EmbedPlus is a YouTube video embeded plugin, which helps you enhance engagement. The plugin comes with some nice features, which help you to connect with the visitors and also add video reactions, chaptering, timed-text annotation and more.

We must say from the beginning that this plugin is a SaaS (Software as a Service) and it`s a third-party of EmbedPlus.com.

Installation and Settings

EmbedPlus can be installed like any other plugin, and after that, in the Settings Menu an option called EmbedPlus will appear. Also you will see a small embed icon

So this leads you to the next step – Settings.

As you can see above, you can make two types of settings:

• Auto-Embed Settings and
• Additional URL Options.

Auto-Embed Settings

Here you can set the plugin to:

Automatically enhance all your YouTube embeds – which upgrade the existing embeds.

Allow visitors to see Real-Time Reactions

This allows visitor to see comments and reactions from platforms like YouTube, Reddit, Digg, Twitter, etc. and make an idea about the posted video.

Enable Sweetspot Marking for the next/previous buttons

This is an interesting feature which makes sure you don`t miss the most important parts of a video. After the video and the discussions are analyzed, the parts that stir interest of the viewer are found and ranked, and visual cues are given, for the sweetest sports . The visitor can move from one to another with the help of the Next and Previous buttons, and the the beginning of a sweet spot is shown by the presence of some little exclamation signs, as you can see in the image.

Additional URL Options

Here you can use the option &w – for setting the width, &h – for setting the height and &start – for setting the video start second. They also must contain the values for each one and the video link must be on its own line.

Example:

If you want to add a 200×200 video, simply add &w=200&h=200 at the end of the YouTube link.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6v2L2UGZJAM&w=200&h=200

EmbedPlus Wizard

As an alternative to the above option, you can use the EmbedPlus Wizard which automatically generates the code of the embedded video after you set your options. You can have access to the wizard trough the EmbedPlus button that appears in the rich-text editor.

All you have to do is to follow three steps and the first one is to enter the YouTube video URL in the textbox.

After that, you can make your choices and set the:

Size

Here you must enter the width and the height of your YouTube video, or you can choose to Auto-Height and the video will automatically be set according to the dimension of your blog.

Start / Stop Time

This option allows you to select the hour, minute and second from where the video to start and also the time when the video to stop.

Chapter Markers

You can set the chapters by simply add the time when the chapter to begin and the visitor can jump from a chapter to another with the help of the Next / Previous buttons. This feature helps the visitors to be better guided.

Show Real-Time Button

The same setting that you have done in Auto-Embed Settings.

Add Annotations

For each YouTube video that you add, you can make also set annotations, text displayed at a specific set time, during the playback. You can add some desired text, maybe a link to your blog, a small comment or even a text to advertise.

After all this settings, it`s time to Get code. After pressing the button, you will receive the proper code to add into your post, and a short link from where you can always return and edit your settings.

Just copy the code into your post and you are done!

Conclusions

• EmbedPlus plugin is easy to customize and use and the wizard makes the things to work even better.
• You can choose from many interesting and well-thought features like the timed-text annotations, cropping, video reactions or slow motion.
• The plugin also has a version that can be installed on Chrome, so don`t hesitate to try it.
• It can also be used in teaching and more than that, a very interesting video-based pronunciation dictionary has been developed, which helps you to learn how to pronounce and use a word.
• What I didn`t like is the Support Service, almost non-existent. So it would be nice in the future the site to be better developed, with an active Support Service.