Starting a YouTube channel has many benefits, some of which are too tempting to ignore. The first advantage? You can create content from the heart and share it with like-minded viewers around the world. And finally, you build a community where thousands of people (or even millions) look forward to watching your videos.
If all goes well, you will reach a point where you will love your videos monetize videos, earn a full-time income, or even build a business.
Reading: How to create a youtube channel 2020
But remember, you’re not the only person trying to become a content creator on YouTube. There are millions of channels out there, and the people behind them want the same thing as you: creative expression, financial freedom, and a community.
That’s why you should learn how to start a successful YouTube channel. With so much competition, you need tips and strategies to start your journey off right.
1. Create a YouTube Channel in 4 Steps
The first step is to actually create your YouTube channel. It doesn’t take long:
1. Sign in to YouTube.
2. Click on your profile picture in the top right and select Create Channel from the menu.
3. Upload a profile picture and enter your channel name.
Profile pictures should be:
- Square or circular
- 800 x 800 pixels
- JPG, GIF, BMP or PNG
And if you need it, here is a guide on how to create the best YouTube channel name.
4. Click Create Channel in the bottom right.
Verify your phone number on YouTube
After creating your channel, the next step is to verify your phone number. This step allows you to create videos longer than 15 minutes, upload custom thumbnails, live stream, and dispute Content ID claims.
1. To verify your phone number, click on your profile picture again and select YouTube Studio from the menu.
2. Click Settings in the left navigation bar.
3. Click the Channel tab, then select Feature Permission.
4. Under Intermediate Functions, click Confirm phone number and follow the on-screen instructions.
Add a banner and video watermark to your channel
You can also add a banner and video watermark to your channel at this point.
A channel banner is a long, horizontal image that appears at the top of your YouTube channel’s home page. If you design it well, it will quickly communicate what your videos are about. Here is an example from the Poké Daxi YouTube channel.
A video watermark is a small image in the lower-right corner of all your videos. When viewers click or hover over the image, YouTube will prompt them to subscribe to your channel. You can make this image your channel logo or whatever you feel best for branding your content.
How to add a banner and video watermark to your channel
Once you’ve created your banner and watermark, follow these steps to add them to your Add channel.
1. Go to YouTube Studio and click Customization in the left navigation bar.
2. Click the Branding tab.
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3. Locate the Banners and Watermarks sections. Click Upload to add each asset to your channel.
Tips for uploading YouTube banners:
- Minimum image size: 2048 x 1152 px with an aspect ratio of 16:9.
- Maximum file size allowed: 6 MB
Tips for uploading video watermark:
- YouTube recommends dimensions of 150 x 150 pixels.
- Acceptable file types: PNG, GIF (no animations), BMP and JPEG.
- Maximum Allowed file size: 1MB.
2. Find your YouTube niche (channel topic)
Your niche is the main topic that you will explore on your YouTube channel This is also why most people watch your content, as some viewers are attracted to certain topics.
And there is a wide range:
- Games
- Cooking
- Technic
- Makeup and beauty
- Fitness
- Pets and animals
- Health Since
- Finance
- Business
- Comedy
- Music
- Sport
- And so many others
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But if you really want to stand out, find a niche within a niche. For example, you could create a channel about how to cook Caribbean food instead of focusing on all cooking styles like American, Italian, Spanish, etc. Your broad niche would be “Cooking” and your sub-niche would be “Caribbean Recipes”. .”
Need help finding your YouTube niche? Or ideas for starting a YouTube channel? Here are seven tips to discover your channel’s main topic.
3. Identify your target audience
Once you’ve found your niche, it’s a lot easier to visualize who will be watching your videos, and you’d better do that sooner rather than later.
Here’s why:
- Understanding what your viewers need (information, entertainment, guidance, directions) can help you develop better video ideas.
- You can Post videos at the right time of day if you know your audience’s viewing habits.
- If you know viewers’ likes and dislikes, you can create engaging content.
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Some of that knowledge comes as you build an audience, but right now you can guess a few things about your potential audience.
Let’s say you want e create a channel about working around the globe – become a digital nomad. Your target audience might be younger adults in their 20s or early 30s who can afford to travel non-stop. They may not have found roots or started a family yet, allowing them to move from country to country. 1000×667.jpg” alt=”” />
Need tips for international travel? Don’t like staying in one place for too long? Does it matter when you post on YouTube if your viewers are global citizens?
These questions will help you plan content around viewers’ lives.
4. Create a value proposition for your viewers
So far you have figured out your channel’s topic and who your viewers are. Now it’s time to make a promise to everyone who comes across your content.
