of your apple device in your YouTube videos. Some people like to make YouTube tutorials about iPhone or iPad apps, others like to share their gaming experiences, and some need to use footage taken from their devices for presentations. Even if you do not think these kinds of videos suit your vlog, screen recording is a useful tool to have on your belt. You never know when one of your subscribers is going to ask you about your favorite mobile games.

Basically, there are three ways to record YouTube video on iPhone/iPad, including the built-in screen recorder (if you have updated to iOS 11 ), connecting iPhone to Mac and the last, some third party screen recorder. In this article, you will learn the three powerful methods one by one.

• Part1: Recording your iPhone screen in iOS 11
• Part2: Wired Using QuickTime on your Mac
• Part3: Wirelessly Using AirPlay and Reflector

Note: We resolutely oppose all forms of copyright-infringing downloads. This tutorial is only for downloading YouTube videos/audio materials from your own channel.

1. Recording your iPhone screen in iOS 11

You can find more information in this article: How to Record iPhone/iPad’s Screen in iOS 11 >>

2. Wired Using QuickTime on your Mac

If you have a Mac then you already have all the software you need.

Step 1: Connect your tablet or smartphone to your computer using a USB port, and then open QuickTime on your Mac. In QuickTime select ‘File’ and ‘New Movie Recording’. A recording window will pop up.

Step 2: In the recording window there will be a red ‘record’ button. Next to that button there will be an arrow. Click the arrow and a menu of recording options will appear. In the section where it says ‘Camera’ select your iPhone or iPad. In this menu you can also choose whether or not to record audio from your device, such sound effects from games.

Step 3: Once you are finished in this menu click record to begin recording the screen of your device. Click ‘stop’ when you are finished recording.

Although you can download a version of QuickTime for PC, the PC version does not have a screen recording option. If you have a PC you will need to use the second method.

3. Wirelessly Using AirPlay and Reflector(For Mac or PC!)

If you either prefer to do things wirelessly or own a PC then you will need to use a slightly more round-about method. Rather than recording directly from your iPhone you will be mirroring your device’s interface onto your computer screen and then recording it there.

Step 1: First, you will need to download a third party mirroring app. Reflector is the popular choice. You can download Reflector at Airsquirrels.com .Next, you need to have Apple’s Airplay on your device. Make sure Reflector that your computer and device are connected to the same wifi network.

Step 2: Open Reflector on your PC. Initially it will tell you there is no device connected.

Step 3: Open AirPlay on your device and make sure mirroring is turned on. Your computer’s name will show up as a receiver option. Select it.

Step 4: This will cause the display of your smartphone or tablet to pop up on your computer screen. Once your device is being mirrored on your computer, record your computer screen.

You can record your Mac or PC screen using Filmora Video Editor. Using Filmora you can crop out and record only your iPhone display instead of your entire computer screen. You can download the latest version of Filmora Video Editor at Filmora.wondershare.com.

If you have a Mac you can also record your computer screen in QuickTime following the same steps listed above, until it comes time to choose your camera. Then you record your desktop instead of your device. There are a few different screen recording programs you can download for PC.

Conclusion

After reading the three ways to record YouTube on iPhone/iPad, I am sure you want to give it a try. If you have any questions, please let us know!

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett