Comments represent much more than just typed reactions or thoughts—they’re an intricate part of the dynamic YouTube ecosystem, acting as a platform for direct communication between viewers and content creators, influencing video development and fuelling the platform’s explosive growth. In fact, YouTube’s algorithm takes into account the amount of likes and replies a video receives when determining its search ranking and recommendations to users.

To that end, it’s important for brands to know how to optimize their YouTube comment section. Aside from being an opportunity to build community, YouTube comments are also crucial for establishing trust, encouraging viewership and driving engagement—especially when it comes to online brand reputation management.

Creating a YouTube comment is simple, whether on desktop or mobile. Just navigate to a video’s page and look for the comments section. There will be a box below the Thumbs Up and Down options with the phrase “Add a comment.” Click (or tap) on that, and you’ll be able to compose your response.

If a comment has the potential to breach YouTube’s community guidelines—whether it be spam, harassment, phishing or inappropriate statements—it’s easy to report it using either the three horizontal dots at the end of the line with the Thumbs Up and Down or by clicking the resulting Report option with a flag. Alternatively, you can add a YouTube Comments stream to your Hootsuite dashboard to monitor and manage your channel’s comments from one central location. If you decide to use this feature, keep in mind that you can set it up to approve all or only moderated comments—making it easier for you and your team to maintain a high standard of quality across all channels. YouTube comments