We call this promise a value proposition. It’s a short statement , which explains what your channel is about and what viewers gain from watching your videos.
Here’s an example: “Creator-obsessed YouTube education“. The is our value proposition for the vidIQ channel, and it makes two things clear:
- We are obsessed with helping creators achieve their goals n.
- We specialize in YouTube education and coaching.
Having a tagline like This not only helps viewers understand you. It also helps you create the right content. You can avoid creating videos that don’t align with your mission or viewers’ interests.
5. Find your competitors on YouTube
As a YouTube content creator, it is important to know who your competitors are. It’s not like you have to fight them all the time. Or try to prioritize their videos so your channel gets more views than their own.
More than anything, the competition inspires you to make better videos. It gives you another creator to watch, learn from, and measure your content against. And when you’re ready, sometimes it makes sense to work with competitors because you share overlapping audiences.
You can do a little YouTube research to see which channels are similar to what you’re planning. All you have to do is type general topics or searches into YouTube’s search bar (related to your niche) and see which channels pop up.
But once you’ve made 15-20 videos, you can use this guide to create a more accurate list of your biggest competitors.
6. Make a list of video ideas
It’s helpful to have a few video ideas before you start with the Start posting on YouTube. This way you spend less time thinking and more time creating.Pretty soon you’ll be building momentum instead of wondering, What should I film next? after each upload.
YouTube video ideas come from many places. You can research:
- What competitor channels post
- What’s new in your niche
- Trending topics in your niche
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You can even recreate existing YouTube videos and take the time to add something new and insightful to the conversation.
But if you need more guidance, here are seven incredible ways to come up with video ideas.
7. Test your video ideas with keyword research
Now that you have a list of video ideas, it’s time to test their popularity on YouTube.
One way you can do this is keyword research. This is used to find out what words viewers use to search for videos on YouTube.
For example, someone could type “spinach gardeners” to see videos showing them how to plant and grow spinach. Another viewer might type “become a real estate agent” to find other real estate agents who can explain this career path.
Knowing what search terms your potential viewers are using can help you get more views on YouTube. All you have to do is add these relevant terms – in other words, YouTube keywords – to your video titles and descriptions. This small but powerful task tells the search engine which viewers to show your content to.
Want to know which search terms match your video ideas? Or how many times per month viewers use certain keywords? Read this guide to learn the basics of YouTube keyword research.
8. Get the right gear for your YouTube needs
How much does it cost to get a start youtube channel? That’s what a lot of new YouTubers want to know.
The short answer is: It’s free. You don’t have to spend any money if you go to YouTube and set up your channel today.
The long-term costs come after you create your channel. However, the exact number depends on the type of videos you want to create.
Realistically, you might need one of the following:
- DSLR video camera or smartphone to record
- External microphone
- Lighting setup
- Video editing app or desktop software
- External hard drive to store video files
- Tripod
- Memory cards
In the beginning you probably got away with recording videos with your smartphone. But some content requires more than that.
If you are recording tutorials indoors and the lighting is not good, you may need external lighting. But lighting won’t be your problem if you’re vlogging in the sun all day. Then you may be producing quality sound or need a tripod to balance your camera. It really depends on the content.
9. Learn how YouTube works
Sometimes YouTube gets confusing when you approach it as a creator and not just a viewer. There are many things to research, e.g. B. how to make better videos, identify competitors and measure your progress.
But you can start by learning the YouTube basics:
- Your competitors on YouTube Find
- Follow trends that can become video ideas
- Create attractive thumbnails
- Write captivating video titles
- Write meaningful video descriptions
- Optimize videos for YouTube search
- Evaluate your YouTube analytics
- Know how the YouTube algorithm works
- Copyright avoidance claims and warnings
- Understand the YouTube monetization process
- Understand YouTube’s rules, such as: For example, the Community Guidelines and Monetization Guidelines
The links above give you an overview of YouTube so you can start growing your channel.
10. Post Your first video
This is what you’ve been waiting for the whole time: your first YouTube video to post. And now that you’ve found a niche, identified your audience, come up with video ideas, and more, you’re ready to take that leap.
How to upload a YouTube video:
1. Go to YouTube.com and click the camera icon next to your profile picture.
2. Select Upload Video from the menu.
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3. Drag and drop videos to the upload area or click Select Files to browse for videos on your device.
Follow the on-screen instructions to complete your upload!
Now that you have your YouTube Once you’ve created a channel, learn how to increase your views quickly.
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