and audio cues. It’s up to you to
figure out the most natural way to
incorporate that for your content!
End screens also smooth the use
of an old-school YouTube trick:
It’s always best to make a call to
action at the end of a video, rather
than the beginning or middle. Let
people watch the video without
distracting them! Once the content
is wrapping up, that’s the perfect
time to remind folks that you have
fresh t-shirts or a new curated cat
playlist they need to check out.
Or like, whatever else fits your
channel! The most important thing
will be choosing relevant things to
promote. Anything that doesn’t fit
for the end screen can just be a link
in the description box. End screens
are best used for promoting more
of your own work.

A Beginner’s Guide to YouTube End Screens

BEAUTY & LIFESTYLE

Rhiannon McGavin began making YouTube videos when she was

12, and continues to use the platform to discuss art, literature and

lipstick. She interned for 2 years at RED Studios in Los Angeles,

and currently makes waffles in the film equipment rental office of

UCLA between classes.

END SCREEN BEST PRACTICES

While you’re crafting these finales, it’s good to

consider whether the end screens will play over the

continuing video, or if you have a specific outro that’s

consistent across your content. Regardless of that

choice, there are some design aspects to ponder. 

End screens will change position based on the device

that the viewer uses. That means an end screen might

appear differently if the viewer watches your video on a

desktop computer versus a tablet.

With that in mind, it’s best not to have an identi-

fied place for the end screens to reside. For example,

a fancy outro with spots dedicated to the different

end screens might not work as well across devices as

a simpler design. If the end screens just play over the

continuing video, you might look a bit silly if you ask

people to hit that subscribe over *there* when the end

screen is actually positioned over *here*.

With all of these handy tools at your disposal, you

can use end screens to engage your audience in new

ways in no time!

END SCREENS

ARE BEST USED

FOR PROMOTING

MORE OF YOUR

OWN WORK.

“

Crash Course uses end screens to link to the channel’s Patreon page

and to encourage new viewers to subscribe.