YouTube is rolling out a feature to make it easier to navigate long videos and find the section you’re looking for. It’s called ‘Chapters’ and it’s a welcome new feature for both creators and viewers.
The company announced the move on Twitter, and it seems as though it’s going to be really easy for YouTube creators to take advantage of.
When uploading a longer video, all you’ll need to do is add timestamps within the description (starting at 0:00) and YouTube will automatically break up the video timeline into chunks or ‘Chapters’.
Viewers can then scrub through and select the individual chapter they’re interested in, based on what they’re looking for.
0:00 We heard you and added Video Chapters.
0:30 You liked it.
1:00 Now it’s official: Video Chapters are here to stay.
1:30 Creators, try Chapters by adding timestamps starting at 0:00 to your video description. Viewers, scrub to find exactly what you’re looking for.
2:00 Enjoy! pic.twitter.com/bIHGsGVmyW— YouTube (@YouTube) May 28, 2020
It’s yet another feature added to the video platform that focuses on the way that consumers watch videos on YouTube.
Along with the feature that lets you easily loop a video, it takes into account those long videos where you might be either looking for one specific thing, or needing to watching something more than once (in tutorial, workout or music videos, for instance).
If you’re a video maker, give it a spin by just writing the time you want to link to – either in MM:SS or HH:MM:SS format – in the description, and then a brief chapter title to indicate what it is you’re linking to. Remember to start at 0:00.